Same old Tories

Current mood: annoyed

The more I hear of "Dave" on the radio the more he confirms my view that the Tories haven't changed their views but have simply changed their media image. Having thought this would be the case when Cameron took over in charge of the Tories, I'm finding this to be increasingly so. At first I thought perhaps real policies were not there because he hadn't had the time to write them. This was being generous when you consider that "cuddly Dave" was responsible for writing something of the night Michael Howard's general election manifesto in 2005.

The more I am forced to listen to Dave on breakfast radio the more I see that the media are prepared to give him the time to say what he wants without challenge. Further, the more I listen, the more I realise that he is being givren the chance his predecessors were not given. However, when I listen I realise that the message hasn't changed from the one I grew up despising, from Thatcher and her crowd.One savvy move Dave has made is to stop babbling on about Europe and sovereignty. This argument made Hague and Duncan-Smith seem like one trick donkeys. This example is apt because Dave is still very anti-Europe, most aptly demonstrated by his taking the Tory MEPs our of the European People's Party in the European Parliament, leaving them to group with the racists and facists, who are all anti EU.

Dave talks about wanting to tackle poverty, because he has to because Labour has shifted the epicentre of debate over the last 15 years. However, once again, when Dave talks about poverty, he seems more interested in "getting government our of people's lives," cutting red tape and letting charities, churches and social groups deal with poverty. He also talks about letting companies get on with doing the right thing (for example) by looking after their employees. This is a folly and never likely to happen but is linked to his hatred of the EU - the very body that guarantees environmental and social rights in our country and across Europe.

In London Dave's Tories want to stop our teenagers getting free bus travel. At the last election his manifesto included the national minimum wage as red tape. This is what we have to fight and think long and hard about if we are going to let the Tories back in again. We don't want Thatcherism again.