The above words come not from a Conservative politician, but one of the more thoughtful MPs on the Labour benches - David Cairns, the MP for Inverclyde in the west of Scotland.
They come from a piece he has written for the ultra-New Labour faction, Progress (President: Alan Milburn, Chairman: Stephen Twigg), and he uses the article to champion the instincts of ambition and aspiration as exhibited by so-called "Mondeo Man".
He states:
"Most people measure progress in life with things, rather than rights – when theoretical concepts become actual benefits. This does not make them venal and greedy, it makes them human."
And he concludes:
"The party that will win the next election will be the one which convinces people that their personal future will be better than their past, despite the setbacks of this downturn. More home ownership, more share-owning, more disposable income, more holidays, more material gain. Mondeo Man was not selfish. He did not want to triumph at others’ expense, but nor did he want to see his own hopes go unfulfilled."
Indeed so, I don't think I can disagree with any of that.
But Mr Cairns finishes by arguing that his party must speak again to "Mondeo Man". The thing is, though, I'm not convinced he's willing to listen to Labour any more.
