Peter Bedford: Why Thatcher matters to me and what of her legacy we could do with today

Peter Bedford is a qualified Chartered Account, having spent 17 years in industry, prior to his election as the Conservative MP for Mid Leicestershire at the 2024 General Election.

Peter Bedford spoke to the 2026 Freedom Festival, hosted by the Margaret Thatcher Centre, at the University of Buckingham.

I was born and raised, with my two younger brothers, by my single mother.

Conservatism, Thatcherism, let alone engagement with the political process was not something we as a family engaged with. But it was certainly the Thatcherite instincts of Aspiration, Opportunity, and Hard-work that has allowed me to ‘get on’ – despite my humble and challenging upbringing.

Sadly, those on the political left, who subscribe to identity politics, may look at me, a mixed-race, working-class lad from a single parent family and wonder why I am a Conservative.

Mrs Thatcher just got it didn’t she?

She changed the Conservative Party from acceptance of ‘managed decline’ to a party of optimism and aspiration. She understood that it doesn’t matter who you are or where you are from; it’s what you do with your life that matters. I was certainly not walking the streets of Eton or Harrow in my youth.

She challenged the typically Conservative assumption of hierarchy and opened up the party to people like me.

She believed in aspiration; something that should sit at the very heart of every Conservative MPs philosophy.

I believe in people from all backgrounds: Earning a few bob, through hard work. Going out and spending it and being proud that they are able to do so. And why shouldn’t people be proud of economic success, particularly when they’ve come from modest beginnings?

There should be no boundaries, be it class, creed, colour; everyone should be able to climb the ladder as high as their talents will take them.

Her steadfast belief in freedom is something I hold at the very core of my own Conservatism. That is why I was proud to vote against what I saw as a draconian and misguided smoking ban. We all know smoking is harmful. But Government should trust adults to make decisions for themselves.

As a new MP I have been amazed by the sheer scale of waste I see, day in, day out in Westminster and Whitehall. From the sprawl of arm’s length-bodies to the vast expansion of the public sector – The British state needs a reset.

When Mrs Thatcher came to office: Britain was in decline. Un-democratic Trade Unions dominating industry, inflation out of control, strike after strike, and a dangerous dependency on the state. We had become a country forced to go cap in hand to the IMF. And as we all know:

“The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.”

That is why the Thatcher revolution was needed and is needed again, now more than ever.

Thatcherism sparked two great transformations. First a boom in social mobility. Rooted in freedom it gave people, especially those from modest backgrounds, the chance to shape their own future. Through Enterprise Schemes, through lower taxes, through the Right to Buy millions moved from dependency to ownership, gaining not just property, but also, a pride and a stake in society.

And second a renewed sense of national pride. Mrs Thatcher ensured that Britain was no longer the “sick man of Europe.” The Falklands showed we would stand up for our values.  And from my own visit there last year, her legacy still resonates, and she alongside other Western Allies, such as President Reagan, Britain helped bring the Cold War to a close. From the fall of the Berlin Wall to the opening of the first McDonalds in Moscow, these were not just symbolic moments, but victories for freedom over tyranny.

So, even in today’s bleak times: why can’t we reignite that spirit?

Even Tony Blair recognised the success of Thatcherism. By reforming Clause IV and actually, embracing enterprise: New Labour accepted that they could not take Britain back to the 1970s. Within the Conservative Party there are also encouraging signs.

The 2024 intake is rediscovering a more Thatcherite voice: championing a free, entrepreneurial and property-owning democracy.

But we are only mere foot soldiers. I am glad that Kemi is keeping right on – refusing to drift back towards the bland malaise of centrist fence-sitting. Because as we all know that standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by the traffic from both sides.

But what is clear, is that for Britain to rediscover its sense of purpose we do need leadership like Thatcher brought. We need a leader that believes in conviction politics and is not to be pulled from pillar to post by Civil Servants. We need a leader that will be thoughtful in how they carry out their policies. We need a leader that is not a technocrat and is not afraid to make the bold decisions that they believe are right for the country.

We need to restore these values to be at the heart of British politics.

Because Britain today needs a State that is: Better, not Bigger. A state that is smarter in how it acts, and more restrained in what it does.One that supports those in genuine need but never creates dependency.

One that serves the public, not one that is driven by bureaucracy, the Civil Service or unelected bodies that stand in the way of growth. We must end the culture of waste and inefficiency, where taxpayers’ money is too often funnelled into Quangos whose sole purpose is seemingly to deliver little and block much.

And alongside that we must lift the burden on working people. Not by imposing stealth taxes or freezes to personal tax thresholds, but by simply allowing people to keep more of what they earn. And by rewarding responsibility, encouraging saving, and trusting individuals to make decisions about their own futures.

A strong nation and economy can never, ever, be built on dependency. We must stand firm behind businesses from family farms to high-growth start-up. From local enterprises to global investors Britain should and could be the best place in the world to start, grow and succeed in business. This means we will back our farmers and other family businesses, ease the pressure on employers, and create a tax system that rewards investment not punishes it.

Because when business succeeds Britain succeeds.

We must have the courage to cut back unnecessary regulation. We did not take back control from the European Union only to reimpose barriers to growth at home.

So, as a country the choice before us is clear:

We can continue the path of higher taxes, greater state control and declining ambition.

Or we can choose a different path. One of pride in our nation, aspiration, personal responsibility, enterprise, and of course freedom.

Let us get out there and tell others that Britain must be more dynamic, more self-sufficient and more confident.

And perhaps then we will look back at the 2030s as a political revolution with roots in the one Mrs Thatcher oversaw in the 1980s.