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| Theresa May must contain the Brexit damage — and more | Theresa May must contain the Brexit damage — and more |
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| Three months ago, before Britain descended into its “Game of Thrones”-esque madness, Theresa May delivered a speech on her country’s place in Europe — on sovereignty, prosperity and the dilemma of a midsize nation in an era of globalization. Unlike those campaigning for Britain to leave the European Union, she wielded real statistics, not fake ones. Unlike many “remainers,” she stressed the attractions of escape from certain European institutions while robustly defending others. She was thoughtful, principled and intelligently aware of history, pronouncing herself a Euroskeptic who nonetheless believed in staying in the union. | Three months ago, before Britain descended into its “Game of Thrones”-esque madness, Theresa May delivered a speech on her country’s place in Europe — on sovereignty, prosperity and the dilemma of a midsize nation in an era of globalization. Unlike those campaigning for Britain to leave the European Union, she wielded real statistics, not fake ones. Unlike many “remainers,” she stressed the attractions of escape from certain European institutions while robustly defending others. She was thoughtful, principled and intelligently aware of history, pronouncing herself a Euroskeptic who nonetheless believed in staying in the union. |
| Now May is to become Britain’s prime minister, and unflashy good judgment has gotten its reward. In a profession dominated by orators and telegenic glad-handers, she is the defiant exception — aloof, uncharismatic, uncharming; but competent, diligent and tough. Unaware that he was speaking into a live microphone, a Conservative grandee recently called her “a bloody difficult woman.” Among all the candidates who could have become prime minister at this critical juncture, she was the most promising by far. | Now May is to become Britain’s prime minister, and unflashy good judgment has gotten its reward. In a profession dominated by orators and telegenic glad-handers, she is the defiant exception — aloof, uncharismatic, uncharming; but competent, diligent and tough. Unaware that he was speaking into a live microphone, a Conservative grandee recently called her “a bloody difficult woman.” Among all the candidates who could have become prime minister at this critical juncture, she was the most promising by far. |
| May’s most obvious job is to contain the damage from the Brexit referendum, retaining as much access as possible to Europe’s single market while asserting Britain’s determination to control inward migration. But, from the perspective of non-Europeans, her progress on a parallel task will be at least as interesting. For May has set out to grapple with the problem plaguing most mature democracies: how to govern in an era of inequality and social division. | May’s most obvious job is to contain the damage from the Brexit referendum, retaining as much access as possible to Europe’s single market while asserting Britain’s determination to control inward migration. But, from the perspective of non-Europeans, her progress on a parallel task will be at least as interesting. For May has set out to grapple with the problem plaguing most mature democracies: how to govern in an era of inequality and social division. |
| Before her last rival withdrew on Monday, May launched her leadership bid from a podium emblazoned with the slogan “A country that works for everyone, not just the privileged few.” For a politician campaigning for the support of the Conservative Party faithful, this swipe at privilege was bold and unexpected; but May doubled down with a barrage of reminders about the extent of inequality. “If you’re born poor, you will die on average nine years earlier than others. If you’re black, you’re treated more harshly by the criminal justice system . . . If you’re a woman, you still earn less than a man.” | Before her last rival withdrew on Monday, May launched her leadership bid from a podium emblazoned with the slogan “A country that works for everyone, not just the privileged few.” For a politician campaigning for the support of the Conservative Party faithful, this swipe at privilege was bold and unexpected; but May doubled down with a barrage of reminders about the extent of inequality. “If you’re born poor, you will die on average nine years earlier than others. If you’re black, you’re treated more harshly by the criminal justice system . . . If you’re a woman, you still earn less than a man.” |
