New Labour was elected in 1997 to reverse the Tory policies of Sleaze, Privatisation, and the ending of the arrogance of a Secretive Whitehall elite. The public expected higher standards in government and a reversal of the Thatcherite policies of the previous twenty years, with a more caring face to politics - especially important to women and vital in closing the gender gap. These hopes have been dashed. Opinion polls now register new Labour as being more sleazy than the Major Conservatives, a price paid for the cosy attitude to big business figures and the massive cheques received by Millbank, which they brandish with honour as signs they are now respectable.