The Thin End

Tory scourge of the unemployed,  Iain Duncan-Smith is at it again. Now he urges the government not to bring in a universal income during the pandemic because it would 'be a disincentive to work'.   One really does wonder which bit of the planet he lives on! But he has form with this.  His view of those on benefits is that they are mostly shirkers.  He was one of the Tories that relished the prospect of cutting benefits to the 'workshy' poorest. A clue to his attitude came many years ago from a comment made by Duncan-Smith in an interview with Nick Robinson on the BBC. Speaking of people on benefits, he said "I want to change your life..to be a better person'.  This clearly reflects a view held about those on benefits: they are not 'good' people. At best it represents an inadvertent viewpoint 'look we want to help you back to work'. At worst it reflects a deep-seated attitude that stigmatises those on benefits as 'work...

We might feel that with the massive borrowing to spend in the UK chancellor's budget sees the end of austerity.   Not long ago, the Tories were attacking Labour for their spending plans.  Now, this Tory government is set for the biggest spending spree in decades. Of course, much of this is because of the coronavirus pandemic.   The NHS will get a boost in spending because, without such an injection of new cash, it will be unable to cope. The government is responding to crises.  At last, it is putting in the much-needed funds to strengthen flood defences. But does all this mean the end to austerity?  The answer to the poorest is that it does not.   There is little in the budget to address the problem of social care.  There is little to solve the issue of high rents and poor standard of housing. There is little to address the crisis in children's services, and little to address the crumbling school infrastructure. It is a spending budget, b...

We often hear the expression 'on top of the detail'.  The forensic analysis of instant media more often will find politicians wanting when it comes to specifics.  An interviewer comes to the studio well briefed with a specific set of details, the politician comes having to anticipate what they might be asked.  It is a game of cat and mouse, chasing around the issues. Andrew Neil on the BBC uses the technique of catching politicians on detail, or on what they might have done or said at some time in the past, long or short.  "I put it to you that....", "No, no, this is what you said in 100 AD." Does it get us anywhere? We could say that politicians should know the detail.  But is that really sensible?  Good decisions may be influenced by details, or by what is called 'fact'.  Yet, decisions are often made on a balance of probabilities and not on 'facts'. Boris is a broad-sweep politician Boris Johnson is a broad sweep politician....

Is the BBC biased politically? Yes, of course, it is. Is it intentional? That is difficult to say. All our media is biased, and sometimes significantly so. Look at the press. There are good reasons for most of it being called the 'Tory Press'. It backs the Tory party: The Daily Telegraph, The Sun, The Express, The Times, all blasting away, telling us how dreadful a Corbyn government would be. Corbyn's sin is to be too left-wing, which means he wants to bring about a fundamental change in the balance of power and privilege in British society. He wants to tackle the very inequalities of opportunity that run through our society in education, in work and in social justice. To achieve that he must challenge the elite. This means he lies outside the box of 'neutrality', and being 'neutral' means being anti-Corbyn. Corbyn challenges the yardsticks by which success is determined. Success, for Corbyn, would be to tackle poverty and inequality. Success for the...

When it comes to crime in politics, it is easy enough to sound tough.  The honest answers usually seem 'soft'.  So, come general elections we expect to hear a tough talk on crime. Tony Blair found a beautiful message in 1997: "Tough on crime; touch on the causes of crime."  It encapsulated the need to tackle crime at its roots, rather than simply deliver tough sentences. It is perhaps inevitable that crime, once again,  hits centre stage with London Bridge Terrorist attack.  Here was a man, a convicted terrorist,  who had been released early.   The Tories seized the moment to lay blame on Labour and the Criminal Justice Act, 2003.  This, they said, set in train the early release process that led to the release of ..... It is a diversionary tactic from the scrutiny of a justice system and policing struggling through underfunding for nearly a decade of Tory rule. Boris Johnson bottled out of the proposed interview with Andrew Neil on BBC tel...

