What can Boris Johnson and the Tories learn from Tony Blair? While Labour’s former leader remains deeply unpopular – and indeed ultimately fell over a grave misjudgement – he was the UK’s last successful prime minister. Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Theresa May and, now, Boris Johnson exist in his shadow. The PM would be wise then to look to Blair’s rise to power – and his strategic approach to government – to learn some lessons.
In a speech yesterday, Blair warned that:
Margaret Thatcher was the last Tory leader with an actual agenda
‘There is a gaping hole in the governing of Britain where new ideas should be.’
Blair is right. While Partygate continues to dominate the headlines, the real failure of Johnson’s administration is not bad behaviour or Downing Street festivities, but the lack of a political strategy to prepare the UK for the future.
Blair says there are three areas where the government needs to have a strategy: how to manage Brexit; how to manage climate change; and how to prepare for the technology shifts that are currently taking place.
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