The world’s favourable response to the new PM offers the UK a golden opportunity to expand its influence
First signs are that the British public is going to judge the new prime minister on his merits, not his heritage. This country is relaxed about race, but very concerned about inflation, housing and other domestic bread-and butter issues. Rishi Sunak made clear in his speech outside Number Ten that his premiership will be judged on its competence not its symbolism.
Yet the Guardianistas parsing the multi-cultural quality of the new cabinet are, in their own perverse way, onto something.
Of course, the tofu-consuming wokerati of London’s more affluent suburbs want to discredit the Hindu, Buddhist and other elements in Rishi Sunak’s team as not non-white enough! But their anxiety to tackle Britain’s genuinely diverse cabinet reflects their unspoken fear: far from being an inward-looking Little Englander Brexit regime alienating countries far and wide, a Tory government can project Britain’s “soft power” on a global scale.
Barack Obama’s election as the first black President of the United States was hugely symbolic, but mainly inside America with its long history of bitter race relations. Much of the rest of the non-white world rather shrugged at the election of the 44th US president whatever his part Kenyan roots. The canard that he was a Muslim had only gullible believers in the USA.