On the ever more common journey from the centre right to the far right, there are two contrasting routes conservative parties can follow. One is to welcome in demagogues such as Lee Anderson and Suella Braverman, and to borrow or indulge their extreme ideas, or only half-condemn them – thus publicising them further – in the hope that this cynical process will attract a wider range of reactionary voters. In countries widely thought of as nostalgic and disillusioned, such as contemporary Britain, it is assumed that there are a lot of these voters, however much the Tories’ terrible poll ratings suggest the contrary.
For a week now, the Conservatives’ contortions and divisions over Anderson’s toxic conspiracy theories have demonstrated the political risks of the demagogue approach. However, there is another way for rightwing parties to radicalise that is more subtle, less controversial and often more successful. It involves more mainstream, less abrasive conservative politicians – people generally regarded and presented by the media as reasonable – exploring and promoting hard-right ideas and turning them into policies, while insisting that nothing harsh or reckless is going on.
