Talking Tory
This was a phrase used at the recent VSNW Festival of Thinking. It reflected that there is a need to develop new relationships and that communication with those with whom there is not a track record of alignment is not always easy. VSNW has begun to build relationships and develop learning to share with the aim of assisting the process.
A “one nation tory” webinar was attended. One nationism was coined by Benjamin Disraeli to remind those in government that they were there for all – not just “our people”. It was Thatcher who coined the phrase “our people” and there is a significant strand of the current conservative party to still adhere to that level of dogma. The seminar had four speakers.
Danny Kruger MP is gaining a reputation as the sector “expert” within the Tory party. He did reference Disraeli, mentioned that there is a need to “trust the people” and observed that “you have to be fierce in the defence of the gentle”. This phrase gives cause for reflection and may be useful in future discussions. He stated that moving forward One Nationism is Mutual Aid Groups and local action within a dismantled bureaucracy to enable action.
Arlene Foster – the leader of the Ulster Unionists then spoke and claimed that One Nationism has been reinforced by Covid. Three examples were cited.
a. The Union needs conserving (Tories take this for granted) but with less London Centric and England Centric announcements and policies.
b. Enable and trust the people – but not in the Blairism continual subsidy manner. She indicated a need for long term plans for education and training to enable this example to be effective.
c. Ambition without Empire. She observed that a permanent state of decline is not acceptable and that areas that once thrived need to be levelled up. Like many others she is somewhat lacking in detail as to what this means.
Jane Stevenson, newly elected MP for Wolverhampton SW saw one nationism as levelling up and warned that if “our people” do not benefit from the “splash the cash” that was promised before the last election there will be electoral consequences. One hopes that she is keeping an eye on the employment market for she will likely be a one term MP. She did highlight that the National Brownfield Institute is to be located in her constituency and that delivers “levelling up”. She sees that talent is evenly spread whereas opportunity is less even in distribution.
The final speaker was KIrstene Hair who was an MP, lost her seat in December, and is now senior adviser to Douglas Ross – leader of the Scottish Conservatives. She delivered a tirade against the Westminster Government and the PM which was quite extraordinary. Shortly after the “Devolution has been a disaster” comment, made by the PM, was reported. Certainly the desire to conserve the Union, expressed by Arlene Foster, is less likely to happen in Scotland.
There were either technical issues with some of the questions (or maybe the questioners had given up). John Denham (former Labour MP) was one of the questioners.
So, what did we learn from this? The main learning point is that there is no agreed definition of One Nation Toryism amongst Tories who have been invited to speak at a seminar that explored the issue. The differences were more than mere nuance. There is some talk about levelling up – but no shared understanding of what it means. There is some talk about education and training and no idea how it is to be delivered.
The conclusion may suggest that the session was not helpful. It was – if only to show that “Talking Tory” is not going to be easy as being in a position of leadership and representation does not mean a shared or consistent vision. Sorry!
The seminar can be viewed here https://www.conservativehome.com/video/2020/11/watch-live-one-nation-conservatism-what-does-it-look-like-after-covid-19.html It is recommended as is a regular scan of Conservative Home. Many of the articles are of relevance to the sector and it helps to read the comments – some are quite alarming.