Liam Byrne

Give us back our Big Idea, Mr Cameron

Liam Byrne — tipped for Cabinet promotion in the reshuffle — says that when Cameroons advocate ‘fraternity’ they are repackaging the Conservative case for the shrinking of the state

Liam Byrne — tipped for Cabinet promotion in the reshuffle — says that when Cameroons advocate ‘fraternity’ they are repackaging the Conservative case for the shrinking of the state

The idea that we might have a fight about ‘fraternity’ at the next election shows just how far the centre ground of politics has moved. Not so long ago, people would have laughed if you suggested the Tories might have a stab at a row about feelings of solidarity. Indeed among Conservatives the very concept may still be a specialist taste. But a casual glance at David Cameron’s recent speeches reveals a pretty clear direction of travel.

Having put his cards on the table and professed ‘there is more to life than money’ (David Cameron is worth some £3.2 million according to the News of the World), the Tory leader recently concluded in a speech to Relate that ‘the causes of our broken society lie not just in government but in our national culture’. A litany of social ills was then appended as evidence, from violent crime to unemployment.

On closer inspection it appears this ‘talking point’ has been some time in the making. For a couple of years now, Tories like Danny Kruger have been polishing an argument last seen in the hands of David Willetts ten years ago. Their aim is to seize the language, agenda and policies of fraternity from the Labour party. 

Good luck. The Conservatives are utterly misguided, both philosophically and in the policy they profess to offer by way of substance. Why? Because David Cameron is cooking up nothing more than a fresh excuse to try and roll back the state.

When Mr Cameron talks about ‘rolling forward society’, he is trying to shoehorn a tried and trusted ‘New Right’ argument into the space created by a sensitivity in Britain that amidst today’s diversity there is a need for stronger shared standards and values to reinforce the ‘ties that bind us’.

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