| These gaps, May observes correctly, have fused with a more intangible problem: a sense of losing control. Old people fear the changes that come with immigration. Young people despair that soaring property prices will prevent them from owning a home. There is a gaping chasm between successful cities and the sleepy countryside. “When you add all of these things up,” May declared this week, “the only surprise is that there is so much surprise in Westminster about the public’s appetite for change.” | These gaps, May observes correctly, have fused with a more intangible problem: a sense of losing control. Old people fear the changes that come with immigration. Young people despair that soaring property prices will prevent them from owning a home. There is a gaping chasm between successful cities and the sleepy countryside. “When you add all of these things up,” May declared this week, “the only surprise is that there is so much surprise in Westminster about the public’s appetite for change.” |
| There is little doubt that May means this seriously. The daughter of a Church of England vicar, she has a moral streak that marks her off from the privileged and complacent wing of her party; she has a visceral dislike of self-dealing and corruption, whether by crony capitalists or by cosseted public-sector unions. But she is not a standard-issue neo-Thatcherite ideologue, either: you won’t catch her saying that the answer to social injustice can be reduced to laissez faire. She pledges that under her leadership, “the Conservative Party will put itself — completely, absolutely, unequivocally — at the service of ordinary, working people.” | There is little doubt that May means this seriously. The daughter of a Church of England vicar, she has a moral streak that marks her off from the privileged and complacent wing of her party; she has a visceral dislike of self-dealing and corruption, whether by crony capitalists or by cosseted public-sector unions. But she is not a standard-issue neo-Thatcherite ideologue, either: you won’t catch her saying that the answer to social injustice can be reduced to laissez faire. She pledges that under her leadership, “the Conservative Party will put itself — completely, absolutely, unequivocally — at the service of ordinary, working people.” |
| What policies follow? May has a double agenda: measures to help people at the bottom and measures to curb privilege. But she will pursue these traditionally left-wing objectives with tools that the right finds more or less acceptable. With the exception of her restrictive views on immigration, which are harsh but perhaps politically inevitable, most of her program is grounded in a practical respect for markets and business. She remains a true Conservative, albeit a refreshing kind. | |
| Take her policy on wage stagnation. To raise pay sustainably without simply mandating higher minimum wages, May advocates the right solution: boost productivity. In order to do that, she favors public infrastructure investment, especially outside booming London, together with greater emphasis on research and development. More controversially, May wants tougher government reviews of corporate takeovers. She does not want foreign raiders buying British companies, seizing their intellectual property and closing their labs. | Take her policy on wage stagnation. To raise pay sustainably without simply mandating higher minimum wages, May advocates the right solution: boost productivity. In order to do that, she favors public infrastructure investment, especially outside booming London, together with greater emphasis on research and development. More controversially, May wants tougher government reviews of corporate takeovers. She does not want foreign raiders buying British companies, seizing their intellectual property and closing their labs. |
| Or take May’s position on executive pay — or, in her forthright formulation, the “irrational, unhealthy and growing gap between what these companies pay their workers and what they pay their bosses.” May wants to fight this with disclosure: Businesses should publish the ratio of their chief executives’ pay to that of their average worker. She also proposes tweaks to corporate governance. Shareholders should have more power to vote down excessive executive pay packages. Boards should include employees; they should not be elite clubs. | Or take May’s position on executive pay — or, in her forthright formulation, the “irrational, unhealthy and growing gap between what these companies pay their workers and what they pay their bosses.” May wants to fight this with disclosure: Businesses should publish the ratio of their chief executives’ pay to that of their average worker. She also proposes tweaks to corporate governance. Shareholders should have more power to vote down excessive executive pay packages. Boards should include employees; they should not be elite clubs. |
| “This is a different kind of Conservatism, I know,” May confessed this week. For pro-market progressives everywhere, Britain is a place to watch. | “This is a different kind of Conservatism, I know,” May confessed this week. For pro-market progressives everywhere, Britain is a place to watch. |
| Read more about this topic: | Read more about this topic: |
| The Post’s View: In the dark aftermath of Brexit, a ray of light comes from NATO | The Post’s View: In the dark aftermath of Brexit, a ray of light comes from NATO |
| The Post’s View: The post-Brexit world | The Post’s View: The post-Brexit world |
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