Rational Politics please, not 'Extreme' or 'Moderate'

Over on ConHome today there is a blog predicting that David Cameron is trying to emasculate the Right of the Conservative Party. The comment stream seems to be a load of people who are jumping up and down in fury at their party being taken over by lefties. So much of what goes on within the Conservative party, the Labour party and the Lib Dems seems to be internal warfare about gut politics (how your gut makes you feel about something) rather than rational discussions.

There are open spats within the party and with the Lib Dems (who are clearly having spats themselves about it) over the NHS. What has particularly disappointed me is the number of people who have strong opinions about the subject, but with such poor understanding of the detail that they don't understand that their arguments don't stack up.

I see socialist types who are genuinely horrified at the prospect of a private provider providing health services - even if it is free at the point of delivery and chosen by the patient. I don't think ownership matters - but delivery and value for money does. On the other side I see reform junkies who are so obsessed with the idea of public sector reform and privatisation that they don't listen to the detail that has to be addressed of cherry picking (as Norman Tebbit understands, as he has looked into the detail). We have people so obsessed with choice, that they totally ignore the fact that they are only being offered choice of hospital and not real choice of what services will be available to them.

In other words, we have the "against it in principle" lot, and the "for it in principle" lot, and very few people in between. The health professionals and others who are trying to get the best out of the reforms and ensure they deliver what they should - with an eye for detail - are portrayed as regressive forces speaking only throught conflicts of interest (and they are ignored, even when they are acting in good faith.

This has got to stop. When I set up this blog, my very first post was a call for evidence in politics. I am calling for this again. Why on earth can't people look at facts dispassionately and reach their conclusions on what the facts tell them? Why can't they understand that if someone is raising objections to something, it is worth looking at the grounds they state before dismissing them? Often even difficult people can have a very valuable point to make.

I still haven't decided if I am a right or left wing Conservative. On crime, immigration, taxation, the economy, welfare reform and education I am probably quite right wing. Moderately right wing on Europe (but with a pragmatic edge). Probably more moderate on the NHS and social care. I (like many on ConHome today) am frustrated by the soft on crime/ justice stance at the moment. I am also frustrated by a lack of progress on immigration, fairness, taxation and the EU. But I'm pleased with our plans on welfare reform, education, and deficit reduction. I think we haven't done enough on regulation of business (far to restrictive), and we need to do more to open up trade to the Commonwealth. I share some of the right wingers' pain on this. But the thing that defines my politics is at least an attempt to look at policies from a rational perspective - in terms of what has been shown to work, what might work, and why - and an eye for the devil in the detail that thwarts the noble plans of mice and men. And I also believe very strongly that you work within the party to and the country to win your argument based not on emotion and dogma, but on demonstrating the truth of your vision in terms of evidence, common sense and rationality, and always with compassion for the vulnerable.