How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
[Peterson] had moved up from this landed gentry role, through Cambridge, and into the government. He had used each level and then moved on. Sarah, he supposed, was the most recent clear case, not forgetting the Council itself. They had all helped. The government itself had, of course, followed much the same strategy. Modern economics and the welfare state borrowed heavily on the future. (44.49)
So Peterson hides away, saving his own hide while he lets the world crumble around him. In the end, he is more interested in protecting his own interests than those of the people he's promised to serve. Compare this to Renfrew—a character who represents good science—who sticks it out until the very end, forgoing his health and family to serve humankind. In short, this novel has very little that's nice to say about politics by the end.