There wasn't anything inevitable about David Cameron's rise. If Kenneth Clarke had stirred himself into running something like a campaign when competing for the leadership with Iain Duncan Smith and been ready to appear more tractable on Europe; if David Davis had moved decisively in the immediate aftermath of Michael Howard's resignation or been a more fluent speaker; if Howard had offered Cameron the shadow chancellorship or George Osborne had not accepted it - if these or any number of other contingencies had been otherwise, Cameron might not have become leader. Yet he has been perceived as an unstoppable force, the author of an irreversible transformation in his party that has set it firmly back on the road to power. Tim Bale's exhaustive and authoritative account is hedged throughout with academic caution, but it concludes in terms that treat the Conservatives' return to office as a foregone conclusion: 'just as was the case for Margaret Thatcher, Cameron will ultimately be judged and defined by what he does.'

LRB 22 April 2010 | PDF Download