Brexit dominates the headlines going into Tory conference. But as I say in The Sun this morning, the absence of a domestic agenda is an even bigger problem for them than their divisions over Brexit.
Labour have over the last few days set out their vision for Britain. Unsurprisingly, I don’t agree with it and think the attitude to property rights revealed by its plan for ‘inclusive ownership funds’ is downright alarming. But give Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell this, their agenda is undoubtedly clear and bold. As one Cabinet Minister says, half admiringly, ‘they’re hungry’.
The Tory party’s problem is that it isn’t giving the country a vision of where it wants to take it. One former party leader has taken to lamenting that the Tories have ‘lost the narrative’.
At conference last year, Theresa May declared that it was her mission to solve the housing crisis, to restore the British dream of home ownership for the many. But in the last 12 months, the government has made far too little progress on this. Yes, some sensible steps have been taken. But the policies that will really solve this crisis, proper planning reform and a massive government-led housebuilding programme, haven’t happened.
The result of all this: Jeremy Corbyn gets closer to power.
The likelihood of someone in their late twenties or early thirties on an average salary owning their own home has halved in the last 20 years. This is an electoral time bomb for the Tories. They can’t expect those without capital, or any prospect of getting it, to be capitalists.
If the Tories get Brexit wrong, it could cost them the next election. But even if they get a decent deal, it won’t guarantee them victory. For the public will vote on domestic issues—whether the housing crisis is solved, the state of the health service and the quality of their kids’ education. The Tories need to show voters that they have answers to these challenges.
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