Michael Howard: The Future of the Tory Party

Fire of Liberty

Well the Tories have started off on a good note with their launch of the election manifesto today. Throughout the weekend, I looked over several polls which point out a strong resurgent of the Conservative party in the UK. After reading the Tory manifesto, I can truly understand how the party of Margaret Thatcher is able to claw back to the top of the UK parliamentary ladder. Just look at these paragraphs on the Tories' plans from a recent article in The Financial Times:

The Tory leader on Monday morning spelled out the eleven words that a government led by him would stand for: more police, cleaner hospitals, lower taxes, school discipline, controlled immigration, and accountability.

The manifesto - the first to be launched by one of the main parties since the start of the May 5 election campaign - relegates policies on housing, transport and the environment to little more than a footnote, in the interests of taking the fight to Labour in the six areas singled out by Mr Howard.

The eleven words on the cover of the manifesto were, Mr Howard told a news conference at his party's campaign headquarters in London this morning, the "simple longings of the British people - people who feel forgotten and ignored".

He added: "I love my country and I know it can be a much, much better place to live than it is today. So I'm going in to battle for Britain."

It finally looks like the Tory party is finally re-gaining its political sea-legs after some eight years of Labour domination. While it's true that the Tories face a Labour's economic juggernaut they are also aware of the concerns that the British people have with excessive increase in immigration, decline in school discipline, increased acts of violence and anti-social behavior among the young hooligans (yobs), and the ever declining conditions of the National Health Service and its partnering hospitals.

As most Tory politicians are aware, you can have all the money and wealth in the World but if you're too scared to venture out of your home due to fear of being hurt by thugs or your health is endangered by visiting unclean hospitals, you can't enjoy any bit of it. By easing these problems the Tories can ensure greater productivity by the British people. By approaching these problems head-on, the Tories are filling in the gaps that Labour has ignored way too long and the poll numbers show that the citizenry has found an alternative with the Tories. This strategy worked for the Thatcher and the Tories in 1979, Reagan in 1980, GOP in 1994 as well as Rudy Giuliani in New York City. I wish Michael Howard and his Tory hopefuls good luck in the following weeks. After watching Howard's performance in the most recent edition of Prime Minister's Questions on C-SPAN last night, I'd say that the Tories and their leader are on the roll.

For more insight, check out this piece by Bruce Walker on Michael Howard over at Enter Stage Right. It'll give you a greater handle on the future Tory PM of the UK.