Tories must share their philosophy

T his week, a leaked draft of Labour’s manifesto imagined Britain returning to the Seventies: higher taxes, nationalised utilities, powerful trade unions. Next week, the Tories must unveil a manifesto that offers a dynamic alternative – a vision for a future Britain that people will look at and think, “I can win here.”

Theresa May yesterday took her message to the north of England, where polls suggest she is making historic inroads in Labour territory. Mrs May has rebranded the Tories from a party of the elite to one that helps the Just About Managings, and to that end she has, for instance, offered to put a cap on energy prices. She says that although the policy breaks with the Conservative small-state tradition, supporting consumers is more important than “ideology”.

But even if voters share her scepticism towards ideology, they do appreciate philosophy. Philosophy gives a government coherence. It sets ambitions that last longer than just one term.

Consider Margaret Thatcher. She was less ideological than is often thought; her policies evolved cautiously. Yet she won office in 1979 on a manifesto informed by a faith in free markets and individual freedom. The promise of wealth creation forged a pact with the voter that, at each subsequent election, could be reviewed to see if the Tories had delivered. And they did deliver: taxes fell, income rose, house ownership grew.

Times have changed. Today’s economy is threatened by drift rather than the all-out collapse that loomed in the socialist Seventies. But some long-term problems call for a similar burst of Tory courage. Housing is one example. The home ownership rate has collapsed to the lowest proportion since 1985. The average worker now needs to pay 7.6 times their salary to get a mortgage.

What holds Britain back from solving this problem? Partly a lack of supply, but also the dead hand of statist ideology. Britain has given itself the highest property taxes in the developed world, a problem worsened by George Osborne’s tinkering with Stamp Duty. Cutting, or even abolishing, Stamp Duty would be an act of genuine pragmatism because it would encourage buying and selling. It is a classic example of the facts of life being Conservative. Likewise, imposing a cap on energy costs will encourage companies to hike bills: it would be much better to increase competition and supply.

With a poll lead as big as Mrs May’s, the Prime Minister has a chance to lay out these facts and sell some philosophy to a friendly audience. The Tory manifesto should pledge to use Brexit as an opportunity to build a new economic settlement – to reduce the state, reform the public sector, sign free-trade deals with the wider world and cut taxes so as to enrich workers and unleash entrepreneurs. If the Prime Minister says to voters “under us, the next generation will be richer than this one”, the Conservatives can create a standard – a compact with the voters – by which they will be judged in future elections.

The Tories already have a lock on the centreground: they stand where the public stands on Brexit, immigration and grammar schools. Their manifesto must seize the chance to move popular thinking on economics in their direction, too. To win not just one election alone, but to effect a historical, lasting realignment in British politics.