The Big Idea Competition

Will J

Potentially. The danger will be that in order to facilitate "people power" the Government will set up lots of central quangos to "facilitate" and "regulate" its initiatives. This was where some of Thatcher's reforms went awry - they amounted to little more than taking powers away from locally elected councils to give them to central agencies.

When I see powers being restored to locally elected bodies, and their finances reformed to give them genuine autonomy and responsibility, then I will believe that Cameron is serious about decentralisation. And then his Idea will have the potential to be not just Big but Great.

Hugh

If Cameron and Hilton can harness the vast resource of the retired English middle class with its inventiveness and capital, they will have done us all a great service.
This is the only and best way of substituting for the expensive and incompetent state provision we are used to under Brown with a new less expensive model.

Chris lancashire

There's only one Big Idea required - how to deal with the Defecit. I really cannot understand all parties pratting around with minor irrelevances when there will be one and only one issue after May6 and that is how to refinance the country. Loss of AAA status is almost guaranteed which will push interest rates up and then, in the short term, there's the question of where to obtain £14bn every month from the international bond markets when you're competing with properly run, creditworthy economies for the money.

Really, this is just so much rearranging of the deck chairs.

JohnOfEnfield

ANYTHING is much more welcome than: -

1. Tax and "invest".

2. Big Government.

3. More & more taxes.

4. More & more immigration.

5. Reforming (as opposed to removing) our public services.

6. Hundreds if not thousands of new laws to criminalise normally law abiding people.

7. Stealing our pensions to give to the public sector pension pot.

8. Unbelievable complex regulations for every part of our lives. Let teachers teach, policemen police, nurses nurse, doctors look after us when we are sick rather than bombarding us with propaganda about smoking, obesity & exercise (non of which apply to ME you must understand).

Rather than joined up government they should get out of our lives & let us all take responsibility for our own actions.

God, the more I think of the last 13 years, the more I look forward to their demise.

Vulture

It isn't 'David Cameron's Big Idea' at all.

It is Antonio Gramsci's via Saul Alinsky via Oliver Leftwing/Steve Hilton. It's called communitarianism but I think we can dispense with the 'itarian' middle section.

The truth is that the Tories are so desperate for power after 13 lean years that they will latch on to any old garbage.

They are like Liebore in 97 - so desperate that they were prepared to ditch their principles and follow a pseudo-Tory, a vacuous, lightweight PR man with a glib tongue, a young family and no idea beyond winning office ...and...hang on a minute..

Sean O'Hare

decentralisation and remaining in the EU is an oxymoronic policy.

Verity

And what is the Big Idea Competition, Mr Korski, and how does it apply to sane, rational and calm governance? Tony Blair and Harriet Harman and (under the radar) Jack Straw have had enough "big ideas" to last us for the next 25 years, which is as long as it will take to unravel all the "big ideas" the communists hammered into place.

The only "big idea" I am interested in, which will not be mooted by a lover of big, intrusive government like Cameron, would be the Big Repeal Act which would render null and void every nitpicking, intrusive, prescriptive law that the communists nailed into placed during their 13 years of misgovernance.

Verity

The British middle class is perfectly capable of harnessing its inventiveness and resourcefulness for itself, without the febrile fingers of David Cameron and Hilton inserting themselves into the process.

Right On

@ Chris Lancashire

You are of course correct, but the government have muddied the waters by delaying spending cuts and not being clear just how bad things are.

As a result a lot of people remain in denial at the scale of the issue and any attempt to lay out severe spending cuts will result in the party proposing them losing the election.

The media are pushing it heavily because they are desperate to attack the plans.

It's grossly dishonest (of all parties) but I can accept the Tories decision not to major on it.

Verity

Yes to Vulture and Sean O'Hare.

Verity

I don't want any "big ideas" from any government.

I want a period of intense quiet. I want to be able to hear a pin drop.

I want MPs and government ministers to spend the day playing bridge or computer poker, having long, boozy lunches and falling into a deep sleep, only waking in time to catch the train home.

I want politicians of every colour to STFU.

Tiberius

There is no question that the Tories are setting the agenda at present. Listening to news clips on the radio today (and indeed yesterday), the other parties are all having to speak in terms that deal with the Tories policies.

BTW is anyone else enraged by the crap coming from the Welsh and Scottish nationalists? I'm fed up with them talking about "getting the best deal from the UK government". That message is simply about fleecing the English even more than they already do. Well they can shove their neo-colonial policies up their celtic jacksies and get to the back of the queue.

Osred

Is Idea pronounced Lie?

Mark Cannon

Bloody journalists! For years Cameron has been criticised for not having a "big idea". Now you think he's found one, and he's told that big ideas aren't needed. Readers are not idiots. Please be consistent. Please try harder.

Right On

@ Tiberius

Of course that's the message - it's in the nationalists interests to make Scotland and Wales appear to be pushing for more.

They want England to revolt and push them away.

Unfortunatley, even without a hung parliament their strategy seems to have won you over....

Nicholas

"Is Idea pronounced Lie?"

Only by New Labour. Their ideas are by and large lies and they lie about Tory ideas - or steal them.

LittleEnglander

With you all the way, Tiberius!

RobertE

Verily Verity is right.