Alex Cobb: If our party wants to rebuild, it has to start by saying: “We got it wrong.”

Alex Cobb is a stakeholder manager at Murphy Construction.

I’ve been a Conservative all my life. In rooms where it wasn’t easy, I stood my ground. Not out of blind tribalism, but because I believed in the fundamentals: responsibility, aspiration, economic competence, and the promise of opportunity through hard work.

But by November 2024, I walked away. Not because I found a new political home. Not because Labour won me over. And certainly not because I wanted anything to do with Reform.

I left because the party I believe it has lost its values. What was once a serious movement rooted in realism and public service became hooked on fantasy economics and culture war theatrics. We stopped listening. We stopped thinking. We started shouting. And the public walked away.

And why wouldn’t they? Ask anyone outside of Westminster what they think about politics, and the answer isn’t anger. It’s exhaustion. Disbelief. Shrugged shoulders. People feel as though politics, all of it, has become detached from real life.

They don’t talk about GDP or fiscal drag. They talk about struggling to afford childcare that costs more than their rent; about working hard but never getting ahead; about elderly relatives stuck in social care systems that feel like bureaucratic limbo; about giving up on the idea of ever owning a home – or on having a family at all.

Britain feels stuck. For many, progress has become a postcode lottery. And politics has become a spectator sport. That’s not just dangerous for democracy. It’s corrosive to trust.

And so, yes, we lost the election. But we didn’t just lose to Labour. We lost to apathy. Apathy that we helped create. If we are serious about rebuilding, we have to stop chasing yesterday’s headlines and start thinking about tomorrow’s lives.

That means policy. Real policy, with imagination and courage.

Let’s talk tax. Not in the usual terms of cuts versus hikes, but how we reframe it entirely. The tax system should reward effort, not punish ambition. Why not introduce a flat marginal “ladder tax,” where effective rates taper predictably as income grows? Remove the disincentives built into thresholds and encourage upward mobility without sudden cliffs.

It’s not just about fairness: it’s about simplicity, aspiration, and honesty.

Let’s abolish stamp duty. It’s a transactional penalty on aspiration and distorts the housing market, traps families in unsuitable homes, and punishes mobility. If we want a dynamic, mobile economy, we can’t keep taxing people for trying to move forward.

Let’s be bold on childcare. Make it universal, flexible, and designed for today’s working patterns. Enable parents, especially mothers, to return to work without punitive costs or bureaucratic nightmares. The current system is neither affordable nor accessible. We can do better.

And let’s finally face up to the social care crisis, which every government has ducked.

The solution isn’t piecemeal funding top-ups or localised sticking plasters. It’s full integration of adult social care into national government, with zonal delivery models that are locally tailored but centrally accountable. A system that doesn’t just care for people but empowers them, and their carers, with dignity, consistency, and support.

Then there’s planning. The system is broken. Slow, politicised, and opaque. Let’s learn from countries that get it right. In the Netherlands and Finland, zoning is transparent and proactive. In Germany, design codes are clear and enforced. We should empower communities to shape development, but not veto it. We need a balance between local voice and national need.

Let’s create “build zones” with pre-approved design frameworks, where housing, transport, and green space are planned as one. Let’s fast-track homes near new infrastructure, link planning to sustainability targets, and unlock land that actually delivers. Not just more homes. Better ones.

These aren’t abstract ideas. They’re answers to the question people are really asking. Who’s got a plan for my future?

Because when we were serious about governing, when we focused on outcomes, on competence, on delivery, we made a difference. We created jobs. We built homes. We reformed welfare. We offered people something to believe in. But we have to earn that reputation all over again.

Britain doesn’t want a bigger state or a smaller one. It wants one that works. That educates children. Protects streets. Heals the sick. Backs ambition. And remembers that most people in this country are, instinctively, small‑c conservatives. They believe in fairness, effort, family, decency.

But when we indulge in ideological games, punish instead of empower, and ignore the cost-of-living squeeze, we don’t just lose elections. We lose the public.

I’m not flying any political flag today. I’m not ready to put my trust back in a party that hasn’t come to terms with what went wrong. But I’m watching. And I’m hoping.

Because there are reasons for hope. There are talented, thoughtful people across the centre-right. Young councillors, new MPs, and policy thinkers. They understand the scale of the challenge and want to do things differently.

They want a Conservative Party that returns to practical solutions, grounded reform, and humility in power. They want to lead, not perform. And they know that rebuilding trust isn’t just about what we say now. It’s about how we listen.

With new leadership, we have the chance to draw a line under the chaos and start again. With competence, clarity, and a willingness to serve the country, not just the party.

This isn’t just a political opportunity. It’s a patriotic duty. And if we’re brave enough to say we got it wrong, we may just find the country is willing to listen again.