The New York Times sees Cameron as "Slasher of Government Bloat"

By Tim Montgomerie

When a serious newspaper from overseas looks at British politics they tend to separate the wheat from the chaff and give their readers a bird's eye view of what really matters. There's not much focus on who's up and who's down. There's little speculation. It's just the big picture. The New York Times does that today with a front page piece on David Cameron's government: Britain’s Leader Carves Identity As Slasher of Government Bloat:

"At 43, Mr. Cameron is Britain’s youngest prime minister in nearly 200 years, and he appears to have surprised even himself. As opposition leader, he developed a reputation for blandness, but all that changed after the May 6 general election, when the Conservatives’ cautious, middle-of-the-road campaign failed to win the outright majority many had thought was theirs for the taking.

To achieve a parliamentary majority, Mr. Cameron reached out to the Liberal leader, Nick Clegg, and the two men vaulted ahead of their parties by drawing up a plan for a radical reshaping of the way Britain was governed.

Their proposals for slashing spending go beyond anything Britain has experienced in its modern history, even under Lady Thatcher. They sharply reverse course from a Labour government that, for 13 years under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, expanded the state’s power at a pace never seen outside of wartime, turning Britain into one of the most heavily taxed, tightly regulated countries in the developed world, with government accounting for about half the work force and half of the economy."

The newspaper goes on to summarise Cameron's plans to reform education, health, welfare and legal aid.

I'm grateful to Louise Bagshawe for drawing the article to my attention. Read the full piece.