During an interview on BBC Three Counties Radio, Richard was recently asked about Robert Jenrick's. The interview can be heard here.
Summarising his views, Richard fuller MP said:
In the 1980s I watched as a series of leading MPs, almost all from the Labour Party, defected to form a new party, the Social Democratic Party. They sensed that the world was changing; that the old two-party system of Labour vs Conservative was no longer suited to the challenges our country faced. The leaders of the SDP were experienced former Ministers and Cabinet Ministers with years of governing knowledge.
As we now know, the SDP did well at the subsequent election, 1983, gaining over 25% of the vote. Then they declined and disappeared being absorbed into what was still then the Liberal Party to form the Liberal Democrats we see today.
Their vision of a social democratic Britain did continue, but within – not outside – the Labour Party led by Tony Blair, who then presided over a decade of change in our country and establishing a philosophy of governance that is now the source of so many concerns to many voters.
Times change and the past is not always a useful guide to the future. There is a palpable frustration with the “state of things”. Britain is not broken, but some important parts of what we ask government to do are failing – some very significantly. There are important broader challenges on the cost of living and on immigration and national identity.
We do need change. Sir Keir Starmer is evidently not capable of doing this in any effective way – in my view largely because his life experience is so wedded to the status quo.
Of course, the last 10 years have been shaped by seismic change such as the UK leaving the EU and the unforeseen global pandemic - which placed extraordinary pressure on the country. However, my party, the Conservative Party, did not adequately pursue the systemic changes required and, particularly from 2019 onwards, frequently appeared unable to deliver effectively on its own policy objectives.
Kemi Badenoch is uniting the Parliamentary Party behind a mission that takes heed of those mistakes and starts to craft a credible, detailed series of measures that will fundamentally update what government does so that public services are delivered more effectively, personally and cost effectively, and build a society that reflects our traditions and offers a positive vision that is accessible to all our citizens.
To achieve change requires honest assessments, thoughtful analysis, a commitment to pursue policies sometimes against powerful vested interests and an ability to bring the public with you. But this is governance with seriousness, and this is Mrs Badenoch’s approach too.
This is the important stuff: not fireworks and personal ambition. Back in the '80s, I was advised that if I wanted to be an MP, I should go out and learn about the world and our country’ s place in it, then come back and be useful on behalf of the people who you would represent. I have tried to stick close to that guidance. I will not be joining Reform or any other political party for that matter.
