Instability, Crisis, and Statecraft in Conservative Britain

• In Event: Instability and Inequality in British Democracy

Abstract

The capacity of the British political system to deliver strong and stable government has traditionally been identified as a defining feature of the Westminster Model. The Conservative Party has long seen itself as the natural party of government and integral to upholding the stability of the British state and constitution. Aligned to this has been an electoral strategy centred on claiming a reputation for governing competence and national leadership superior to that of its opponents. At recent general elections, this has been illustrated by Boris Johnson’s assertion that only the Conservatives could ‘get Brexit done’ in 2019; Theresa May’s offer of ‘strong and stable leadership’ in 2017; and David Cameron’s stark warning in 2015 that ‘Britain faces a simple and inescapable choice - stability and strong Government with me, or chaos with Ed Miliband’. Despite these claims, the period of Conservative government since 2010 has been characterised by instability and crisis, with five different Prime Ministers each struggling to formulate an effective statecraft strategy. This paper argues that a key source of this instability has been the Conservative Party itself, which has sought to defend and reassert the Westminster Model and the British Political Tradition even as they have come under increasing strain. Utilising Bulpitt’s statecraft framework, the paper argues that the period of Conservative government since 2010 can be interpreted as a struggle to maintain centre autonomy in the face of anti-politics and populist pressures.

Author

• Richard Hayton, University of Leeds