Kwasi Kwarteng’s attempts to start another Tory economic reboot won’t wash: Chris Burn

Current Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is expected to make the step up under the new Liz Truss administration.

Since the Brexit referendum result of June 2016 overturned the political order, the nation’s finances have been the responsibility of Philip Hammond (who resigned rather than serve under Boris Johnson); Sajid Javid (who resigned after Boris Johnson reportedly wanted him to fire all his aides); Rishi Sunak (who resigned over Boris Johnson’s conduct) and Nadhim Zahawi (who told Boris Johnson to resign a day after being appointed).

It is fair to say there has been a common theme with the political demises of our most recent chancellors.

Despite that context, Mr Kwarteng appears to have taken an immediate leaf out of Boris Johnson’s political playbook.

Back in 2019, Mr Johnson managed to great effect to present himself and his Tory party as a ‘new’ Government which rejected the austerity measures of the Cameron years and the negotiating caution of the May era for a combination of ‘levelling up’ spending promises and a buccaneering approach to breaking the deadlock with the EU to ‘get Brexit done’.

On both counts, it is deeply questionable whether the reality has actually matched the rhetoric but from a presentation perspective, there is little doubt that Mr Johnson did achieve his electoral aims.

Mr Kwarteng has signalled a similar PR approach in an opinion piece for the Financial Times ahead of his likely coronation as Chancellor.

Yes, the man who has been in Parliament since 2010, served in ministerial roles since 2017 and been Business Secretary for almost two years is now arguing that it is time to do away with the “same old economic managerialism [that] has left us with a stagnating economy and anaemic growth”.

But even with a new economic approach based on cutting taxes and deregulation, it appears unlikely that voters will buy the idea that Truss and Kwarteng are ushering in a new political era – particularly when so many of the faces around the Cabinet table will be Johnson loyalists.

Mr Kwarteng also notes that the country is facing the “toxic combination” of the highest tax rate in 70 years and sluggish labour productivity growing at just 0.4% per year since the financial crisis.

Whatever the arguments for correcting the mistakes of the past, most reasonable voters will weigh up those “toxic” issues alongside the fact that it is the Conservative party that has been in power for 12 years.

Mr Kwarteng says Liz Truss will aim to get the country to 2.5% annual growth, delivering higher wages, more vibrant high streets and better futures for young people.

But after 12 years of effectively being told, ‘Things are bad now but will get better at an undefined point in the future’, Mr Kwarteng may come to find that yet another promise of jam tomorrow will no longer wash with the nation’s voters.