Culture

The Red Tory debate: day 2

February 10, 2009
The Red Tory: an economic vandal?
The Red Tory: an economic vandal?

Today, former Conservative adviser Rupert Darwall takes Phillip Blond's "reinvention" of British Conservatism to task for failing to understand how markets operate.  Darwall takes the baton from Kieron O'Hara, who yesterday sought to rescue liberals like Adam Smith from the naughty step upon which Blond's cover story had placed them.

For all the eloquence and colour of Blond's arguments, his proposals would make the oncoming recession worse than it is already doomed to be, argues Darwall. The economy would be smaller, living standards lower and taxes higher. And breaking up Tesco would be a piece of "economic vandalism" sure to create headaches for a future Conservative government.

Darwall's article is the second in a series that we will be running this week that take issue with Blond's bold call for a new "Red" direction for Toryism. Later in the week we will have David Green, director of Civitas, and Catherine Fieschi, former director of Demos, weighing in on the debate. All articles will be free to read online, and as always we'd love to hear your views.