经济学人:英国派系纷争 究竟谁是幕后智者?

 　　Britain Politics

　　英国政治

　　Tribes of Tories

　　托利党的派系纷争

　　The Conservative Party increasingly resembles a patchwork¹ of pressure groups. That is a bad sign for its leader

　　保守党越来越像压力团体一锅烩，党魁遭遇坏势头

　　UNION bashing, tough talk on welfare and short shrift for criminals—in many ways it was a conventional Conservative Party conference. But away from the main stage, in gatherings² of MPs and grassroots activists³, the conference buzzed with big ideas. “We are sceptical of politics driven by focus groups,” asserts Kwasi Kwarteng, a Tory MP. With four other members of the Free Enterprise Group, Mr Kwarteng has just published a tract⁴ of radical⁵ free-market policies designed to shift opinion. His was not the only outfit⁶ aiming to cause a stir. In his closing speech, David Cameron tried to define what the Conservative Party stands for (see Bagehot).At times it felt as if everybody else at the conference was trying to do the same.

　　抨击欧盟，激烈地讨论福利问题和罪犯临刑前短暂忏悔问题——从许多方面看这都是一次传统的保守党会议。但是，远离主会场的下议院议员及草根活动家却兴奋地谈论着一些好点子。托利党议员Kwasi Kwarteng断言，“我们对由焦点群体控制的政治抱怀疑态度”。他和其他四位自由企业派的成员刚刚公布了一系列旨在改变舆论的激进的自由市场政策。他不是唯一一位企图用一套理论引发轰动的人。大卫·卡梅伦在总结陈词里就尝试定义保守党的主张。有时候给人的感觉是，会议里的所有人似乎都在竞相做同样一件事情。

　　Pressure groups of Tory politicians and activists are multiplying. Conservative Voice, launched in September to champion traditional policies on crime, immigration and jobs, now claims thousands of supporters. Bright Blue campaigns for “progressive conservatism” and pushes causes such as environmentalism and international development. MPs representing marginal constituencies last year formed The Forty to devise strategies for the 2015 election. And so on. Pamphlets and books are whizzing off the presses.

　　托利党政客和活动分子组成的压力集团越来越多。九月份成立的“保守之声”维护传统的犯罪、移民、及就业政策，现在拥有成千上万的支持者。“亮蓝”派为“进步的保守主义”奔走呼号，极力宣传环境保护主义及国际发展等事业。去年，代表“边缘选区”的议员成立了“四十”派，为2015年的选举出谋划策。各种团体名目繁多，不胜枚举。宣传书册铺天盖地从出版社涌出来。

　　Five strains of thought can be detected. First come the two, subtly different, varieties of David Cameron’s “modernising” project, which seeks to anchor the party in the electorally decisive centre ground. Cautious reformers, including the prime minister himself, are at home in modern Britain but nostalgic about traditional institutions. Radical reformers, including George Osborne, the chancellor⁸ of the exchequer⁹, and much of the 2010 intake¹⁰ of MPs, are more socially and economically liberal, and often more urban.

　　可以看出有5股思想包含其中。一是大卫·卡梅伦的“现代化”设计的两种差别甚微的变体。“现代化”改革力求将保守党的政治立场锁定在中间位置，以确保选举中的优势。包括首相在内的谨慎改革派虽精熟于现代英国政治，却对传统制度念念不忘。包括财政大臣乔治·奥斯本及许多2010年当选的议员在内的激进改革派则对社会及经济持更自由的观点，且通常更倾向城市。

　　Three other strains are less influential¹¹. The pitiful remnants of the party’s once-strong left wing, economically interventionist and relaxed about Europe, huddle¹² around the Tory Reform Group. Better represented among the party grassroots are the social conservatives and the libertarians. The former, mostly close to the Cornerstone Group, were out in force at an anti-gay-marriage rally on the conference fringe. The latter are defined by hawkish¹³ views on taxes and foreign policy.

　　其他三股思想的影响力稍弱。保守党内曾强势一时的左翼力量余部主张经济干预，并对欧洲态度相对宽松，抱团支持托利改革派。党内底层成员中占主流地位的是社会保守主义者和自由论者。前者基本上与基石派相似，曾在会议外围大搞反同性恋结婚游行。后者则被认为在税收和对外政策上持有鹰派观点。

　　The Tory tribes are particularly vivid and noisy these days. Public disagreement between Conservatives and Liberal Democrats¹⁵ at the heart of the coalition¹⁶ government, as well as a widespread belief among Tory MPs that Lib Dems are steering¹⁸ the ship, has made dissent¹⁹ seem more acceptable. One senior Liberal Democrat¹⁴ compares coalition to an X-ray machine: it exposes the fractures beneath a party’s skin. Coalition also diminishes Mr Cameron’s powers of patronage²⁰, such as cabinet seats, with which to buy off agitators²¹. The tribal²² gatherings are outlets²³ for energy that, in past Conservative administrations, was channelled into government business.

