THERESA May yesterday vowed to create “a Great Meritocracy” as she unveiled her sweeping vision for a post-Brexit Britain.
At the heart of the Prime Minister’s appeal for the nation to return her to Downing Street on June 8 was a promise to take on a host of large problems previously ducked.
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Mrs May insisted the country has been bedevilled by them for too long, as she published the Conservatives’ 84-page election manifesto entitled “Forward Together”.
Seizing the patriotic mantle, she said leaving the EU was “a defining moment”.
And if voters “believe in Britain and in the enduring power of the British spirit”, it will emerge from it even stronger, she said.
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The PM outlined the 'five great challenges' that the Conservative manifesto tacklesCredit: PA:Press Association
In a former textile mill in Halifax, Mrs May outlined the “five great challenges” that her manifesto tackles.
The ultra-marginal Labour seat, which the Tories hope to take, was deliberately chosen to highlight the PM’s ambition to clear out Jeremy Corbyn’s party from its traditional northern heartlands.
Getting a good Brexit deal from the remaining 27 EU leaders was the biggest challenge ahead, the PM insisted.
She pledged “resolute determination” to deliver one, but also issued a grave warning that the stakes were very high as two tough years of negotiations begin next month.
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The PM addressed the crowd at a textile mill in Halifax, a seat she is hoping to take from Labour
Mrs May said: “If we fail, then the consequences for Britain and for the economic security of ordinary working people will be dire.”
Maintaining a strong economy with low taxes for workers and businesses was Mrs May’s second challenge.
That also meant delivering a higher National Living Wage, stronger workers’ rights and a crackdown on rip-off economic markets.
But it was over the third challenge — breaking down social barriers — that Mrs May was most passionate.
Her building blocks for freeing aspirational Brits from tough backgrounds include bringing back selection to open a wave of new grammar schools and a fresh focus on technical education.
Controlled immigration was also needed to stop struggling British workers from being undercut.
The PM said she wants to build “a country where it doesn’t matter where you were born, who your parents are, where you went to school, what your accent sounds like, what God you worship, whether you’re a man or a woman, gay or straight, or black or white.
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The Tories are set to trounce Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party in the June 8 electionCredit: Getty Images
“A country in which all that matters is the talent you have and how hard you’re prepared to work.”
Facing up to the huge social and financial problems created by a swiftly ageing society was the fourth challenge.
That meant restoring the balance between the better-off older generation and the struggling younger one. Her fifth challenge was dealing with fast-changing technology and how it is transforming Britain — both for good and bad.
Curbing the dangers of the internet and the overbearing powers of the tech giants was key.
The PM’s plan for the country came hand in hand with her audacious attempt to redefine what it means to be a Conservative.
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The PM forged a major break from free -market Thatcherites on the Tory rightCredit: PA:Press Association
As well as being “a commitment to country and community”, the PM also forged a major break from free -market Thatcherites on the Tory right who want to roll back the state’s power.
In stark contrast, Mrs May instead declared: “We believe in the good that government can do.”
She also warned the next five years of major change would be at times hard, saying: “Let us be in no doubt: it will not be easy.”
In a dig at her Downing Street predecessors David Cameron, Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, Mrs May vowed her government would be different.
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She put an emphasis on controlled immigration to stop struggling British workers from being undercutCredit: Getty Images
She promised “a new contract between government and people” to win back the trust of millions of disillusioned voters, which means being “upfront and honest” about the scale of the task ahead.
The PM ended her pitch yesterday with a rousing plea for voters — especially former Labour and Ukip ones — to trust her.
She said: “I offer myself as your Prime Minister. Come with me as I lead Britain, strengthen my hand as I fight for Britain, stand with me as I deliver for Britain, and with confidence in ourselves and a unity of purpose in our country, let us all go forward together.”
It is not the first time the “forward together” slogan has been used by a Tory leader.
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In a dig at her Downing Street predecessor David Cameron, Mrs May vowed her government would be differentCredit: Getty Images
In his first Commons speech as Prime Minister in May 1940, Winston Churchill said: “Come, then, let us go forward together with our united strength” — with the quote later used on wartime propaganda posters.
Margaret Thatcher also used it at her 1980 party conference where she gave her famous “the lady’s not for turning” speech.
Asked yesterday whether she was a Thatcherite, Mrs May said: “Margaret Thatcher was a Conservative, I am a Conservative, this is a Conservative manifesto.”
Her vision for her party and the country delighted Tory moderates.
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Ukip's leader Paul Nuttall said the Tories have become 'identical to the Labour Party'Credit: Getty Images
Liberal conservative think tank Bright Blue said the manifesto “shows Conservatism at its best: compassionate and patriotic”.
But businesses reacted nervously, warning her interventionist proposals could increase upfront costs and red tape and spark uncertainty.
Institute of Directors boss Stephen Martin called it “a manifesto which seeks to reach into all areas of the economy”. He said: “Businesses will worry interventions will disrupt the normal flow of commerce.”
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn attacked her blueprint for betraying “millions of pensioners” while cutting corporation tax for her “big business friends”.
The hard left opposition leader added: “The Conservatives’ record is one of broken promises and failure.”
But Ukip’s leader Paul Nuttall said: “It is official. The Tory Party has become almost identical to the Labour Party.”
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