David Blunkett will tonight at a Progress event launch his pamphlet ‘The Hidden Agenda: The True Face of Cameron’s Conservatives.’ He argues that the Tories will revert to Thatcherite type through a new rollback of the state, and cut vital funding from local areas at a time when it is most needed.
The former Home Secretary argues that Cameron’s Conservatism is ‘certainly not that of Disraeli. It is riddled with confusion and contradictions,’ wavering between local freedom and central control. ‘Schools are to be freed up – but a particular form of phonics should be taught within a particular form of literacy lesson, with a particular form of history.’ Local Tory ‘easy Councils’ will become the norm and cut vital services, as seen already in Barnet and Surrey.
He says that in parliament itself the Conservatives’ plans to cut up to 85 MPs – only shortly after a nationwide boundary rejig – will favour themselves and aims to harm Labour.
To attend tonight’s launch please come to Committee Room 9, House of Commons, Westminster 6-7pm, tonight, 19 January 2010.
The Times, the Guardian and the Telegraph have all reported the speech – please follow the links to see their coverage of Blunkett’s message.
To call a reduction of the number of MPs “gerrymandering” is an abuse of the English language. The Boundary Commissions are non-partisan and independent and there is no evidence that the Conservatives intend to change that.
Does Mr Blunkett not remember the successful Labour campaign to inffluence the Commssions – within the rules – during their Fourth Perioidc Review in the 1990s, led by David Gardnet? Was that not attempgted gerrymadering?