The "Clause 4" Moment

There has been some talk of the recent Tory announcement about Grammar Schools being something of a Clause Four moment for young "Hug A Husky" Cameron. Now I don't really care about this announcement, contrary to what you may had read from Jackart. As I mentioned in my post on this topic, the problems with the UK's education system are deep and fundamental. It will take more than a few city academies or grammar schools to turn the education system around and make a real difference. But I really don't think this is a Clause Four moment for Cameron, and I would also argue that he doesn't need a Clause Four moment.

I'm inclined to go with Guido's view that this was a rare fuck-up from the new, PR focussed Tories. It is a lot less controversial than it first appears, and is in keeping with the actions of the Tories the last time they were in power. The problem was with the presentation - it was made to appear much more radical than it actually is. Cameron may have fanned the flames of the pseudo-controversy, perhaps looking to appear more centrist than he - or his policies - actually are, but this is not a seismic shift that is equal to the Labour party abadoning their Clause Four. At the end of the day, each Labour party member used to have the old Clause Four printed on their membership card. There is no equivalent pledge on the Tory memberships cards, and certainly no similar focus on grammar schools as there was Labour focus on public ownership.

Fundamentally, Cameron does not need a Clause Four moment. Tony Blair needed to change Clause Four to make his party electable. He needed to show Middle England that his party had fundamentally broken with their pseudo-socialist past. There is no similar problem facing Cameron - as Norman Lamont notes here:

"Clause Four was the embodiment of a very mistaken, foolish philosophy - there is nothing comparable for the Conservative Party."

The reasons for the Tory election failures since 1997 have very little to do with policy. In fact, Nu Labour have won two landslides using watered down Tory policies. The Tory Party was riven with divisions, tainted by scandal after scandal and led by a weak, compromised leader. Blair offered similar policies to the Tory but with a nice, fresh, non-threatening face. The public agreed with the Tory policies, just not with the party implementing them.

The Tories have now been in the wilderness for long enough to rediscover some discipline, to shed the image of sleaze and to have a generation of fresh faces come through the ranks to put real distance between them and the failed Major Administration. They have the added benefit of facing a broken down Labour party, an unpopular Prime Minister who is about to be replaced by an even more unpopular figure and a sleaze ridden, moribund, bankrupt government. The Tories have the chance to seize power, and do not need melodramatic, Clause Four style moments to regain the keys to Number 10.