Why do you call our current Government high-handed?
Because of the attitude of its Leadership and the manner of its Government.
David Cameron’s high-handed attitude is illustrated in his personal remarks and attitudes. He publicly dismissed a Tory prospective parliamentary candidate on air, like dismissing a football manager when the team is on the field, without so much as inviting him for comment or explanation, in contrast to his patience over Liam Fox‘s case, and Oliver Letwin‘s case. His attitude has put a gagging order on the Scottish Tories. He stood in Downing Street and told President Mubarak that he had to go, while Barak Obama used more restrained language. His megaphone diplomacy is stamping his dogmatic streak upon his Government.
Cameron’s deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, is not far behind him. Clegg has asserted that Christian schools should teach that homosexuality is “normal and harmless”. He challenged David Cameron to say the same, or “lays down the law” to Cameron as The Independent put it, reading the spirit of the man. David Cameronobliged. This promotes religious coersion. Do these men understand the civil and religious liberties on which they trample? What can one expect from a Prime Minister whose knowledge of history extends to asserting that Britain was a ‘junior partner’ to the Americans in 1940!
David Cameron’s capacity for public criticism of those who are not able to answer back so publicly is being picked up by his Home Secretary, Theresa May. In a regular fashion she has got herself into the headlines with a list of dubious contributions. She is beginning to appear to be an unsafe pair of hands.
High-handed Government Policy
People are balking more and more at the non-consultative, top-down solutions to Britain’s credit problem. Just as governments wait for big media stories as opportunities to ‘bury bad news’, so a credit crunch is an opportunity to push through unpalatable ideological policies.
The problem with this is that it is done without consultation. For example, the large-scale NHS top-down change was unannounced in the Tory Manifesto. The excuse for the speed of change is David Cameron’s claim to have learned from Tony Blair’s mistake of delaying to act. This is no justification for lack of consultation on so big a project. It is as if the voices of caution must be drowned out under the pretext of stalling from indecisive action, but rather it is a manifestation of the high-handed attitude of David Cameron.
This NHS policy is considered to be a gamble. But the gamble does not stop here. The gambling spirit is seen also in the economic policy . The Confederation of British Industry says the government must have a plan B if something goes wrong. The government insists that there is no plan B - that this one must work. This is more dogmatism, more high-handed attitudes that ‘we know best’ and this is the only way to go.
The Big Society was possibly invented to correct the unjust spin of Margaret Thatcher’s statement that “there is no such thing as society”. The problem is that it sounds like Big Brother, and it is being imposed because David Cameron has a vision - but many people see it differently. They are suspicious that it is just another method of shrinking the size of the state. The Scottish Christian Party believes in small government also, but not by replacing it with Orwellian Big Society, especially when that society denies us our religious liberties of free speech.
The proposal for the selling of the forests owned by the Forestry Commission at least had the merit of being a consultation exercise. However, this was a non-solution to a non-problem - another manifestation of high-handedness. If this is what he means by his ‘green credentials’ one wonders if greenbacks control his thinking. Finally the Environment Secretary announced in the Commons: “We got this one wrong.” David Cameron has now appointed a new communications director, a director of strategy and an eight man policy unit.
Then there are the closure of public libraries. There is so little public consultation that he is stoking up trouble. The tone, rhetoric and style will have to change. We need a more Christian approach to engaging with the public to solve our debt mountain. The latest estimate is that 500,000 jobs will be lost by the course we are currently on. The private sector is not yet properly incentivised to take up the slack. Goodwill is at a premium and will only get worse. We need a more statesmanlike approach to dealing with the public. Thankfully there are others in the government with a more popular and sensitive touch.
Budget surprise bounced on business
The sudden taxing of North Sea oil caught the industry by surprise. They are justifiably annoyed that they were not consulted and the backlash came quickly. Within days Statoil, Norway’s biggest energy producer, announced a moratorium on its £3bn investment programme in the region, rapidly followed by Scottish Gas owner Centrica which put its multimillion-pound North Sea investment programme on hold following the Government’s £10 billion windfall tax raid, announced in the Budget.
This time, criticism is focusing on Lib Dem Treasury Secretary Danny Alexander who, it was claimed, was “almost bragging” that the plan was his idea. So Tory, or Lib Dem, we have the same spirit of “we know best” in this top-down cut-up of our country, whether it is students, the health service or business. Yet again, the Lib Dems are carrying the can for the ConDem Alliance cuts, and this time it seems that it is deservedly so.
It is thought that this policy will cost 15,000 jobs in the north east. Tom Hunter has pointed out that this short-term fix will be undone by the uncertainty caused in the minds of oil companies which are less likely to allocate capital expenditure to Scotland in view of this arbitrary government decision. This decision will do lasting damage.
Ruthless and tribal
Vince Cable, the business secretary in coalition with the Tories, said after the AV Referendum result: “The basic reason for going into coalition wasn’t electoral reform, but the economic crisis. Some of us never had many illusions about the Conservatives, but they have emerged as ruthless, calculating and thoroughly tribal.”
