We are told that Gove’s White Paper on the government’s flagship “Levelling Up” policy will be out on Wednesday. Ipsos Mori had some startling polling out on Friday suggesting that despite constant repetition of the “levelling up” mantra by ministers, the public trusts the Labour Party to deliver on levelling up three times as much as the Tory government (44% against 14%). Who could have predicted that the socialists would poll stronger on reducing inequality?

The tax-hiking Tories have lost their unique selling point under chancellor Rishi, the Labour Party has a double-digit lead when it comes to which party is more trusted on taxation. This is an historic switch and a strategic political failure. The Tories just about maintain their trust lead on growing the economy (37% versus 31%). Will that survive when inflation starts to bite?

Fundamentally the ‘levelling up’ slogan works better as a soundbite for the Labour Party better than it does for the Tories. To explain the policy in cakeist ideological terms; the Tories have traditionally focused on growing the cake bigger for everybody, not slicing the cake up more equally. Redistribution is a socialist strongpoint, trying to occupy their policy space risks losing leads on traditional Tory policy strengths. The Tories seem to already be paying a price for trying to out-tax and out-spend Labour…