Tony Blair spent much of his time as prime minister projecting a persona that most people of a conservative mindset found quite reassuring. But Keir Starmer is no heir to Blair. The New Labour leader removed a commitment to nationalisation from the party’s constitution. He pledged to keep the tax burden under control. And he seemed to put himself on the side of those who were making a success of their lives. Starmer has done none of these things since taking office, alienating Labour voters and making life harder for millions of Brits.
It is hard to see Keir Starmer’s administration finding such a path back to electoral safety
It’s not true, of course, to say that Blair never slipped up. But only once did he really let the mask come off and publicly display a visceral loathing for social and cultural conservatism while presenting himself as a hardline ideological “progressive”. This was during his infamous “Forces of Conservatism” party conference speech 25 years ago.
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