The Conservative Government has had a rough start to 2020 and how it deals with issues this year will set the precedent for the rest of Boris Johnson’s premiership.
The government is not in an enviable position. It has the uneasy task of simultaneously negotiating trade deals with the USA and the EU while also trying to deliver on its many campaign pledges without breaking its own fiscal rules. As well as this, it faces an impending climate crisis and also has to deal with an underfunded NHS and social care system. On top of this, the government has had to deal with recent challenges that would cause serious problems for any government. Such challenges include the debate over HS2, the debate about Huawei and the problems posed by the recent flooding and also the recent collapse of Flybe. And, the government has had to deal with coronavirus and the implications this has for the health of the UK’s population and its economy.
This is a defining moment for the government as the response it delivers to tackle the various issues it faces will set the precedent for the rest of its time in power. If the government succeeds in tackling these challenges it will go into the next few years with confidence and momentum. However, if the government fails to tackle these challenges and does not show leadership over the remainder of the year, it will have huge failures hanging over its head for the remainder of its time in power and will struggle all the way up to the next election.
Of course, we will have to wait and see how the government performs this year before passing judgement. Both success and failure are possible. Yet, what will be interesting to watch is how the government deals with criticism over the year. If the government’s performance over the year is poor, it may well be punished by the public for failing in a situation where it was vital it showed leadership and sound judgement to weather the many storms it is facing. However, it may be the case that the government is able to deflect criticism by emphasising that the current circumstances it faces would prove too much for any government.
Either way, it is clear that the government has an extremely tough year ahead and the decisions it makes now will define the rest of Johnson’s premiership and will determine whether the Tories are re-elected at the next election.
The politics blog 