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I have refrained from publicising my exasperation with the Conservative
Party but, as the threat of decimation at the ballot box looms, I need to let
off steam. Rishi Sunak in charge and, arguably,
we have got the leader we deserved.
Those who supported the new Prime Minister will be pleased with the
initial direction of travel. A Government
of “all the talents” will repel accusations of nepotism and give a warm feeling
to all who feel most comfortable in a technocratic consensus. But the relatively
warm reception to the new Government so far disguises the gaping fault lines beneath
the veneer of competence. Will the
National Insurance Rise be reinstated, should the promised rise in defence
spending be rescinded, can we afford to pump even more money into health and
social care without fundamental reform, how will we achieve resilience in energy
and agriculture, is it not time to reassess the drive to net zero, how will we
deal with the barrage of public sector pay claims, should we roll over on the
Northern Ireland Protocol, are we serious about limiting illegal immigration
and, even if we achieve consensus on all the above, can we actually implement
anything in the face of the social media campaigns against everything? Far from
steadying the Conservative Party ship, Rishi Sunak now faces an existential
crisis. Can all these tensions remain
beneath the surface? There is an argument
that says we will be stuffed at the ballot box anyway so we may as well get all
the bitter arguments out in the open and refit the ship when all the blood has
been spilt and washed from the decks. On the other hand, we could
all put our differences aside and unite behind a message of responsibility and
compliance with orthodoxy. This is the
appeal today – get behind Rishi and take the medicine or face extinction. The “medicine” will involve, amongst other
things, continuous retrenchment, falling living standards, cuts to hitherto
sacred areas of expenditure, increasing social friction and, of course, more
taxes. But when you have been abusing
your economic health for so long, bingeing on ridiculously cheap credit and
printed money, surely we should expect an uncomfortable treatment plan? Quite so but the only thing missing from
Rishi’s diagnosis is the potential for recovery and hope for the future. I think we would all take the medicine more
readily if we could see a glimpse of what life could be like beyond intensive
care. If we are to stay the course, like any survival situation, we need hope that we can prevail in the end. So Rishi, give us some hope and a vision for recovery –
When daylight comes,
comes in the light,
In front the sun
climbs slow, how slowly,
But westward, look,
the land is bright.
