ABSTRACT
Perhaps the most oft-repeated of all New Labour formulations is the mantra ‘what matters is what works’. New Labour believed in approaching issues ‘without ideological preconceptions’ and searching for practical solutions ‘through honest well constructed and pragmatic policies’ (Blair and Schroeder, 1999). To David Blunkett pragmatism meant an approach to policy-making ‘guided not by dogma but by an open-minded approach to understanding what works and why’ (quoted in Sanderson, 2003: 334). It makes decisions on the grounds of the merits of the case and the feasibility of all policy options grounded in a scrupulous investigation of their likely consequences (Temple, 2000: 320). It rests on a sharp distinction between means and ends. The Blair Government, the argument runs, has eschewed ideological formulae and displayed an agnosticism as to their ideological provenance.
