Why Britain doesn’t vote for god, gays and guns

At a time when American conservatives are ascendant, the British Conservative Party is adrift. Most polls and analysts say that the Conserva...

At a time when American conservatives are ascendant, the British Conservative Party is adrift. Most polls and analysts say that the Conservative Party, led by Michael Howard, is heading for a historic third consecutive defeat against Labour on May 5.

It reflects fundamental differences between the political makeup of Britain and the United States, but also the success of Blair on the left, and President Bush on the right,in realigning their political landscape, analysts say.

The social issues that have proved critical to Bush’s success in the United States have little resonance in this country. Unlike Bush, Howard has not been able to use abortion and gay marriage to transcend economic matters in appealing to voters, and he voted in Parliament in support of the war in Iraq, the issue on which Labour officials judge Blair most vulnerable.

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‘‘Tony Blair has repositioned the Labor party as a centrist, catch-all political party,’’ said Anthony King, a professor of government at Essex University. ‘‘And one of Michael Howard’s difficulties is that neither he nor any Conservative Party figure has a clear perception of precisely what the Conservative Party should stand for. After a decade, the party still has not worked out what it wants to say.’’

Irwin M. Stelzer, a conservative scholar with the Hudson Institute in Washington and a columnist for The Sunday Times of London, said: ‘‘There is no reason to vote for the Tories. They’re not offering anything different on tax policy. They are not offering anything different on crime policy.’’ ‘‘What the Tories have been unable to do — partly because Blair has been so successful at stealing their clothes — is to come up with a distinctively different policy,’’ Stelzer said.

In a sign of the woes bedeviling the party, The Sun, owned by Rupert Murdoch, endorsed Blair last week in what was widely seen here as an example of Murdoch’s placing pragmatism (he has a history of going with a winner) over ideology. ‘‘When the Tories start acting like Conservatives, they might deserve our support,’’ the paper said.

While it is hard to walk through Labour Party headquarters without spotting some familiar Democratic Party face who has flown over to help out— Bill Clinton appeared by satellite hookup to speak in support of Blair at a rally— there are few if any American Republicans helping out the Conservatives. Bush, grateful for Blair’s unwavering support on Iraq, has kept out of the contest.

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Howard appeared exasperated when he was asked what American president was supporting his campaign. ‘‘I’m more interested in the backing of the British people than the backing of American presidents,’’ he said. NYT

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