In an interview with Sky News, Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg confirmed that he “never felt threatened or in danger” by protesters at a student event in Bristol. And watching footage of the incident, it’s easy to understand why. There’s a brief scuffle when a smartly dressed man seems to elbow a female protester in the face, possibly accidentally, and a different protester responds by swinging at him, but the overall vibe is farcically comedic.

That’s much better than the alternative, of course. Had serious political violence taken place, this would be a very different piece. But observing how it all played out, it does make you wonder what on earth the protesters were thinking. As a member of parliament, Rees-Mogg has regular opportunities to speak to the entire nation. Interrupting a university speaking event does not meaningfully limit his reach, so it can only ever be a symbolic act. An opportunity to generate some media attention for your own perspective and possibly tarnish your target’s reputation. Basically, a PR move.

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Except as a PR move it couldn’t really have been less effective. Far from damaging Rees-Mogg, the incident has only boosted his profile. It’s also provided the Tories with an opportunity to invoke a narrative they’ve been pushing since the US presidential election, when they saw how it worked for Trump, at a time when they’re desperate to turn the conversation away from substantive policy matters.

In the UK, the left is currently winning the economic argument. To the horror of both the Conservatives and the economic elites they represent, ordinary people overwhelmingly support nationalisation of the railways and utility companies. Voters also strongly back tax increases on higher earners, and the majority would happily see an increase in their own national insurance payments to ensure a properly funded NHS. Austerity was sold as short-term pain for lasting gain. In reality, public services have been pushed to crisis point while living standards continue to decline – only a wealthy minority have seen any benefit.

What’s more, the evidence just keeps stacking up in Labour’s favour. A recent Evening Standard article suggested that “The news flow supporting [Corbyn’s] nationalisation agenda just keeps coming”. Listing “dismal PFI projects on council estates, bailouts for private rail operators, Carillon’s collapse, and now ‘Crapita’.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, given it appeared in a newspaper edited (absurdly) by former Conservative chancellor George Osborne, the piece stops short of accepting any conclusions might be drawn from this string of private sector disasters – instead suggesting that “Jeremy Corbyn can’t believe his luck”.

With the facts so overwhelmingly against them, it’s clear the Tories have largely given up on arguing the economic case

With the facts so overwhelmingly against them, it’s clear the Tories have largely given up on arguing their economic case. Their goal is instead to deflect. To move the national conversation onto terrain they’re more comfortable with – namely, campus politics and no-platforming. Student union disputes might seem a rather niche concern, but it speaks to wider stereotypes of the left as judgmental, hectoring and censorious. In policy terms, Labour unambiguously represents the material interests of the majority.

Taking a leaf out of Steve Bannon’s book, the Conservative strategy is to instead present the left as a cultural elite – imposing a strict set of values on beliefs on an unenthusiastic general public and resorting to extreme methods to shut down any form of opposition. The same strategy was used highly effectively by the leave campaign, which managed to position government ministers and wealthy businessmen as part of an anti-elite rebellion.

The Conservative party has naturally announced plans to send more of its MPs to speak at British universities – ostensibly to “protect free speech”. Though the vast majority of leftwingers have no interest in preventing or disrupting such appearances, the Rees-Mogg incident has shown that a tiny protest is enough to attract significant media coverage and distract attention away from more consequential matters. No doubt they’ll be hoping to cause disturbances at every campus event they arrange.

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Hopefully, nobody will be stupid enough to fall into the trap. But if a small minority of students do rise to the bait, it’s imperative that the wider left doesn’t allow itself to be thrown off track. Far from being anti-free speech, the left needs to show it wants to discuss the things that really matter. Why would it want to avoid debate when our own arguments are so strong and the Conservative agenda is a proven failure? The left can counter every claim the Tories make. Disrupting their events allows us to be painted as possessing weak arguments and consequently scared of their words, and also distracts attention from substantive policy issues. Overall, it’s hard to think of anything less productive.

The only way to beat the Tories is to kick them out of power. The less they’re allowed to muddy the political landscape with confected cultural conflict, the quicker that’s likely to happen.

• Abi Wilkinson is a freelance journalist