Britain’s government says it wants an economic boom
But its core voters are less keen
THE MODERN Conservative Party has an emotional range of just two notes: hubris and panic. Before the Chesham and Amersham by-election on June 17th, it was boasting that the entire country, apart from decadent cities, would soon be painted Tory blue. After the vote, which saw a Conservative majority of more than 16,000 flip to a Liberal Democratic one of more than 8,000, it is contemplating ruin as long-time Tory voters in the shires flee horrors such as new high-speed rail links and houses, and northerners briefly attracted by Brexit return to the Labour fold.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Growing pains”
Britain June 26th 2021
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From the June 26th 2021 edition
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