French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, got so fed up with David Cameron’s “posturing, hectoring and know-it-all ways”, that he told him to shut up about the euro.
Cameron is becoming so self-confident that he feels he can insult Ed Miliband, M.P., the leader of the Opposition: “There is a group of people on this side of the House who want some rebalancing, a group of people who want a lot of rebalancing, and a complete mug who wants no rebalancing at all.” Worse still, the Tories benches cheered this to the rafters, just as they applauded his redefining of Conservatism.
Back to list
Because of the attitude of its Leadership and the manner of its Government.
David Cameron’s high-handed attitude is illustrated in his personal remarks and attitudes. He publicly dismissed a Tory prospective parliamentary candidate on air, like dismissing a football manager when the team is on the field, without so much as inviting him for comment or explanation, in contrast to his patience over Liam Fox‘s case, and Oliver Letwin‘s case. His attitude has put a gagging order on the Scottish Tories. He stood in Downing Street and told President Mubarak that he had to go, while Barak Obama used more restrained language. His megaphone diplomacy is stamping his dogmatic streak upon his Government.
- David Cameron antagonises public sector workers by calling their strike “a damp squib”. This Prime Minister will not win hearts during the UK’s downturn. He is not leadership material for uniting a nation in austere times.
- Public dismissals and condemnation without proper process continues apace. Having treated ‘small fry’ in this careless manner the Government has bitten off more than it can chew in trying the same methodology with important public servants. The head of the UK Border Force now plans to lodge a claim forconstructive dismissal, and will take the Home Office to an industrial tribunal.
- David Cameron joined the criticism of Sepp Blatter’s statement that “there is no racism” during football matches and that on-field disputes during football matches should be settled with a handshake . Blatter is prone to public gaffes, based upon his lax attitude to what others treat seriously, and he is now facing calls for his resignation as head of Fifa, football’s governing body. However Blatter was not saying that racist remarks should be settled with a handshake, which most commentators have said, simply because he was denying racism on the field. This was his mistake for which he apologized. However Blatter’s reminder that football is a game and of the value of a handshake has been overlooked although it is part of the solution. It has the merit of being speedy, inexpensive, public and gives an example to spectators. It is very much better than the Scottish Government’s ill-conceived legislation against sectarianism at football matches, and the Westminster hamfisted legislation attempting to deal with taking and giving offence. From our Prime Minister in Westminster to our First Minister in Holyrood we have dogmatism and unchristian solutions to the anger, violence and intolerance in our society, which manifests itself in a variety of ways and not simply on the football field or football terraces. We need leaders who can appeal to the people, and Blatter’s suggestion of a public handshake raises the importance and the role of public gestures of reconciliation. David Cameron began his leadership campaign with the suggestion of hugging a hoodie, which disguised his true spirit for a short time. There is some merit in appropriate hugging and although they have overstepped the bounds of decorum and personal rights, yet Benetton saw merit in using public kissing in its adverts. The Christian Gospel is about reconciliation with God through the Lord Jesus Christ, and we need more of the grace of God and forgiveness manifest in public life.
- In the coming crisis following the sovereign debt and banking credit crisis, we need a Prime Minister who can appeal to the nation, win the affection of the public, and lead us through these difficult times, but David Cameron is not that man. Thepoverty of his spirit manifested itself during the English city riots in 2011.
- 21 May 2012 Instead of calming his spirit, the Prime Minister is proposing to roll out his attitude as a ‘sack on the spot’ policy.
Cameron’s deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, is not far behind him. Clegg has asserted that Christian schools should teach that homosexuality is “normal and harmless”. He challenged David Cameron to say the same, or “lays down the law” to Cameron as The Independent put it, reading the spirit of the man. David Cameronobliged. This promotes religious coersion. Do these men understand the civil and religious liberties on which they trample? What can one expect from a Prime Minister whose knowledge of history extends to asserting that Britain was a ‘junior partner’ to the Americans in 1940!
- 18 Sep 2012: Following through on his dogmatic coercion of conscience, Nick Clegg will force his MPs to vote for redefining marriage. See other examples of coercion of conscience.
- 27 Aug 2010 Religious coersion in the US forcing abortion
- 10 Oct 2012: Boris Johnson cannot understand the fuss about redefining marriage:this makes him unfit him to comment on it as well as to be Prime Minister. If he cannot understand, it is time that he did. Boris’ logic.
David Cameron’s capacity for public criticism of those who are not able to answer back so publicly is being picked up by his Home Secretary, Theresa May. In a regular fashion she has got herself into the headlines with a list of dubious contributions. She is beginning to appear to be an unsafe pair of hands.
- 16 Aug 2011 Theresa May’s blame game about lack of visible leadership during the English city riots in 2011
- 4 Oct 2011 She upstaged the Tory party conference with her claim that an illegal immigrant avoided deportation because of his pet cat.
