Political Currency Turns to CANZUK

George Osborne and Ed Balls Podcast Urges Badenoch and Starmer to Back CANZUK

On the 12th May an episode of Political Currency titled EMQs: Can Reform UK Fix Broken Councils? by former Chancellor George Osborne and former Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls discussed a rising force in British foreign policy: CANZUK.

Prompted by a question from Connor Mason, a member of Conservative Friends of CANZUK, the discussion reflected growing political interest in the alliance across party lines. The episode also referenced Conservative Friends of CANZUK’s recent parliamentary launch in the Westminster Jubilee Room.

Ed Balls Encourages Kemi Badenoch and Keir Starmer to Endorse CANZUK

In a rare moment of cross-party clarity, Ed Balls issued a pointed challenge to both Labour and Conservative leadership:

“If I were Keir Starmer or Kemi Badenoch, I wouldn’t give Ed Davey a free run on this. I’d want to be in there and endorsing it.”

His warning to the Conservatives was clear: this is a vote-winning policy, and the longer the party waits, the greater the risk that leadership on the issue will be lost. Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, has already publicly backed CANZUK in the Financial Times. If the Conservatives fail to act, they could find themselves outflanked—not only by the Lib Dems, but by Labour and Reform.

CANZUK as a Complement, Not a Replacement

Crucially, Balls emphasised that CANZUK must be understood as an alliance complementary to existing partnerships - not a substitute:

“If CANZUK is an alternative to a good relationship with America or the Five Eyes alliance, it’s a disaster. But it doesn’t stop you working with countries with whom you have commonality... I think it’s a good thing. I don’t think it does any harm.”

Balls acknowledged the shared heritage, institutions, and language of the CANZUK countries, noting that the alliance offers real potential in areas of youth exchange, business mobility, academia, and diplomacy, building upon our existing strong intelligence links.

George Osborne: Strategic Alignment and Shared Talent

George Osborne supported the CANZUK as well, calling Canada, Australia, and New Zealand a “useful bunch of allies” and citing the deep-rooted cooperation that already exists. Although he caveated that CANZUK is not a substitute for a relationship with the United States.

He highlighted the long shared history and similar political systems, as well as the movement of people across politics and government:

“There’s a long shared history and similar political systems and so on, and quite a lot of overlap of people coming to work in each other’s politics and government.”

Osborne pointed to real-world examples like Jacinda Ardern, who worked for Tony Blair before becoming New Zealand’s Prime Minister, and Mark Carney, who served as Governor of the Bank of England, to demonstrate the close working relationships and trust that already exist among CANZUK nations. These connections, he implied, are the building blocks of a deeper, more formal alliance.

He further praised AUKUS as one of the strongest foreign policy achievements of recent years:

“I thought the AUKUS deal was actually one of the best things that the Boris Johnson government did—and you won’t often hear me say that.”

Missing the Point

It’s encouraging that Osborne and Balls discussed CANZUK, using the platform and contributing to the political debate. While they spoke favourably about the alliance, they - particularly Osborne - missed the strategic heart of the proposal.

To his credit, Osborne did grasp the soul of CANZUK: the emotional affinity, cultural closeness, and mutual warmth that bind the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. He understood the instinctive sense of kinship between these nations - something voters feel deeply. That sense of familiarity.

But strategically,  and practically, Osborne missed the necessity of CANZUK.

Historically, the CANZUK nations have depended on US leadership, particularly in defence and global governance. That worked well when our incentives were aligned - but that era has already ended.

America is no longer the predictable partner we once believed it to be. From shifting global priorities to outright threats against long-standing allies - most shockingly, Trump claims that the US should annex Canada (Also Greenland, the Panama Canal, and bizarrely, Gaza) - Washington has become increasingly transactional, unilateral, and unreliable.

The UK’s own experience reflects this shift. The recent UK-US trade agreement required Britain to make significant concessions, notably dropping its digital services tax. In exchange, we received a commitment to a 10% minimum tariff. This is a worse position than three months ago. The benefits of a special relationship.

CANZUK is not about the UK and its CANZUK allies turning away from the United States. It is a response to the United States turning away from us. Fundamentally, the UK needs the US far more than they need us. And we have limited ability to act without them. So why would they listen to us?

CANZUK allows the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to cooperate on shared interests - independently, if necessary. That makes us safer. It also rebalances our relationship with the US, making it healthier, less one-sided, and based on mutual respect rather than dependency. If we can act without America, it means we don’t have to follow them even when it is clearly against our interest or position (Iran Nuclear Deal) and that the Americans will put more weight in our opinion. As our opinion isn't just asking them to do things.

Conclusion: The Conservatives Must Not Miss This Opportunity

The message from Political Currency is clear: CANZUK is a viable, valuable alliance that enjoys rare cross-party support. It is a policy that resonates with voters across regions, generations, and political affiliations.

This is a vote winning policy that aligns with the Conservative base. If the Conservative Party wants to retain its reputation for leadership on global affairs, it must move swiftly to claim ownership of the CANZUK vision. Delay any longer, and others - like Ed Davey, Keir Starmer, or even Farage - will define the conversation. This will be a massive political loss for the Conservative Party.

With high public support, parliamentary interest growing, and the time has come for the Conservative Party to include CANZUK as official party policy.

Will the Conservatives lead on CANZUK, or let others seize the initiative?

The discussion can be found from 27:30 mins on Spotify. Also available wherever you listen to your podcasts.