Let's pretend the last 13 years don't exist
Today, British PM Rishi Sunak gave his Tory Party a masterclass in misdirection. He'd be better offering them a lesson in manners.
Disclosure: I’m branch secretary for my local Labour Party. If that annoys you, then click away but note this is not an official Labour Party story. It’s what I am seeing.
When Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s wife came on stage to do a warm up act for his 2023 Tory Conference speech, I knew he was doomed. After all, she’s not going to come on and tell us what a duplicitous dope he really is, is she? She portrayed dishi Rishi as warm, fuzzy, cuddly and caring. Aren’t all husbands when described outside of the therapy room?
In reality, we got a Prime Minister who’s very much for turning but without the nous to come up with anything new that wasn’t telegraphed well in advance. The only mild surprise was when he repeatedly told his audience (because it sure as heck isn’t mine), about ‘broken politics’ and that only he could set aside 30 years of short term thinking and pandering to vested interests. And then he cancelled the northern leg of HS2 - a long term project. What a marvelous lesson in misdirection.
I would have been far more impressed if Sunak had coupled the broken politics message to the appalling manners on show by some in his party. But that would be a stretch. When rumors of the HS2 cancellation crescendoed in questioning of Tory Party Deputy Chair Lee Anderson, sometimes known as 30p Lee. Anderson thought it would be amusing to question why anyone might wish to go to Bradford.
As someone who lives in Bradford Metropolitan District but is also a graduate major in sociology, I am more than well aware of the many studies that portray Bradford as an example of deprivation and poverty. I’m equally aware that our council has fought hard to ensure that the city doesn’t end up cut off from plans to modernize the northern rail network including £2 billion for a new station in the city and connection to Manchester which were announced today.
But if it was just Anderson taking a pop at Bradford, I’d likely ignore it. At worst, I can write him off as yet another example of a pig ignorant excuse for a politician who is comfortable among those who are so far right of centre they’d make Atilla The Hun blush with embarrassment. Their uncouth, sneering attacks upon anyone who disagrees with their distorted view of the world is at the heart of our broken politics, something that former Tory minister Rory Stewart discusses in his memoir, Politics on the Edge and to which he frequently alludes in The Rest Is Politics podcast. One of Stewart’s favorite words to describe Tory politicos is ‘disgusting.’ That pretty much sums up how I often feel watching or listening to a good number of them.
If you want confirmation, then we have no further to look than my local MP, Philip Davies who is distinguished by his unabashed support for the gaming industry, a TV show hosted jointly with his wife Esther McVey that has been found to break Ofcom impartiality rules on at least one and possibly two more occasions. Less well known outside the locale is Davies’ appalling rudeness when answering constituency questions that don’t align to his worldview.
When asked whether he condemned Anderson’s remarks about Bradford, Davies misdirected. He suggested to one respondent that Anderson’s remarks should be treated in the same way as a Ken Dodd joke and that the correspondent who raised it might be ‘too sensitive’ to take the joke. Perhaps, but if that’s true then I wonder what Davies has to say to every constituent I’ve met in the last few days while leafleting in behalf of our prospective parliamentary candidate. Without prompting, all regard Davies as an MP who is out of touch and doesn’t care. They are all desperate to see the back of this Tory government. And this in a part of our constituency that is relatively affluent and which you might assume is a Tory heartland.
All of which leaves me wondering if Davies will ‘get the joke’ when (not if) he is ousted at the next general election?
Finally, I leave you with this:
"The Prime Minister has an absolute genius for putting flamboyant labels on empty luggage." ~ Aneurin Bevan
Obviously it is always a matter of opinion but I think that the 3 by-elections could be even more significant over the next week.
Of course, if you read Rory Stewart's recent book you get a great insight into how dysfunctional
and amateur government is. I think people will make the next election not about principles but about leadership. On that basis I predict (and bet) that Sunak will retain power with a small majority in November 2024.