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The CapX Podcast: Frank Luntz on what Britain really thinks

Source CAPX 07/07/21

You can listen to the podcast by clicking on the link. It's about half an hour but I think worth it.

 Link

  • Capitalism' as a term no longer appeals – people want to hear about 'economic freedom'
  •   Boris must be the candidate of optimism – sterner messages must come from other ministers
  •   Most swing voters think Britain is basically a good country, but too many on the left disagree


Patriotism and the left:

[Swing voters] believe in the country. They believe in traditions, they believe that Britain is inherently a good country. And there are a lot of people on the left who don’t. 

The challenge for the Tories

The Conservative challenge right now is that they don’t realise, I don’t think, that the public wants to help those who haven’t been helped…too often you don’t hear that, from the Conservative Party leaders. Too often you hear about the success stories, rather than ‘we need to do more, and we need to do better’.

How Johnson can retain his appeal

Boris should be the candidate of hope and optimism and a better future. And there have to be other other people within his government that, in essence, play the heavy hand. I think it’s up to the Chancellor to say, “Look, we can’t do this. We can’t be this. You’ve got to say no.” Boris should be the person says yes.

The language of capitalism

The truth is, capitalism itself is dead. Not the theory, but the language, the labelling. The public either wants an “open economy” or “economic freedom”…Economic Freedom is the small business. It’s the restauranteur. It’s the owner of the apothecary or the pharmaceutical companies, the owner of the local supermarket. ‘Capitalism’ is about the FTSE 100 or about Wall Street and that’s something the public doesn’t support any more.

A warning from America

I look at myself as a reverse Paul Revere. Just as he rode the streets of Boston, warning people “the British are coming, the British are coming”, I am walking through the streets of London yelling “Don’t let the Americans come because you’re not gonna like what they’re bringing with them!”.

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