Back to Basics attempted to relaunch the government of John Major (pictured)

Back to Basics was an ill-fated attempt to relaunch the government of British Prime Minister John Major in 1993.^[1] Announced at the Party Conference of that year, the initiative was intended to focus on issues of law and order, education and public probity (especially single mothers) after the debacle of Black Wednesday had damaged the Conservative Party's perceived ability to safeguard public finance. Back to Basics was widely interpreted as a moral campaign, and hence was ridiculed by political opponents, who coined the term "Back to bed-sits" as several instances of Tory "sleaze" came to light.

[edit] Scandals

• David Mellor's extra-marital affair with bit-part actress Antonia de Sancha (ca. 1992)^[2]
• Tim Yeo's extramarital affair resulting in him fathering a "love-child" in 1993^[3]
• Michael Mates's resignation as a Minister of State following allegations he had accepted cash and gifts from the fugitive businessman Asil Nadir (1993) ^[4]
• The Earl of Caithness resigned after his wife committed suicide due to his extra marital affair.^[1]
• Patrick Nicholls resigned shortly after referring to Germans as "warmongers"
• Stephen Milligan's accidental death by auto-erotic asphyxiation on February 7, 1994^[5]
• Michael Brown's involvement with a then-underage man in 1994,^[6] and his subsequent implication in the 'cash for questions' affair.^[7]
• Neil Hamilton's alleged acceptance of 'cash for questions' from Mohammed Al-Fayed in 1994^[8]
• Tim Smith's admitting that he took cash for questions from Mohammed Al-Fayed.^[9]
• David Ashby discovered to have shared a bed with a man on a trip paid by expenses. Ashby was married at the time.^[10]
• Jonathan Aitken's alleged procurement of prostitutes for Arab businessmen, their payment of his Ritz hotel bill, and his subsequent conviction and prison sentence for perjury after the resulting libel trial in which he unsuccessfully attempted to sue The Guardian over the story.^[11]
• Graham Riddick's entrapment for, and acceptance of, 'cash for questions' in 1994.^[12]
• Allan Stewart resigned after waving an axe at an anti-motorway protester.^[1]
• Hartley Booth's amorous, unreciprocated pursuit of his secretary in 1995.^[13]
• David Willetts's disciplining by the parliamentary ombudsman over his intervention in a parliamentary enquiry in 1996^[14]
• Piers Merchant's affairs with a night club hostess, and his researcher in 1997^[15]

Ironically, several years after his term of office ended, it emerged that John Major himself had engaged in an extramarital affair with fellow Conservative MP Edwina Currie.^[16] By this time, however, the "Back to Basics" campaign was all but forgotten.

The phrase has since become used by UK political commentators to describe any failed attempt by a political party leader to relaunch themselves following a scandal or controversy.

The phrase was satirized in the Viz strip Baxter Basics.

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b c} http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/202525.stm
2. ^ "BBC ON THIS DAY | 24 | 1992: Mellor resigns over sex scandal". BBC News. 1975-09-24. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/24/newsid_2529000/2529115.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
3. ^ "The revenge of the Moral Majority: The Yeo Affair: Traditional values saved John Major's career at last year's party conference. Now he is paying the price. - UK, News". The Independent. 1994-01-09. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/the-revenge-of-the-moral-majority-the-yeo-affair-traditional-values-saved-john-majors-career-at-last-years-party-conference-now-he-is-paying-the-price-1398970.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
4. ^ "BBC ON THIS DAY | 24 | 1993: Minister resigns over business links". BBC News. 1974-06-24. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/24/newsid_2519000/2519201.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
5. ^ "BBC ON THIS DAY | 8 | 1994: Police probe MP's suspicious death". BBC News. 1952-02-08. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/8/newsid_2538000/2538165.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
6. ^ "UK Politics | The Major Scandal Sheet". BBC News. 1998-10-27. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/202525.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
7. ^ "Election '97: Cash-for-questions row Tory adopted in secret - News". The Independent. 1997-04-09. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/election-97-cashforquestions-row-tory-adopted-in-secret-1266051.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
8. ^ "UK POLITICS | Profile: Neil Hamilton". BBC News. 2001-08-10. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/1485089.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
9. ^ "The Cash-for-Questions Affair: Tim Smith finds forgiveness - UK, News". The Independent. 1994-10-22. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/the-cashforquestions-affair-tim-smith-finds-forgiveness-1444253.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
10. ^ "Conservative scandals: Chichester joins a long list | Politics | guardian.co.uk". Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/jun/06/conservatives.partyfunding1. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
11. ^ Pallister, David. "Aitken, the fixer and the secret multi-million pound arms deals | Politics | guardian.co.uk". Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/1999/mar/05/uk.davidpallister. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
12. ^ "Cash-for-questions MPs suspended by Commons - UK Politics, UK". The Independent. 1995-04-21. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/cashforquestions-mps-suspended-by-commons-1616440.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
13. ^ [1]^{[dead link]}
14. ^ "Programmes | Question Time | This week's panel". BBC News. 2005-11-16. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/question_time/4438982.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
15. ^ "Interview: Piers Merchant | Media". The Guardian. 2002-07-01. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2002/jul/01/mondaymediasection. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
16. ^ "UK | Politics | Major and Currie had four-year affair". BBC News. 2002-09-28. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2286008.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 

[edit] Further reading

• "Major goes back to the old values". http://www.guardian.co.uk/fromthearchive/story/0,,801924,00.html. Retrieved 2007-09-26. 
• Richard W. Stevenson (1994-01-14). "British Scandals Jeopardizing Party's 'Back to Basics' Effort". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06E0DB1031F937A25752C0A962958260. Retrieved 2008-01-03.