I preached levelling up as the key to Tory success but Boris Johnson didn't do it. Now look at us | Justine Greening

"The phrase was language I created and used at the Department for Education to talk about social mobility. It was our departmental mantra, and its definition is clear: levelling up is the means by which we achieve equality of opportunity not by taking opportunity away from those who already have it, but rather by extending opportunities to those that don't."

"I first used the term at the Conservative party conference in 2015 while still international development secretary, when I was attempting to encourage the then party leadership to focus on domestic social mobility. The other key DfE phrase we used, talent is spread evenly across our country, but opportunity is not, again was a purposeful phrase, representing the two halves of a social mobility strategy."

The Conservative party faces existential uncertainty and currently lacks a clear, distinct message for voters. Levelling up originated as a social mobility concept focused on achieving equality of opportunity by extending opportunities to those who lack them rather than taking them away from others. The concept emerged from Department for Education work, emphasizing that talent is spread evenly but opportunity is not. Education and business engagement were central to the strategy to develop potential and connect people to economic opportunities. Under Boris Johnson's government the concept failed to translate into coherent policy and became diluted into administrative initiatives.

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