　　托利众派最近尤为活跃喧闹。保守党和自由民主党在联合政府的核心问题上公开不和，托利党议员也普遍认为自由民主党在掌舵，这就使异议看起来更可以接受。一位老资格自由民主党员将联合执政比作一台X光机:它暴露了一个党内部的裂痕。联合执政还侵蚀了卡梅伦的任免权，比如用来收买政治煽动者的内阁席位。过去保守党一党执政时期，各方力量都被调拨到政府事务中去，而现在，派系分化倒成了这些力量的宣泄口。

　　And there is a lot of energy in the party these days. The Tories’ 2010 intake, which makes up 48% of the parliamentary party, contains fewer intellectually mediocre²⁴ patricians²⁵ than its predecessors²⁶. Many new MPs have extensive professional experience outside politics. Before the last general election Mr Cameron meddled²⁷ with candidate-selection procedures to enhance social and ethnic²⁸ diversity. In the process he produced a more independent, opinionated crop of Tory MPs.

　　这几年，保守党内部出现了很多股力量。2010年入党的人占议会人数的48%，与前几届相比，资质平庸的贵族成员比例下降。许多新议员除了有政治知识，还具有广泛的专业经验。上次大选之前，卡梅伦还调整议员候选人选举程序，以提高社会及种族多元性。在此过程中，他制造了一个更独立、更固执的托利议员团体。

　　The broadly loyal culture of the party means its tribes are not nearly as dangerous as they might seem. Whereas Labour periodically breaks into warring dogmatic factions²⁹, Conservatives are generally united by a broad set of common principles—including a sceptical attitude to grand political schemes. One trenchant³⁰ backbench critic acknowledges that many Tory MPs “usually follow the prevailing³¹ pattern”. Even on Europe, a topic that has caused infighting in the past, there is little sign of factionalism. The party is almost uniformly Eurosceptic, although some are hotter than others and there are differences over the timing³² of any referendum on the EU.

　　保守党广泛的王室情结意味着其各派系并不像表面上看起来那么危险。与工党时不时就发生分裂，派系之间明争暗斗、唇枪舌剑相比，保守党各派系靠一整套共同原则——其中包括对宏大政治蓝图的怀疑态度——总体上保持着团结。一位后座议员兼批评家一针见血地指出,许多托利党议员“一般都会遵循眼下流行的观点”。即便是欧洲这个在过去挑起内斗的问题，都鲜有激起派系冲突的迹象。尽管有些派系在这个问题上会比其他派系更为激进，并且对何时就欧洲问题举行公投的时机存在分歧，但保守党内几乎整齐划一地持欧洲怀疑论。

　　Beating the drum

　　锣鼓喧天

　　Yet the tribes are important, and revealing of the Conservative Party’s state. Tim Bale, author of two books on the party after 1945, notes that cliques³³ have previously³⁴ shifted the entire Conservative encampment. In the 1950s the One Nation Group swung the party behind a mixed economy. Under Margaret Thatcher³⁵, cerebral³⁶ MPs around the Centre for Policy Studies led it the other way. Mr Cameron rose to the leadership on the shoulders of a small number of young, ambitious modernisers.

　　然而，各派系都很重要，并且体现了保守党的状态。蒂姆·贝尔——著作了两本讲述1945年后的保守党的书籍——指出，派系分化已经改变了整个保守党阵营。20世纪50年代时，一国保守主义派使整个保守党追随混合经济，玛格丽特·撒切尔执政时，政策研究中心的理智的议员改变了这一方向。卡梅伦则是在一小撮年轻又雄心勃勃的现代主义者的支持下赢得领导权的。

　　Successful cliques have several things in common. They tend to have a succinct³⁷ analysis of how and why the party needs to change. They have a knack³⁸ for PR and a strong grasp of the prevailing mood. They know that they have to say something repeatedly before the party—let alone the country—will listen. They have an electoral strategy.

　　成功的派系有几点相同之处。他们会对党为何以及如何发生改变进行简要的分析，有处理公共关系的技巧并对当下流行观点有深刻的了解，知晓他们必须重复地讲述某些事情直到党乃至整个国家都会听他们的，此外，他们还有一套选举策略。

　　At present the radical modernisers are best placed to steer¹⁷ the party. The Free Enterprise Group, seen as their vanguard, has a simple message: government should remove barriers in the way of business. Dominated by media-savvy professional types, it knows how to communicate this mantra. It has Mr Osborne’s ear, as well as some support from other tendencies in the party. It seems to be swaying the leader: Mr Cameron’s speech this week was big on business-worship.

