Deepening Identity Divides in Post-Brexit Britain: The Home Office, Rhetoric and Authoritarianism

Résumé 0

This paper analyses the rhetoric of Home Secretaries Priti Patel (2019-2022) and Suella Braverman (2022-), and builds on Judi Atkins’ study of former Home Secretary and Prime Minister Theresa May by examining the epideictic and deliberative style employed in their speeches to the Conservative Party Conferences of 2020 and 2022 respectively. A Rhetorical Political Analysis establishes a common trend in the rhetorical strategies used by these three speakers. By outlining the various appeals to pathos and logos, such as patriotic sentiment or disgust reflexes, this study begins to form a clearer image of the ingroups and outgroups developed through discourse. The antithetical nature of these appeals suggests an expanding outgroup—Asylum seekers, Human Rights lawyers and eco-protestors are targeted—as the ingroup seemingly shrinks beyond Leave voters to a smaller subset of “identity conservatives” (Sobolewska & Ford) or “Somewheres” (Goodhart). A comparative linguistic analysis of documents related to recent anti-immigration and anti-protest policies (the Public Order Bill and Rwanda Plan) highlights connections between the language used by the Home Secretaries and policy i.e., the connections between rhetoric and government. This analysis does not argue causation, but indicates correlation between the two, and serves to refute suggestions that rhetoric is “empty” and performative. Finally, public opinion is studied to ascertain whether the orators’ claims about the electorate, and their proposed policies, are supported. Reference to opinion polls show that certain policies (such as harsher punishments for eco-protestors granted under the Public Order Bill) appear to be supported by a significant minority of the public while opinion is divided on others (the Rwanda Asylum Plan). In most cases these policies do seem to appeal to an important subset of Conservative voters, suggesting that both rhetoric and policies are tailored to a shrinking ingroup of identity conservatives or “Somewheres”.