Published 2005 (1 902 488 96 2) Price £9.95
The second in a series of essays that the Smith Institute has commissioned dealing with the implications of a politics based on shared moral sentiments. Building on Douglas Alexander’s assertion that ‘the point for any political party is not simply to inhabit the centre ground, but to shift it, consciously and irrevocably towards its own vision of a good society’, Chris Bryant argues that progressive politicians should take on conservative elements in British society through the statement and restatement of fundamental progressive values; can afford to expend political capital on winning arguments for progressive causes; and must frame issues in a manner that clearly and coherently explains their proposed policies in the light of a progressive vision.