Tim, 62, London
Occupation Retired software engineer
Voting record Labour, but Liberal Democrats when Jeremy Corbyn was Labour leader. Says he’s centre left. Voted remain in the EU referendum
Amuse bouche Last year, Tim went to Burning Man festival. He wore a boiler suit covered in LEDs, which “was way too bright, and annoyed everybody”
Lewis, 27, Essex
Occupation Logistics manager
Voting record Always Conservative and has been a Tory councillor. Voted leave in the EU referendum. Describes himself as centre right
Amuse bouche Lewis plans to visit every European country by the time he turns 30. He’s still got nine to go, including Russia and Ukraine
For starters
Lewis I was early but Tim was already there. He was very approachable, a good listener. Obviously, there was an age difference, but no awkward moments and conversation flowed.
Tim The restaurant was loud, but the food was delicious. We shared starters – trout in coconut milk and their take on a fish finger sandwich. For mains, we both had half a smoked chicken. First impressions of Lewis: a well-turned-out, respectable young man.
Lewis We talked about our jobs. I did history at university, after which I chose logistics over the civil service, mainly because I thought I’d be sitting down too much with the civil service. I’ve never been one to sit down.
Tim I did engineering at university, and worked in video games software. He did a master’s in political history. I was worried he might use examples from history to back up his points, but there wasn’t too much of that.
The big beef
Lewis We had a clear difference of opinion around criminal justice. The current system, to my eyes, is broken, a never-ending cycle of repeat offending. I believe when someone goes to prison they shouldn’t be locked up 23 hours a day doing nothing; there needs to be a focus on rehabilitation.
Tim It was good that he mentioned rehabilitation.
Lewis The divergence between us came when, for example, somebody commits a home burglary, goes to prison for two years, reoffends and gets five years, with an even greater focus on rehabilitation, but then commits a third burglary. That’s when I think we need to accept that person is beyond rehabilitation and they should spend the rest of their life behind bars.
Tim Clearly, that’s something I wouldn’t be comfortable with. It’s totally out of proportion: just three strikes, whatever the crime, and you’re locked up for ever. I mean, we’d have to build loads of new prisons. How would that be paid for?
Sharing plate
Lewis We both want a safety net, and for us to be a compassionate country.
Tim On voting systems, we both think first past the post is good because it leads to stronger governments that get stuff done. Neither of us can stand Trump – though I did point out that, rather scarily, some of his policies, such as tariffs, have probably achieved what he wanted them to.
For afters
Lewis There was a minor disagreement on the two-child benefit cap. I think it’s unaffordable to change it, and it shouldn’t be a priority for the government. There are better uses for the money. A lot of people in work make that calculation – can I afford another child? – and decide not to have more. That choice should be there for people on welfare as well.
Tim The principle-of-choice argument is all very well, but not everyone can do that: pregnancies are sometimes unplanned; people can’t always figure out the finance side; or they lose their jobs. And the people who suffer here are the children.
Takeaways
Lewis One of the sad things about politics, and the country in general, is how polarising it is, and if two people have different opinions, somehow they’re enemies. One of the things I like about this column is that two people with different opinions can have a friendly meal together. We both said how much we enjoyed it.
Tim It was a really good opportunity to turn over these sorts of arguments in a great environment. You don’t normally get into that stuff with a stranger. I was just surprised there was this one thing – three strikes – that stood out like a sore thumb. I’d be curious to see whether Lewis still holds that view in 10 years’ time.
Additional reporting: Kitty Drake
• Lewis and Tim ate at Belly, London NW1. Want to meet someone from across the divide? Find out how to take part
