Further to my post of this morning calling for Iain Duncan Smith to be re-instated as leader of the party, linked here, it seems worthwhile reminding ourselves of the calibre of the man by repeating some earlier posts from this blog.
The first in this series is an attack he launched on the degradation our politics by the cosying up of politicians of all parties to the tabloid press, and the lowering in standards across society as a whole by the free reign Blair provided Alistair Campbell. Read it in full herewith:
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Sunday, August 31, 2003
IDS on the Attack
A strong attack came from the Tory leader today in the Independent on Sunday, titled "End the culture of deceit" , linked here. (Link repaired 8th July 2011).
According to a summary at the beginning Iain Duncan Smith quite correctly believes and states:-
The real problem with the last six years is that Labour hasn't just ruined its reputation, it has poisoned the whole of politics
Which is exactly what we have been arguing for many months on our sister blog Ironies and elswhere.
However, it is not just the deceit and the control and the inefficiences of the Blair government, all of which IDS adequately covers; it is the very quality of debate in public life that has been devalued by Campbell's thuggish approach to the media. This in turn, as I have unhappily witnessed during infrequent visits, has permeated through society so that not just on the roads or in crowded public places, but even within families or closer circles there is sometimes a harsh and badgering tone to routine daily or mundane exchanges.
I hope that with the passing of Campbell, soon to be followed (it is deeply wished) by Blair and the rest of his truly woefully awful cabinet and administration, some degree of courtesy might be restored if not to politics than at least to the broader British society.
In the penultimate paragraph of his comment the Leader of the Opposition says the following:-
At the next general election the British people won't vote for politicians whose only plea is for them to be trusted with even more power. They don't want another know-all government that promises the earth but delivers nothing. They want a government that is ready to pass Whitehall's power to local communities and to the doctors, teachers and police officers who serve them.
They also want an honest government, and the problem for the Tories as the natural successors to Blair, is that their political party is stained by the same brush as he correctly identifies colours the problems of New Labour.
British Democracy depends upon the party system to function, all parties are now rightly held in such contempt that one must wonder how any can win. That seems to be the challenge for IDS, can all traces of the Major mal-administration be completely purged so that they might just be mostly forgotten?
In my view, with Europe entering a period of almost certain, deep and seemingly incurable economic crisis a re-positioning on that critical policy matter, that impinges on all others even those he chooses to prioritise namely health, education and law and order, would seem the most attractive way of distancing himself from the disastrous policies of his Conservative predecessor. More rigorous sidelining of the remaining Major euro-federalists within the party and more robust policies towards the EU, if adopted now, might well pay dividends subject for once to both being sincerely meant and subsequently followed through.
A strong attack came from the Tory leader today in the Independent on Sunday, titled "End the culture of deceit" , linked here. (Link repaired 8th July 2011).
According to a summary at the beginning Iain Duncan Smith quite correctly believes and states:-
The real problem with the last six years is that Labour hasn't just ruined its reputation, it has poisoned the whole of politics
Which is exactly what we have been arguing for many months on our sister blog Ironies and elswhere.
However, it is not just the deceit and the control and the inefficiences of the Blair government, all of which IDS adequately covers; it is the very quality of debate in public life that has been devalued by Campbell's thuggish approach to the media. This in turn, as I have unhappily witnessed during infrequent visits, has permeated through society so that not just on the roads or in crowded public places, but even within families or closer circles there is sometimes a harsh and badgering tone to routine daily or mundane exchanges.
I hope that with the passing of Campbell, soon to be followed (it is deeply wished) by Blair and the rest of his truly woefully awful cabinet and administration, some degree of courtesy might be restored if not to politics than at least to the broader British society.
In the penultimate paragraph of his comment the Leader of the Opposition says the following:-
At the next general election the British people won't vote for politicians whose only plea is for them to be trusted with even more power. They don't want another know-all government that promises the earth but delivers nothing. They want a government that is ready to pass Whitehall's power to local communities and to the doctors, teachers and police officers who serve them.
They also want an honest government, and the problem for the Tories as the natural successors to Blair, is that their political party is stained by the same brush as he correctly identifies colours the problems of New Labour.
British Democracy depends upon the party system to function, all parties are now rightly held in such contempt that one must wonder how any can win. That seems to be the challenge for IDS, can all traces of the Major mal-administration be completely purged so that they might just be mostly forgotten?
In my view, with Europe entering a period of almost certain, deep and seemingly incurable economic crisis a re-positioning on that critical policy matter, that impinges on all others even those he chooses to prioritise namely health, education and law and order, would seem the most attractive way of distancing himself from the disastrous policies of his Conservative predecessor. More rigorous sidelining of the remaining Major euro-federalists within the party and more robust policies towards the EU, if adopted now, might well pay dividends subject for once to both being sincerely meant and subsequently followed through.
