Freed from coalition, UK's Cameron swings to the right

[unhappycamper]

http://www.dw.de/freed-from-coalition-uks-cameron-swings-to-the-right/a-18451382

As the first all-Tory cabinet in 20 years settles in, austerity, Scotland, and a renegotiation of the EU relationship are on the agenda. Samira Shackle reports from London.

Freed from coalition, UK's Cameron swings to the right
18.05.2015

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It appears that David Cameron plans to use this majority to deliver a radical agenda to cut welfare, shrink the size of the state, and redefine Britain's relationship with Europe. Navigating such a small majority will be a challenge; it seems likely that Cameron will move to the right to consolidate support amongst his restive backbench MPs after five years of compromise in coalition with the Liberal Democrats.

The new government has been in place for just a week, but it has been busy reinstating proposals that had been blocked by the Liberal Democrats during the last parliament. The Tories intend to publish plans to scrap the Human Rights Act within their first 100 days, replacing it with a British Bill of Rights. Legal experts suggest that this will be a headache for the government, not least because the Good Friday Agreement that brought peace to Northern Ireland in 1998 depends upon the Act. The Conservatives also plan to bring in the so-called "snoopers charter" which will give police greater powers to monitor Internet communications. The Liberal Democrats had opposed this on civil liberties grounds. Another plan is to give English MPs a veto over legislation only affecting England.

"It's going to be interesting to see whether the Conservatives can deliver the tax cuts they promised," says Ed Rennie, head of virtue at the independent think tank ResPublica. "They can't use the excuse of the Lib Dems anymore. They have promised a great deal, but delivery is going to be based on the extent to which the economic growth stays healthy. There will be serious cuts to welfare."

Backbench Conservative MPs, many of whom dislike Cameron's modernizing agenda, have more clout in this small majority government than they did in the coalition, and this could reopen a historic split in the party. A pledge to hold a free vote on reinstating fox hunting is seen as an attempt by Cameron to soothe these MPs.