A DECLARATION of interest. I was brought up in a Labour-supporting home. My father’s politics were shaped by his own experiences. Two world wars, the General Strike, depression and poverty in the 1930s and a lifetime of toil, for little reward, in heavy industry.
Given his background, I was often puzzled why he was more critical of Labour’s political and moral shortcomings than he was of similar Tory failings. His answer was always the same: “The Tories don’t know any better, we should.”
The mildest of men, I remember him being perplexed rather than angry about Conservative -voting workmates and neighbours. I’m not sure what he would have made of Theresa May’s recent appeal to Labour supporters, but I’ve a pretty good idea. Leopards and spots come to mind. “Don’t they know what the “Con” in Conservative means?” was a favourite line.
Yet, it would be unwise to laugh off Mrs May’s appeal to Labour supporters. Given their past and current record, the Tories should have been consigned to political landfill long ago. But, somehow, they are consistently recycled.
Despite regular rebranding and appeals to One Nation, the Tories’ natural constituency is still the secure and privileged. Those, for example playing hide, but not necessarily seek, with HMRC in offshore tax havens. That however, is a relatively small constituency and Tory electoral survival still depends on votes drawn from those who are in no way rich or privileged. In fact, when appealing to what might be described as the working class, Mrs May could well be pushing at an open door.
Many have agonised over who or what is working class. Researchers routinely identify working class as social groups C2, D and E. Others define working class as those working for others. Irrespective of definition, the Tories should have been an anathema to the newly enfranchised working class of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Save a few honourable exceptions such as Shaftesbury, the Tories largely opposed reforms that would improve working people’s lives.
Progressive reform of pensions, working conditions, education, housing and health were opposed as ruinously expensive and an attack on property and position. Inexplicably, significant numbers of working people continued to vote for a party that showed little interest in improving their living and working conditions. As late as the 1950s around 50 per cent of working-class Scots voted Tory. Why should that be?
There’s no simple or single answer. It could be working-class aspiration to emulate the lifestyle of better-off Tory voters. For example, through home ownership, partly explaining the appeal of the 1980s sell – off of council houses.
Deference also plays a part. Many working people instinctively respect inherently conservative and backward-looking institutions. Johnny Speight was uncomfortable that so many identified with the ravings of his creation, Alf Garnett. In Garnett’s eyes the Tories are the custodians of the established order – monarchy, aristocracy, parliament, church, universities, the armed forces and the police. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, many perceive the Establishment as represented by the Tory Party, as somehow being wiser and better.
The Garnett effect was evident during the EU referendum campaign. Large swathes of the working population were not swayed by the case for Remain or even by self- interest. What counted was gut instinct on immigration, taking back control and ending unwanted EU interference. Rationality went out the window, replaced by a quasi-religious belief in heritage, culture and national greatness. That shared belief was strong enough in some places to trump fears about job losses following the re-location of car-making multi-nationals.
Jeremy Corbyn talks regularly of a return to working-class politics. Yet, earlier this year the Guido Fawkes website put the Tories ahead amongst social groups C2, D and E. The conundrum for Labour is that its policies and leadership appear to hold little attraction for those who should form its power base. The uncomfortable truth is, rational argument and policy cut little ice with those who feel left behind. It will be a long road back for Labour as long as the Tories know which buttons to press to ensure that the powerless continue to vote against their own social and economic self- interest.
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