The Economist referenced an argument by Professor Tim Bale in an article about political parties aping each other’s policies. The article reads: “But what works on the pages of an academic journal is messier in real life, argues Tim Bale. Deciding whether a policy area is pragmatic or principled is more art than science. The National Health Service, for example, bestrides both. And nabbing too many of an opponent’s policies may annoy a party’s core supporters, whatever the issues in question.”