Finding Direction Without a Map

As the last of the Tory’s major policy review groups to report, the finding of the Quality of Life team are particularly welcome. Firstly, their weighty tome has added a large number of exciting new policy options to the party for its consideration. Some were to be expected, such as calls to curb airport expansion. Others were less so.

However, throughout the long roll-call of ideas, there was a set of clear themes. In the first instance, the idea that the environment is rightfully at the top of the political agenda and will be seen by future generations as the defining moment of our political generation. Get this wrong, and those in power will be infamous. Get them right and they will be rightfully famous.

Secondly, their is a consistency of approach in their solutions. Top among these is the basis of using both carrot and stick to solve major issues. The stick in this case is invariably tax. While the group has gone to great lengths to make clear that they are advocating no change in the total tax burden, they do see the need for a redistribution of it to ensure that the true cost of our actions is reflected in the price. This is almost the definition of the case for government intervention in a market-based system and no practical capitalist will disagree with principle.

Where things are looking less firm, in the ideas of the media at least, is in how the results of these labours are to be squared with those of the others that have already reported, as this editorial from the Financial Times discusses.

But I am not sure that there is really the problem that some commentators have supposed. Not long ago, the Tory Party was under attack for not having enough policies. Now they think we have too many. There really is no pleasing some people!

The ability to really choose between policy options is really an opportunity. After all, decisions will have to be made and no one will be able to say there were no options. So whatever the Cameron administration picks out, it will have to stand by. The values that those decisions embody will become self-evident and the charge that there is no moral map to guide the party will clearly be null and void. Come election time, whenever that may be, there will be a real choice for voters and the basis of the Conservative choice will be clear.

Good luck to David, George and Oliver in making their decisions. We all have a lot riding on them.