By George Parker, political editor
David Cameron likes things to be strong. And he likes things to be stable. How do we know this? Well the prime minister has shown a fondness for using the two adjectives in tandem, not least ahead of his visit to Washington.
Cameron’s catchphrase on this trip is that BP must be “strong and stable” to allow it to keep supporting jobs and pension funds on both sides of the Atlantic.
His officials say that both he and President Obama agree that Britain’s austerity budget is a prerequisite of securing “strong and stable growth”, even if other countries with smaller deficits (like the US) are tightening their budgets less speedily.
Just flipping back through the cuttings I noticed that Cameron’s attachment to this phrase goes back at least to the creation of the coalition, when he promised to deliver “strong and stable government”.
Very Conservative, but starting to wear a bit thin. It almost has one hankering for a bit of weakness and instability.
Jim Pickard
Kiran Stacey