The gloves are off, but if someone’s getting paid for this so-called election strategy, then we woz robbed! Is this the best that our politicians can do, reducing what is likely to be the most important election in a generation, to a playground brawl? In fact given the fist being made of things by Toyota, it seems to me that the entire branding and spin brigade are all a little punch drunk. But maybe, just maybe, this is a very cunning plan for both main parties to lose this election. I mean, who in their right minds wants to get elected in April or May to inherit a budget deficit that makes our overdraft from the last world war look like a minimum monthly payment on a credit card?

But seriously, what we need going forward is a grown up debate, not about personalities, not even about policies, but about principles, the moral principles that we need as a foundation for public policy and debate. Now before you start thinking that I’ve taken holy orders, I haven’t. But as a philosopher and as a grown-up human being, I believe that moral principles are what really help us “to do the right thing”. Good old fashioned words like fortitude, temperance and humility may not seem very fashionable, but translate them into courage, restraint and altruism and you have a pretty powerful mix. In fact these are so powerful that leading business analyst Jim Collins in his book “Good to Great” reckons that these three moral principles are the key to leadership. So come on Gordon and David. Let’s put the gloves back on and have a grown up debate about fairness, compassion and the courage to do what’s right. I reckon if one of you has the cajones to treat us all like grown-ups and tell us like it is, you may be surprised at how we react. We might even elect you to do the toughest political job for a generation. That’ll be the time to take the gloves off…

Roger is a Fellow at Phillip Blond’s think tank ResPublica; and Professor of Organisational Ethics and Corporate Philosopher in Residence at the Cass Business School in London.

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Roger Steare Open Posts 2010 Election, brand, David Cameron, Gordon Brown, policies, principles, spin