- 9 Nov 2011 Theresa May was quick to criticise the chief of the UK Border Force to the extent that he felt obliged to resign because his reputation had been destroyed in two days, he told a House of Commons Select Committee, largely by the Home Secretary’s actions.
- 19 Apr 2012 Theresa May has muddied the waters by jumping the gun about the deadline for the deportation of Abu Qatada, instead of waiting for its clear expiry. James Landell, the BBC correspondent, said it is adding to the sense of “a Government not quite in control of events”.
- Abu Qatada deportation in confusion after appeal lodged
- Abu Qatada freed from prison to walk Britain’s streets.
- 24 May 2012 Theresa is no prophetess. Listen to her prophecy to the Tory Party conference in 2010.
- 16 Oct 2012 At last, some good news and common sense from Theresa May, which is being hailed as courageous because it is the first time a home secretary has stepped in to block an extradition under the current treaty with the USA.
High-handed Government Policy
People are balking more and more at the non-consultative, top-down solutions to Britain’s credit problem. Just as governments wait for big media stories as opportunities to ‘bury bad news’, so a credit crunch is an opportunity to push through unpalatable ideological policies.
The problem with this is that it is done without consultation. For example, the large-scale NHS top-down change was unannounced in the Tory Manifesto. The excuse for the speed of change is David Cameron’s claim to have learned from Tony Blair’s mistake of delaying to act. This is no justification for lack of consultation on so big a project. It is as if the voices of caution must be drowned out under the pretext of stalling from indecisive action, but rather it is a manifestation of the high-handed attitude of David Cameron.
This NHS policy is considered to be a gamble. But the gamble does not stop here. The gambling spirit is seen also in the economic policy . The Confederation of British Industry says the government must have a plan B if something goes wrong. The government insists that there is no plan B - that this one must work. This is more dogmatism, more high-handed attitudes that ‘we know best’ and this is the only way to go.
The Big Society was possibly invented to correct the unjust spin of Margaret Thatcher’s statement that “there is no such thing as society”. The problem is that it sounds like Big Brother, and it is being imposed because David Cameron has a vision - but many people see it differently. They are suspicious that it is just another method of shrinking the size of the state. The Scottish Christian Party believes in small government also, but not by replacing it with Orwellian Big Society, especially when that society denies us our religious liberties of free speech.
The proposal for the selling of the forests owned by the Forestry Commission at least had the merit of being a consultation exercise. However, this was a non-solution to a non-problem - another manifestation of high-handedness. If this is what he means by his ‘green credentials’ one wonders if greenbacks control his thinking. Finally the Environment Secretary announced in the Commons: “We got this one wrong.” David Cameron has now appointed a new communications director, a director of strategy and an eight man policy unit.
Then there are the closure of public libraries. There is so little public consultation that he is stoking up trouble. The tone, rhetoric and style will have to change. We need a more Christian approach to engaging with the public to solve our debt mountain. The latest estimate is that 500,000 jobs will be lost by the course we are currently on. The private sector is not yet properly incentivised to take up the slack. Goodwill is at a premium and will only get worse. We need a more statesmanlike approach to dealing with the public. Thankfully there are others in the government with a more popular and sensitive touch.
Budget surprise bounced on business
The sudden taxing of North Sea oil caught the industry by surprise. They are justifiably annoyed that they were not consulted and the backlash came quickly. Within days Statoil, Norway’s biggest energy producer, announced a moratorium on its £3bn investment programme in the region, rapidly followed by Scottish Gas owner Centrica which put its multimillion-pound North Sea investment programme on hold following the Government’s £10 billion windfall tax raid, announced in the Budget.
This time, criticism is focusing on Lib Dem Treasury Secretary Danny Alexander who, it was claimed, was “almost bragging” that the plan was his idea. So Tory, or Lib Dem, we have the same spirit of “we know best” in this top-down cut-up of our country, whether it is students, the health service or business. Yet again, the Lib Dems are carrying the can for the ConDem Alliance cuts, and this time it seems that it is deservedly so.
It is thought that this policy will cost 15,000 jobs in the north east. Tom Hunter has pointed out that this short-term fix will be undone by the uncertainty caused in the minds of oil companies which are less likely to allocate capital expenditure to Scotland in view of this arbitrary government decision. This decision will do lasting damage.
Ruthless and tribal
Vince Cable, the business secretary in coalition with the Tories, said after the AV Referendum result: “The basic reason for going into coalition wasn’t electoral reform, but the economic crisis. Some of us never had many illusions about the Conservatives, but they have emerged as ruthless, calculating and thoroughly tribal.”
French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, got so fed up with David Cameron’s “posturing, hectoring and know-it-all ways”, that he told him to shut up about the euro.
Cameron is becoming so self-confident that he feels he can insult Ed Miliband, M.P., the leader of the Opposition: “There is a group of people on this side of the House who want some rebalancing, a group of people who want a lot of rebalancing, and a complete mug who wants no rebalancing at all.” Worse still, the Tories benches cheered this to the rafters, just as they applauded his redefining of Conservatism.
Back to list
