Insight article
A story for Whitehall
Wow. If there was ever a group of people in need of a story, it is the UK’s new coalition government.
I have personally watched hours of tv election coverage and debates, and read even more in the papers and online… and I’m fascinated. But still a little bit baffled as to how we’ve ended up here, and potentially for five years. Is this really what we voted for?
Yesterday, we saw a fantastic example of two people uniting behind a common purpose in Downing Street: to form a stable government to serve in the national interest. For David Cameron and Nick Clegg, the power of that purpose allowed them to rise above their differences. Now we have to wait to see whether they can take their parties with them. And the ministries. And the civil service. And the markets. And the country.
It is going to be a difficult few months, if not years, for the two parties just to stick to a ‘party line’, before they get to grips with the language of this ‘new politics’. Having a story framework to describe the journey that this Government has embarked on, would put the complexity of their policy negotiations and compromises into a context. It would also express a compelling vision of the future for all the people that they need to take with them. Finally, it would develop the values of ‘freedom, fairness and responsibility’ that need to become the principles used to guide the decision-making processes. For Whitehall at the very least, that clear direction is going to be critical as they battle with the inevitable spending cuts.
And, wouldn’t it be interesting to work on a story that this new team could align behind in order to drive the progress we need?
