Has David Cameron been reading Will Hutton? His comments on political correctness this afternoon suggest the new Tory leader might have agreed with his riposte to the recent Civitas pamphlet. Unlike the previous three Tory leaders who have each railed against political correctness as a modern scourge, Mr Cameron today praised PC for ensuring people are polite and use proper language when talking to each other.
"I am very pleased that people don't call my disabled son a spastic. I don't want anyone to call black people names that they find offensive."
Mr Cameron is himself an occasional player of PC bashing, that favourite sport of rightwing politicians and commentators. Extended paternity leave and the failure to teach pupils to be proud of British history are both evidence of the infection of political correctness, he told us during the Tory leadership campaign. The electorate in that campaign was, of course, not the general public. Since securing the Tory crown in early December he has defined himself against the anti-PC-brigade in the same way Tony Blair used the left when he was opposition leader.
Last week's article in the Guardian about the respect agenda was a classic case of this Cameron triangulation - chapter one of the centrist politician's rulebook. The idea being to paint your internal enemies as crazed as your enemies, thus ensuring you appear reasonable and the champion of common sense.
Most of what is deemed political correctness is simply common sense - not using racist language, allowing people to challenge unfairness or bigotry at work - and falls within that most British of values, a sense of fair play. Intemperate protests against it make the politician in question appear out of touch with modern Britain - a failing that has kept the Tories winning a general election since 1992.
