Cllr Daniel Hamilton
It appears, Gordon, that we may have slightly underestimated you.
Since you took office, the Labour Party hasn’t withdrawn into factional battles between the Trimmers, Romantics and Deniers Jesse Norman has spoken of in this edition, you’ve proved yourself adept at one of the most important political arts, the photo opportunity and more worryingly, the Conservative Party hasn’t had that muchfabled “bounce in the polls” it was hoping for.
Calling up images of Margaret Thatcher – our greatest living statesman – can only be described as a masterstroke on Brown’s part, particularly at a time when many of our traditional supporters are questioning exactly what the Conservative Party stands for.
Following the coronation of Gordon Brown as Labour Party Leader, the political ‘easy ride’ many people expected simply hasn’t turned up. And we’re not doing ourselves any favours.
Let’s take the environmental issue as only one example.
We all want to find cleaner and greener ways of living our lives. The public expect their politicians to deliver economicallydesirable, practical and workable solutions to make that happen. Nobody agrees that endlessly dumping rubbish in landfill sites is viable, just as nobody agrees that it’s environmentally, economically or diplomatically sensible for us to continue our reliance on Middle Eastern oil.
Sadly, the John Gummer and Zac Goldsmith’s ‘Blueprint for a Green Economy’, the Party’s ‘Quality of Life’ policy group submission to the Shadow Cabinet, is a document neither rich in practical or desirable proposals.
Most curious, perhaps, is the report’s suggestion that future Conservative governments adopt the ‘Happy Planet Index’, the creation of a left-leaning think tank set-up to “challenge mainstream thinking on economic, environment and social issues”, as an alternative to GDP in assessing what the Gummer-Goldsmith report refers to as “the ‘ecological efficiency’ with which human wellbeing is delivered”.
Any ‘quality of life’ indicator which places the United States (28.2 points) behind Mozambique (33.0 points) or considers the our way of life in the United Kingdom (40.3 points) to be inferior to that in Bangladesh (53.2 points) can only, by any sensible political party, be discounted. Add to that the Policy Group’s recommendation that cotton buds be outlawed as an environmental hazard and one is entering the realms of the laughable.
If the Party wishes to focus on the issue of ‘well-being’ in an environmental and social context, why not examine our domestic energy policies? With the average electricity bill in the UK standing at around ?400 a year - higher for those with children living at home - and obtained chiefly from coal-burning power stations, might it not be wise for the Party to passionately advocate a solution that not only cuts the cost of bills for our families but also slashes our uncomfortably-high carbon outputs? You guessed it, it’s a solution Zac Goldsmith has branded as “madness”: nuclear power.
For all my teasing about the recommendations of the Gummer- Goldsmith report, I am not one that would advocate a wholesale return to the ‘core vote’ strategy employed by the Party at the past two general elections. It’s simply not an option. It didn’t work and we shouldn’t kid ourselves into thinking that, with just “one more heave”, it will.
Whilst we need to present ourselves as different to Gordon Brown’s Labour Party, it’s no point trying to ape Tony Blair’s legacy. After all, he left office with an approval rating of less than 30% amongst the British public.
It’s time to put what Christopher Chope, the Chairman of Conservative Way Forward has described as “clear blue water” between the Conservatives and Gordon Brown’s Labour Party.
Several weeks ago, Johann Eliasch, the then Deputy Treasurer of the Conservative Party resigned as a result of what press speculation has described as David Cameron’s “lurch to the right”. Shortly after, Mr Eliasch was appointed as an advisor to the Prime Minister, further strengthening Gordon Brown reputation as a man unafraid of entering ‘Tory territory’ to achieve his dubious means.
Following Gordon Brown’s summer publicity stunts, from his enticing of former front-benchers John Bercow and Patrick Mercer to his show of faux sympathy for those affected by severe flooding, it appears that the Conservative Party appears to have regained the confidence to fight for the genuine priorities of the British people.
One only need look at the Party’s summer ‘fight back’ on crime issues, our pro-active approach to cracking down on violent knife and gun crime, the pledge to call a referendum on the proposed European Constitution the second we are back in government, our opposition to identity cards and advocacy of genuine NHS reform to see that.
If highlighting these issues is a “lurch to the right”, so be it. They’re still vote-winning issues.
This week’s Party Conference presents our Leader with another opportunity to tell the British people what we’re fighting for, what we’ll do to solve the numerous problems caused by this Labour government and to present a case for exactly how we would change this country for the better.
Let us not be blown of course by Gordon Brown’s PR machine, however outwardly attractive it may at times appear to be.
Keep fighting, Mr Cameron!
I hope you enjoyed this Party Conference edition of the Forward!. If you have any comments or questions regarding the magazine, please do get in touch with me.