　　眼下正是激进现代主义派领导保守党的最佳时机。被视作其先锋的自由企业派传递了一个简单的信息：政府应该为商业发展扫清道路。自由企业派擅长媒体专业用语，知道如何传达这一准则。它在奥斯本那儿说得上话，又有党内其他派系的支持。它似乎能影响领导人：卡梅伦本周的演讲就充满商业崇拜气息。

　　In many ways the ferment³⁹ within the Conservative Party is beneficial. One new centre-left MP praises a fine “buffet” of different approaches; a backbench grandee⁴⁰ talks of the value of “safety valves” on hot issues. There is a refreshingly⁴¹ relaxed view towards rival philosophies, which was notably⁴² absent from the Labour Party when it was in power. A combination of loyalty⁴³ and flexibility⁴⁴ has served the Conservative Party well in the past.

　　从许多方面讲，保守党的内部纷争是有利的。一位新中左议员赞其为提供不同点子的精致“自助餐”；一位后座政要称其在热点问题上起到了“安全阀”的重要作用。一种对待不同信条的观点出现了，其轻松感令人耳目一新，这是工党执政时期明显缺乏的。忠诚和灵活的结合使保守党在过去表现地可圈可点。

　　Yet the growing din⁷ of opinionated voices is a bad sign for the leadership. It is no coincidence that several new groups have appeared recently, at a time when the government has tripped over health reform, deficit⁴⁵ reduction and constitutional change and the Conservative Party has fallen further behind Labour in opinion polls. The absence of a clear direction from the top of the party has created a space into which alternative proposals are pouring. The party as a whole is fizzing because 10 Downing Street is not.

　　然而，各方固执己见的声音越闹越大对保守党的领导地位不是个好兆头。近期几个新派系的出现，政府在医疗改革、削减赤字及修改宪法上面摔了跟头，保守党民调支持率远远落后于工党，这些完全不是巧合。党的领导层缺乏一个明确的思想路线，留下一个缺口，使得不同政见蜂拥而入。保守党上下吵得热火朝天，皆因唐宁街10号风平浪静。 翻译：陈莎莎

　　1.stay away from 远离

　　例句:He told his children to stay away from dangerous electrical things.

　　他叫他的孩子们不要接近危险的电器。

　　2.at a time 一次；每次

　　例句:Can I borrow two books at a time?

　　我能一次借两本书吗？

　　3.in power 执政的；掌权的

　　例句:How long should a President be allowed to remain in power?

　　一位总统应该让他在职多久呢？

　　4.as well as 也；和...一样

　　例句:Boys as well as girls are taught cookery in school these days.

　　现在学校里男女学生都学烹饪。

1 patchwork   

n.混杂物；拼缝物

参考例句：

• That proposal is nothing else other than a patchwork.那个建议只是一个大杂烩而已。
• She patched new cloth to the old coat,so It'seemed mere patchwork. 她把新布初到那件旧上衣上，所以那件衣服看上去就象拼凑起来的东西。

2 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

3 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 tract   

n.传单，小册子，大片(土地或森林)

参考例句：

• He owns a large tract of forest.他拥有一大片森林。
• He wrote a tract on this subject.他曾对此写了一篇短文。

5 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

6 outfit   

n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装

参考例句：

• Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
• His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。

7 din   

n.喧闹声，嘈杂声

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• They tried to make themselves heard over the din of the crowd.他们力图让自己的声音盖过人群的喧闹声。

8 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

9 exchequer   

n.财政部；国库

参考例句：

• In Britain the Chancellor of the Exchequer deals with taxes and government spending.英国的财政大臣负责税务和政府的开支。
• This resulted in a considerable loss to the exchequer.这使国库遭受了重大损失。

10 intake   

n.吸入，纳入；进气口，入口

参考例句：

• Reduce your salt intake.减少盐的摄入量。
• There was a horrified intake of breath from every child.所有的孩子都害怕地倒抽了一口凉气。

11 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

12 huddle   

vi.挤作一团；蜷缩；vt.聚集；n.挤在一起的人

参考例句：

• They like living in a huddle.他们喜欢杂居在一起。
• The cold wind made the boy huddle inside his coat.寒风使这个男孩卷缩在他的外衣里。

