It seems today’s Guardian bears the fruit of the Labour briefing paper they obtained earlier in the week on how best to attack the Tories. Stephen Byers’s op-ed toes the ‘same old Tories’ line to a tee, focusing –above all – on the Conservative belief in small government:
But regardless of whether Byers’s points ring true or not, they’re an example of how this new Labour strategy dangerously confuses the roles of Government and Opposition. Of course, we’re well aware of Gordon Brown’s habit of asking Cameron questions at PMQs. But Byers suggests that Government as a whole should start mounting:“Cameron is an old-style Conservative who is deeply uncomfortable with the state playing any role in our lives…I believe that now is the right time for a debate about the size and role of government: in particular, the need to establish a new relationship between citizens and the state. This is something that Cameron is trying to avoid. His is a dogmatic opposition to an active and enabling government.”
There’s a big problem with that, though. The Government’s job is to impress the electorate by governing well. Going at the Opposition suggests that British politics is nothing but a popularity contest. Granted, there is one scenario in which the Government should rightfully mount an attack on Cameron’s plans for governing – and that’s a general election campaign. Until Brown decides to call one, scrutiny should be left to those whose job it is – Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition.“a reasoned but hard-hitting attack on Cameron and what he would do if elected”.
Comments