James Daly has claimed most children who struggle in his constituency are the “products of crap parents”.
The Conservative MP won the Bury North seat at the 2019 general election, from Labour incumbent James Frith with a majority of 0.2 per cent, representing a swing of 4.7 per cent. With a majority of 105 votes, it is the most marginal seat in England.
He made the comments as part of outlining what he says the New Conservatives group of MPs stand for when stressing the importance of “stability” offered by a family unit. The increasingly sinister New Conservatives grouping is curiously misnamed, or perhaps it is a deliberate irony. Rather than an obsession with anything new, its members seem to seek a return to a sort of idealised 1950s England.
The New Conservatives are led by Danny Kruger MP, a sort of pound-shop Roger Scruton, and Miriam Cates MP, currently under investigation for causing “significant damage” to the reputation of Parliament. Mr Kruger is the son of Pru Leith the much-loved celebrity chef, and was formerly a speechwriter for David Cameron. He has raised the profile of the group, and his own profile, through continued engagement with the media, leading some to consider him the most dangerous man in Britain. Mr Kruger attended Eton and the University of Edinburgh, where he set up a magazine called “Intercourse”.
In the interview with the i Newspaper, James Daly said: “I think New Conservatives represent very much working-class conservatism. We’re not a strange right-wing sect. It’s just people who want to give people the best chance to succeed and thrive in life.
“When you think about the family, it’s about stability. Most of the kids who struggle in Bury are the products of crap parents and so what do we do to try to address that issue? On the left it would just be: we’ll throw money at this and hope something sticks. Somebody like me thinks about this more fundamentally.”
His comments have attracted scorn across the political spectrum. James Frith, Labour’s prospective parliamentary candidate for Bury North, where Daly’s majority is a slender 105, said: “It is revealing to see how little James Daly thinks of his own constituents. Rather than insulting the parenting skills of people in Bury, he should look closer to home.
“Over the last 13 years the Conservatives have failed to grow our economy, protect our public services or provide opportunities for young people in Bury and across the UK.”
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