13 hawkish   

adj. 鹰派的, 强硬派的

参考例句：

• My staff's advice that first day was amazingly hawkish. 在第一天，我的僚属们的意见是令人吃惊的鹰派意见。
• Antiwar groups fear Barack Obama may create hawkish Cabinet. 反战团体担心巴拉克·奥巴马可以创建强硬派内阁。

14 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

15 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

17 steer   

vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶

参考例句：

• If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车，我就来驾车。
• It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。

18 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。

19 dissent   

n./v.不同意，持异议

参考例句：

• It is too late now to make any dissent.现在提出异议太晚了。
• He felt her shoulders gave a wriggle of dissent.他感到她的肩膀因为不同意而动了一下。

20 patronage   

n.赞助，支援，援助；光顾，捧场

参考例句：

• Though it was not yet noon,there was considerable patronage.虽然时间未到中午，店中已有许多顾客惠顾。
• I am sorry to say that my patronage ends with this.很抱歉，我的赞助只能到此为止。

21 agitators   

n.（尤指政治变革的）鼓动者( agitator的名词复数 )；煽动者；搅拌器；搅拌机

参考例句：

• The mud is too viscous, you must have all the agitators run. 泥浆太稠，你们得让所有的搅拌机都开着。 来自辞典例句
• Agitators urged the peasants to revolt/revolution. 煽动者怂恿农民叛变（革命）。 来自辞典例句

22 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

23 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

24 mediocre   

adj.平常的，普通的

参考例句：

• The student tried hard,but his work is mediocre. 该生学习刻苦，但学业平庸。
• Only lazybones and mediocre persons could hanker after the days of messing together.只有懒汉庸才才会留恋那大锅饭的年代。

25 patricians   

n.（古罗马的）统治阶层成员( patrician的名词复数 )；贵族，显贵

参考例句：

• There was a conflict between plebs and patricians in ancient Rome in 494BC. 在公元前494年，罗马发生了一次平民反对贵族的斗争。 来自互联网

26 predecessors   

n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身

参考例句：

• The new government set about dismantling their predecessors' legislation. 新政府正着手废除其前任所制定的法律。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Will new plan be any more acceptable than its predecessors? 新计划比原先的计划更能令人满意吗？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

27 meddled   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Someone has meddled with the photographs I laid out so carefully. 有人把我精心布置的照片弄乱了。 来自辞典例句
• The gifts of charity meddled with a man's private affair. 慈善团体的帮助实际上是干涉私人的事务。 来自互联网

28 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

29 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

30 trenchant   

adj.尖刻的，清晰的

参考例句：

• His speech was a powerful and trenchant attack against apartheid.他的演说是对种族隔离政策强有力的尖锐的抨击。
• His comment was trenchant and perceptive.他的评论既一针见血又鞭辟入里。

31 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。

32 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

33 cliques   

n.小集团，小圈子，派系( clique的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• All traitorous persons and cliques came to no good end. 所有的叛徒及叛徒集团都没好下场。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They formed cliques and carried arms expansion and war preparations. 他们拉帮结派，扩军备战。 来自互联网

34 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

35 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

36 cerebral   

adj.脑的，大脑的；有智力的，理智型的

参考例句：

• Your left cerebral hemisphere controls the right-hand side of your body.你的左半脑控制身体的右半身。
• He is a precise,methodical,cerebral man who carefully chooses his words.他是一个一丝不苟、有条理和理智的人，措辞谨慎。

37 succinct   

adj.简明的，简洁的

参考例句：

• The last paragraph is a succinct summary.最后这段话概括性很强。
• A succinct style lends vigour to writing.措辞简练使文笔有力。

38 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

39 ferment   

vt.使发酵；n./vt.（使）激动，（使）动乱

参考例句：

• Fruit juices ferment if they are kept a long time.果汁若是放置很久，就会发酵。
• The sixties were a time of theological ferment.六十年代是神学上骚动的时代。

40 grandee   

n.贵族；大公

参考例句：

• He is a former defence secretary of the United States and a grandee of the Democratic Party.他是美国前国防部长，也是民主党的显要人物。
• The highest-ranking member of the spanish aristocracy is the grandee.西班牙贵族中爵位最高的成员乃是大公。

41 refreshingly   

adv.清爽地，有精神地

参考例句：

• Hers is less workmanlike than the other books and refreshingly unideological. 她的书不像其它书那般精巧，并且不涉及意识形态也让人耳目一新。 来自互联网
• Skin is left refreshingly clean with no pore-clogging residue. 皮肤留下清爽干净，没有孔隙堵塞残留。 来自互联网

42 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

43 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

44 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

45 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。