Douglas Carswell's Blog

BBC seeks angry right-winger to come on show

She didn't quite put it like that, but the BBC researcher who phoned me this morning basically wanted to know if I would be prepared to go on air to angrily denounce the Big Society - while preferably making rude noises about the government.

"What" she inquired "did I think about David Cameron's ideas for the Big Society?" 

I told her I was in favour.  The bigger civic society, the better.  After decades of politicians trying to get the state to run everything, I added, trying to get non state players involved was a refreshing change. 

"Oh" she replied, sounding a tad disappointed.

Perhaps in the minds of those who make such programmes, the Big Society has become a kind of shorthand for what is nice and cuddly and modern about the Conservatives. 

What better, then, than to find an outspoken Tory backbencher to say how much they are against it.  Two lazy stereotypes confirmed in one go, eh.

It simply did not seem to have occured to her that a libertarian, small-state MP might be in favour of less government.  Much easier to think of outspoken Tory backbenchers as being opposed to nice and cuddly and modern things ....      

It could have been worse.  Several months ago, I had a BBC researcher call me up hoping to get me to speak out against proposals for direct democracy.

Outspoken backbench Tory?  Must be against more democracy and change, obviously.

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