What are the limits of partisan identity?

Some interesting new research on partisan identity: https://ukandeu.ac.uk/voters-brexit-and-the-limits-of-party-loyalty/

Voters who identified strongly with the Conservatives before the referendum, for example, followed the party in becoming more Eurosceptic as the party tacked in that direction. And voters who joined the Conservative Party just after the referendum brought their other views in line with the positions of the party: they soon became more hostile to economic redistribution, for example.

Partisan identities still matter, even in countries, like the United Kingdom, marked by increased electoral volatility and the ongoing decline of traditional political loyalties.

All of this suggests that voters are still influenced by major policy debates. On high salience issues, party loyalty has real limits. Voters seem to care about at least some policies.

Kwarteng sets out his stall

Ambitious business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has set out his stall as a flag bearer for Thatcherite, free market Conservatism.

There are tensions in the party between the interventionist grand projects favoured by Boris Johnson as 'Heseltine with Brexit' and more traditional perspectives.   These have surfaced in tensions between the prime minister and the chancellor who favours fiscal restraint.

Kwarteng says that there is a need to reassert a strong belief in 'free markets, enterprise, entrepreneurship.'  In a barb he states, 'It's been very difficult to get that message out when we're spending huge amounts of money [on intervention].'

In a dig at his predecessor Greg Clarke he said that his discarded industrial strategy had been 'very, very broad.'   For all its flaws, it was an attempt to give a comprehensive strategic direction to policy.

Kwarteng had to admit that 'fiscal levers' involving tax cuts or extra investment allowances were in the hands of the Treasury: 'That's a conversation we can have with them.'   However, it would be quite a one sided conversation as the business department has always played second fiddle to the Treasury whatever the stance of its secretary of state.