As I quipped during Liberal Democrat conference, one of the most popular Conservative MPs with party activists is Nadine Dorries, courtesy of that question at PMQs.
Today Home Secretary Theresa May has shown rather more political skill in making a very similar point. Talking to the Sunday Telegraph, she’s said that “personally” she would “like” to see the Human Rights Act go.
It’s a skilful move because by using that phrasing she isn’t triggering any stories of coalition meltdown. Liberal Democrats saying the Human Rights Act won’t go and Tories saying they personally would like it to go aren’t contradictory comments after all. Both can be true.
Liberal Democrat supporters will like hearing the message that there are things the Conservatives would like to do in government but are being prevented from doing by the Lib Dems. But, unlike Nadine Dorries’s question, Theresa May’s comments also play well to the Conservative audience – by sending them a clear message about how May would rather do things different if it wasn’t for the pesky Lib Dems.
And for both sides of the coalition, once again it is a topic where the debate is Conservative versus Liberal Democrat, leaving Labour on the sidelines struggling for relevance.
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4 Comments
So we have what is, however politely put, a disagreement between the two parties of the coalition, but of course somehow you still manage to attack Labour.
Lest you need reminding it was actually Labour who introduced the Human Rights Act in the first place.
“once again it is a topic where the debate is Conservative versus Liberal Democrat, leaving Labour on the sidelines struggling for relevance”
A strange comment given that it was Labour’s act in the first place.
Stuart: I’d say the opposite actually – that it was introduced under a Labour government (though called for by Lib Dems too) and Labour isn’t now in the story makes the point all the more strikingly about how Labour struggles to get into a story when it is Conservatives and Lib Dems pushing different views.
@ Mark
Actually, I think the ‘Cat’ is the story now lol