Heidi Allen's Poverty Porn Tour

"I've absolutely had enough" says Heidi Allen of the Conservative Party's vindictive attitude to social security. Unlike her reptilian colleagues on the government benches, since entering the Commons she has talked about poverty and how the system her party has presided over makes the situation of the poorest and most vulnerable worse. Though not to the point of voting against the very legislation that tightens the screws, as many an incredulous observer have "fed back" to her via social media.

Here, Allen is exhibiting a patter of behaviour we find common among Tory MPs. They might note the increasing numbers of homeless people, the clogging up of Accident and Emergencies, the crappy state of the roads and a thousand and one other problems and infrastructural ills. And duly they get up in the chamber, or fire off a missive to the local rag saying how awful x, y, z is, but show a lack of comprehension or, more commonly, an absence of interest in why these are the case. Young people locked out of home ownership? It's just one of those things, a consequence of nothing in particular that happens for no rhyme nor reason. You could put it down to the abysmal political level of Tory MPs not possessing a a sociological imagination, but when what would normally be regarded as an individual attribute is a group characteristic, something is going on. The cognitive disconnect between Tory perception of their actions and their consequences in terms of the hardship and misery they dish out is a property of power, a by-product of the social distance between the point of decision and context of implementation, and of the indifference and sometimes gleeful cruelty this inculcates.

Tories might be in denial about their actions having consequences, but they know they really are responsible. Which is why among Tories, Allen is so unusual. You can talk the talk, as Theresa May used to, but to place yourself in close proximity to the consequences of the policies you personally have voted for is not done. A grinagog photo op down the food bank is one thing, quite another to speak with service users about why they're there and how Tory changes to income support have made life harder. For Allen, this must be an uncomfortable experience, and deservedly so. She knows and is beginning to confront what is her responsibility, but as far as Toryism is concerned her overt involvement and press work on poverty, her public displays of frustration and grief puts the rest of the party on the hook. When the cracks of British society can no longer be covered by the ideological paper of the strivers vs the skivers, Allen's concern with what the Tories have traditionally regarded as the undeserving poor is not helpful.

What to make of Allen's poverty porn tour? She herself is determined to blow the lid off what's happening and force her party to confront what they've done, and hopefully change their minds. I'm sure all readers have a view about the likelihood of her efforts succeeding, but Allen's motives appear sincere. Either that or she is an exceptional actor, we do at least get to measure her sincerity when she has future opportunities to vote on social security legislation. If you take the more cynical view and think about it as a profile raising exercise or leadership bid, then this coupled with her hanging around with a motley crew of Cameroons second vote'ers from the Labour benches is going to endear her to no one. But as far as the long-term health of the Conservative Party is concerned, as this place has long argued, Allen's trajectory is where the rest must tread.

Before she blotted her copy book with the parliamentary Tory party, I had Allen down as a future leader. A sign post as opposed to a weathervane, perhaps she will end up serving as a leader without ever being the leader. Cast your mind back again to the immediate aftermath of the referendum and the ease by which Theresa May assumed the Tory crown. She said warm, conciliatory words and affected her "grown up" approach to politics vs the reckless and light-minded record of her predecessor. She banged the one nation drum as well and talked about a country that worked for everyone. Rhetorically at least this was a break from Dave's two-nation Toryism and was well received, translating into an extensive poll lead over a Labour Party at war with itself. The moment swiftly passed as May returned to type, but her instincts were correct: the Tory party is in a a state of decomposition, and unless it reaches out to new constituencies the break down of the conservatising effects of age will do for them.

The Tory problem is there are no rising constituencies in the party. There are a smattering of relatively young and socially liberal Tories sat in the Commons, and nearly all of them post-date 2010, but they're there largely because Dave and the apparatus championed and put them there. They are atypical and do not reflect the declining membership, either demographically or politically, nor do they the Tory vote. If there's no base for a new wave of modernisation, then a defanged, moderate, one nation, and socially responsible Tory party is a pipe dream. And for as long as the Tories carry on pursuing a sectional strategy of holding together their declining coalition, the harder it will be when the day of decision comes and they can no longer win elections by trying to turn out their natural constituencies. Heidi Allen offers the Tories a sustainable future, but they won't take it and, effectively, can't take it.

The best Allen's poverty tour can hope for then is more publicity reaching more people, particularly Tory voters, and perhaps some votes down the line where Tory MPs might actually rebel on behalf of their long-suffering constituents. But don't hold your breath.