Until relatively recently, it wasn’t unusual to have genuine intellectuals in the Commons. One of the most important books on the nature of the left and the Labour Party in the 1950s was written by Tony Crosland, who became a Labour Education Secretary and later Foreign Secretary. Politicians such as Michael Foot, Quintin Hogg, Tony Benn, Enoch Powell and many others wrote important and erudite books that helped to develop the political philosophy of their respective parties.
This is much rarer these days: the Commons is not exactly choc-a-bloc with scholar-politicians and philosopher-statesmen (or women). Danny Kruger is, however, a rare and noble exception: a Conservative MP who fizzes with ideas and is capable of genuinely interesting reflections on philosophy, morality and politics. He gained attention shortly after being elected as MP for Devizes with that rarest of things: a maiden speech actually worth listening to.
So we are delighted to be publishing his new book Covenant: The New Politics of Home, Neighbourhood, and Nation.
What makes Kruger’s book interesting is that he is one of the few MPs who isn’t prepared to simply uncritically accept the liberal-utilitarian consensus that has dominated all political parties for decades now. He represents a genuine challenge to individualistic neoliberalism from within an authentic conservative tradition which neither lapses into a simplistic dirigiste neo-Gaullism nor merely adopts airy talk of community and neighbourliness as a cover for mere re-heated Thatcherism.
He re-orientates our political debate onto some of the most important issues – family; love; death; marriage; how to live a virtuous life – and in so doing attains a depth of vision that transcends the usual sound bites and bloodless technocratic talk of most politicians. He sees through the moral vacuity of both our mainstream left and right and offers a morally serious alternative: and that is a rare feat indeed.
We are enormously proud to be publishing this excellent book. It’s due out in late August and available to pre-order now.
George Owers, Editorial Director
Covenant: The New Politics of Home, Neighbourhood, and Nation is due to publish on 31st August. The views of this blogpost are not necessarily the views of Danny Kruger.