Time-honoured ties that no longer bind

The beginning of the end of formal neckwear for men is nigh, now that even the British Parliament, that bastion of ritual and ceremony, has ditched ties as a mandatory male accessory in the House of Commons thanks to a ruling by the Speaker, with the Lords about to follow suit. Hoary private clubs in Britain that count many of these recently untied, emancipated parliamentarians will inevitably have to follow suit — though they would probably stop short at doing away with that gentlemanly accoutrement too. After that bulwark falls, there will be nothing holding back collars any more. And it will not be long before the contagion spreads across the Atlantic and across the Channel too, showing that despite its considerably straitened circumstances, Britain still has an impact in some crucial areas. One left-wing French lawmaker has already announced, “Before we had the sans-culottes, and now we will have the sans-cravates (no-ties)!”

Given the sheer diversity of male and female attire in India, it is not surprising that dress codes are more a convention in Parliament than a rule. But most parliaments would probably draw the line at hoodies and shorts, as the US has. With many other sectors traditionally linked to formal wear visibly loosening ties already, the western men’s apparel industry should read the threads in the wind.