David Cameron
David Cameron, born 9 October 1966, is the current leader of the British Conservative Party. According to the opinion polls, he is likely to be the next British Prime Minister after the next general election, which will probably be held in either 2009 or 2010.
Personal
Cameron spent his early years near Wantage in Oxfordshire, England, though his family's roots lie in Inverness, Scotland, and "Cameron" is well known in Britain as a Scottish name.
Cameron was educated at Eton College, which is generally regarded as Britain's most prestigious private school, and at Brasenose College, Oxford.
Though he has described himself as "upper middle class", Cameron is sometimes perceived as an aristocratic figure (or a "toff", in British English). He has the most upper-class family background of any Conservative leader since Alec Douglas-Home, who retired as leader in 1965. Most intervening leaders have been middle-class (Edward Heath, Margaret Thatcher) or even working-class (John Major).
His refusal to discuss his past, citing the right to a private life before politics[1] has led to criticism from some quarters.
Political career
Cameron's pre-parliamentary career included spells as a staffer for controversial Conservative politician Norman Lamont and as a PR executive.
Cameron was elected to Parliament as MP for Witney in Oxfordshire at the 2001 general election.
Cameron was elected leader of the Conservative Party in December 2005, succeeding Michael Howard.
Policies
Cameron has attempted to move the Conservative party towards what is perceived by some to be the centre ground of British politics. While the party under his leadership has expressed support for some traditional elements of Conservative policy, such as the importance of the family, Cameron has also expressed a passionate concern about global warming, given strong support to Britain's socialized healthcare system, the NHS, and spoken sympathetically of the emotional needs of young people who commit crimes (a stance lampooned by the press and his political opponents as "hug a hoodie" and "love a lout").
Some traditional Conservatives, particularly those on the Thatcherite wing of the party, have criticized Cameron for moving the party too far to the left. They point to surveys showing that many voters feel they no longer know what the Conservative Party stands for.[2] However, he has stated that he is "certainly a big Thatcher fan, but I don't know whether that makes me a Thatcherite."[3] He has also described himself as a "liberal conservative" (though "liberal" in British English does not have the same meaning as in the United States, and instead has the meaning of "centrist" or "moderate").[4] Some have gone so far as to claim that true conservatism is today represented in Britain not by the Conservative Party but by the UK Independence Party. On the other hand, the approval ratings of Cameron and his party continue to compare very favourably with those of the Labour Party and its leadership, which is undoubtedly unpopular.
Cameron has said: "My aim is to promote social justice, making sure that everyone has access to good schools, good healthcare and decent housing, take a lead in ending global poverty and do all we can to meet the great environmental threats of our age."[5] Some conservative politicians and commentators, notably Norman Tebbit, have criticised him for prioritising issues of the environment and social justice over more traditionally Conservative policy areas, such as tax, immigration and foreign relations. Tebbit said: "Is he the party's Chairman Mao or Pol Pot, intent on purging even the memory and name of Thatcherism before building a new modern compassionate green globally aware party somewhere on the left side of the middle?"[6] However, Cameron has responded extensively to such criticisms by pointing out that the economic and social problems faced by modern-day Britain are radically different from those faced in the past; he has argued that the Conservative Party needs to re-take the centre ground of politics from the Labour Party.[7] He argued: "The change is not a betrayal. It is a recognition that the challenges faced by Britain are not the challenges of the 1970s. Social justice and economic efficiency are the common ground of British politics. We have to find the means of succeeding where the government has failed."[8]
References
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4340328.stm
- ↑ http://www.yougov.com/archives/pdf/TEL060101018_1.pdf
- ↑ "Cameron: Tories need new identity", BBC News Online, 17 November 2005, accessed 6 November 2006
- ↑ Andrew Rawnsley, "'I'm not a deeply ideological person. I'm a practical one'", Guardian Unlimited, 18 December 2005, accessed 6 November 2006
- ↑ http://www.conservatives.com/tile.do?def=david.cameron.about.page
- ↑ Tories must retake centre ground says Cameron, Guardian Unlimited, 31 January 2006
- ↑ Cameron denies 'betraying' Tories, BBC News, 30 January 2006
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
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