Perhaps the only thing surprising about “Operation Red Meat”, Boris Johnson’s recent attempt to deflect attention from the ongoing partygate scandal, is that it flopped. The flurry of policy announcements made in mid-January – from putting the military in charge of dealing with Channel crossings by small boats to threatening the BBC’s licence fee – display the rightwing populist instinct that has been central to Johnson’s leadership of the Conservative party.
In the past, announcements such as these might have been enough to keep Conservative grassroot campaigners, MPs, voters and sympathetic media outlets onside. This time, it has done nothing to quell the crisis – and Johnson’s approval rating has continued to plunge dramatically. The immediate cause of failure is obvious: the attempt to placate the right by throwing out some “red meat” was cynical and half-hearted. But whether Johnson stays or goes, there are wider political shifts under way that may make populist posturing a less effective tool for the government in the years to come.
