Anyone want a good giggle?
Sebastian Payne AT SebastianEPayne
Meet ‘Waitrose Woman’ - the southern suburban wealthy ex Tory voter Boris Johnson is intently focused on winning back from the Lib Dems
Latest AT FinancialTimes column on how the Conservatives might do it
Catherine is our typical Waitrose Woman: 48, with two kids at secondary school, living in the Surrey town of Esher. She and her partner work in the City, commuting in a few days a week
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She reads the FT Weekend, voted Remain but has mostly accepted Brexit
^^Catherine is naturally Tory inclined but has drifted over to the Liberal Democrats in recent months. Why? Partygate, plus the cost of living crisis, the rising tax burden and a general sense the British state isn’t working very well.
How can the Tories win her back?
#1: putting meat on pledge to cut taxes. Sunak and Johnson will deliver a joint speech on the economy in the coming weeks. It should include a detailed plan on reducing the burden, well beyond the 1p income tax cut in ‘24
#2: Mollify its natural voters on cultural matters. The Tory base adore national institutions — Radio 4, the National Trust — even if some ministers do not. Waitrose Woman is not opposed to reform, but the Conservatives need to emphasise conserving.
#3: The public sector needs a real focus on improvement not just growth. Ministers should be pulling at the nuts and bolts of improving how the state functions. Whether it is the police, the NHS or the courts, Waitrose Woman wants Britain to work better.
#4: Tories need to do much better with levelling up. The plan to tackle regional inequality is talked about in terms of the north, but some of the poorest parts of the land are in the south. It should be a moral mission to equalise opportunity everywhere
#5: A major reshuffle to bring gender equality to the cabinet. The Australian Teals should worry the Tories about a male heavy government.
Junior ministers Gillian Keegan, Penny Mordaunt, Lucy Frazer, Kemi Badenoch and Victoria Atkins should be promoted.
#6: Johnson should reach out to big Remain figures. Jeremy Hunt may be on leadership manoeuvres but offering him deputy PM and Cabinet Office minister would be a clear sign to southern Tories. Ditto bringing Julian Smith back to the Northern Ireland brief
If Johnson faces a confidence vote this month, he should not take any victory as vindication.
The ideas and the talent are available within Tory ranks to reboot the government. This moment of acute political danger is the time to enact serious change.
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