Ned Donovan

The Tories need to get over Thatcher

A lot of attention has been given to the new think tank, Onward, that claims it will win back Britain for the Conservative Party by targeting disaffected Blairites and young people. There is, however, one part of society conspicuously missing from its remit: the poorest. The group’s founder, Neil O’Brien MP, claims that Corbyn is ‘crackers’ and his policies, including nationalisation of infrastructure ‘need deleting’.

At no point does Onward – or any of the other right-wing think tanks that have launched – seem to question why Corbyn’s policies are so popular throughout the country. Nor do they wonder whether any Conservative government has made them work before. Has anyone employed by these new think tanks considered challenging the Tory orthodoxy that state-run railways are bad, or wondered if it is in fact such a great idea to sell off Britain’s housing stock without adequately replacing it?

A Conservative government should want to improve the railways and build more homes. It is only when seen through the filter of Thatcherism that the terms ‘nationalised’ or ‘state-led’ seem dirty. These think tanks look to the victories of Margaret Thatcher, when instead they should turn to the Conservative Party that existed before her. Unfortunately, these views now seem to have been discarded as ‘crackers’.

‘[A Conservative Party] dominated by second-class brewers and company promoters – a casino capitalism – is not likely to represent anybody but itself.’ While a little rude, the above statement in response to the government’s programme of punitive austerity still resonates. But it is not recent. It was written in 1936 by a man who later led Britain into one of its most prosperous periods in history: Harold Macmillan. Macmillan championed what he called ‘The Middle Way’ which relies on a principle that stood for many years until the advent of Thatcher – that the Conservative Party is a party of paternal socialism.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Keep reading with a free trial

Subscribe and get your first month of online and app access for free. After that it’s just £1 a week.

There’s no commitment, you can cancel any time.

Or

Unlock more articles

REGISTER

Comments

Don't miss out

Join the conversation with other Spectator readers. Subscribe to leave a comment.

Already a subscriber? Log in