It’s time for Boris to govern like a Conservative

It was impertinent of me, I admit. There we all were, Telegraph alumni, gathered at a dinner at which Boris Johnson was guest of honour, and the PM said people had been asking if he was a Conservative. “Well, are you?” I asked.

Leave aside all the questions of conduct and personality that are swirling around the Government, the really big puzzle is one of principle. Is this a Conservative Government or not? If not, what is it for?

There are those who will say the Government is insufficiently libertarian, or lacks respect for institutions, or that it has left our reputation abroad sorely damaged, or is anti-business, or that it is simply incompetent. But these are symptoms of something deeper. It is a government seemingly lacking in any coherent philosophy or guiding principles.

So, before we get into a “Boris Johnson 2022” reset, or if that fails, a leadership election, we need to agree what are the intellectual foundations on which the Government should be built. Here are three to consider.

The first principle is market economics. That does not mean kowtowing to the City (though a bit of respect for financial services as a wealth creator would not go amiss). It is remembering that, in the end, it is the private sector and the organic interactions of millions of businesses and consumers that power the economy.

There is an important role for government. But an administration that is spendthrift, raising taxes to the highest level for two generations, and largely uninterested in economic reform, is plainly not only too big, but does not understand how the economy works. So, in order to put things back on track, how about the Treasury abandons its premature tax rises? There is no problem funding the deficit, and we need to get through the pandemic before even contemplating tax rises.

Second, the Government should remember the importance of sound money, the cost of living and the rights of consumers and households. Nowhere is this more critical than the energy market, where the gallop towards renewables is pushing up inflation and has left us painfully dependent on imported gas for our energy supplies.

There are, it is reported, 18 gas fields in the North Sea where approvals have been delayed for up to two years. Rather than rely on gas imported from Russia or elsewhere, we should exploit our own supplies (which, contrary to myth, remain abundant). As natural gas has lower emissions than oil and coal, and carbon capture projects are also coming on stream, this practical, common sense solution is compatible with moving to a low carbon economy.

Finally, let us remember that a successful society rests on a knave-proof regulatory structure. That means waking up our dozy regulators, while also returning to the days when Conservatives stood for orderly and virtuous constitutional behaviour, instead of bypassing Parliament via emergency law-making and having pointless rows with the courts. Peace, easy taxes and a tolerable administration of justice were the remedies first prescribed by Adam Smith two centuries ago, and they are cures whose efficacy has not waned.