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When the Going gets Tough...our political elite avoid the tough questions
Holding true to the maxim of ‘medium voter theory,’ by which an appeal to the rhetoric of ‘tough love’ and ‘zero tolerance’ strikes a much-needed chord with the public, the already-endemic problem of substance in British politics has been further glossed over with a coat of social conservatism and a noticeable side dish of hang em’ and flog em.’ Whether it’s in Gordon Brown’s plan to incarcerate teenage single mothers in a state-run remake of the Magdalen Sisters’ laundries, or in David Cameron’s stern words on the need for reform of the justice system, the political elite have proven that, when all else fails, ‘law and order’ can be dragged from the doldrums to give some meat to otherwise shaky electoral platforms.
The distinctly unsettling attempt by Gordon Brown to speak to ‘all the mums and dads out there,’ during his speech at last month’s Labour Party Conference was indicative of the insincerity with which the major parties are now addressing crime and social instability. Battered by the economic depression and unable to offer popular solutions to distressing financial realities, the scattered array of bribes and threats dispensed by the Prime Minister during his address reveals the ‘holy grail’ element of tough-talking. Having comprehensively avoided the subject of crime for months, Brown’s newly-draconian stance is akin to Cameron’s transformation from cuddly hoodie-hugger to aspirant Thatcher heir.
A pretty anodyne conversation
In his verbal battle with Cameron over who can most comprehensively cut public services, as well as the platitudes spun by both on the need to ‘get Britain back to work,’ fiction seemingly prevails. Given that the current aggression towards criminals, foreigners, and the lamentable British ‘underclass’ comes at the end of a period in which both Labour and the Conservatives fought ferociously to plumb the depths of the fabled centre-ground, the return to ideology in politics appears particularly vacuous.
That’s not to say that issues surrounding crime, immigration, social cohesion, and stability should be ignored by those seeking to govern the country; far from it. However, it is time that they were addressed seriously and honestly, rather than employed for point-scoring. Let’s not forget – in the grip of a frightening economic crisis, for which Labour should account, and for which the Conservatives should be pressed for their proposed solution, neither can be allowed to employ smoke and mirrors to distract from meaty topics. Their attempts to pander to prejudices they believe us to have as an easy vote-winner belie their disregard for ‘politics’ in any meaningful sense.
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