It is still said by many that this UK general election is about Brexit.  In many ways it is, and no doubt Brexit, remain or leave, will influence voters.  But it hardly features in the debate at a national level. So far, Boris Johnson is not attempting to make a case for his 'deal', or for a possible no-deal exit.  On the contrary, he has been busy trying to cover up the Tories appalling record in government: failure on the environment, failure on pensions, failure on social care, failing children's services, and a crisis in the NHS and in our schools. Some might argue that such matters are of less concern if the economy was doing well after a decade of austerity, but it isn't.  The Tories have failed on the economy and, if anything, are now abandoning caution to the wind in an attempt to woo voters. "Brexit haunts the election like a ghost" One thing is missing is Brexit.  It haunts the election like a ghost, but few if any are discussing the details...

Schools in England are struggling. A decade of underfunding means that 83% of schools have financial difficulties. In 2015, David Cameron promised that his Tory Government would continue to protect school funding. They didn't deliver. During the 2017 election, Theresa May promised to spend £4bn more. She failed to deliver. And now, Boris Johnson promises to level up school funding and ensure there are no more winners and losers. Why should we trust him after a decade of failure to live up to the promises? These are the realities that Brexit hides. Our children's futures are being damaged by short-sighted cuts in funding. Unless something is done, our schools will be reeling from a £1.3bn funding shortfall in 2022/23. Our schools will face the most significant funding crisis in a generation. Let's put this another way. Since 2015 the average amount spent on a pupil has fallen from £5,000 a year to just under £4,700. In England’s primary school, children are taught ...

It isn't difficult to see that the NHS is struggling because it has been starved of adequate funding. £22 bn of so-called 'efficiency savings' have ripped it apart. The Tories claim that funding has increased over the last decade. Of course, that is strictly true. But in real terms per capita, this is not so. The population has increased by 6%, and the proportion of older people has also increased.   In future years, the UK population is set to grow further still. The projected population surpasses 70 million in 2029 and reaches 72.9 million by 2041 – increases of 6.1% and 10.4%, respectively, from 2017 (figures from ONS). As the population increases, so will the demands on health and care services.  A negligent government misunderstands that remorseless relationship. The last Labour government pushed up spending on the NHS as a percentage of GDP following the commitment to raise the level to the average of European countries.   This saw waiting lists and times ...

After a decade of austerity, the Tories are now cynically throwing spending pledges around like confetti. Today they are pledging to increase the number of GPs.  They have made such pledges before and have failed to meet them.    Why believe them now? Staff shortages in the NHS are a significant factor in missing targets and increasing waiting times and lists.  Too many people are waiting too long for an appointment to see their GP.  Too many practices are reliant on locum supply. in 10 years the NHS will have a shortfall of 108,000 full-time equivalent nurses.  A recent report concluded that "on current trends", in 10 years the NHS will have a shortfall of 108,000 full-time equivalent nurses.   Filling that gap would require a massive 5,000 additional nurses in training each year.  It will also need an equivalent number of foreign nurses to be recruited - and this at a time when the uncertainty of Brexit has led to a loss of staff. Ther...

The Tories failed to deliver Brexit.  They will point to others as the cause of that failure, but it was their divisions and their lack of vision that made it impossible.   Their bluster cannot hide that truth.  Two prime ministers with two failed deals. It need not have been like this.  The Tories could have reached out to the opposition benches in parliament and delivered Brexit.   Yes, it would have involved compromise,  but it would have fulfilled the pledged to respect the referendum result. No doubt the Tories will enter the general election saying they are the only party that can deliver Brexit.  Why would voters believe them? The do or die tactics of Boris Johnson have failed to deliver.   He would not and could not have his withdrawal agreement scrutinised.   Instead, he has delayed Brexit, and there is no guarantee that the result of the general election will deliver it either.   First, Mrs May tried to use Brexit ...

Boris Johnson is accused of using divisive language and stirring up hatred.  He doesn't care, because the division is precisely the current Tory strategy.   The Johnson strategy is the country will divide on Brexit lines; yes, he could lose some soft-Brexit Tories, but they hope to sweep up those who voted for The Brexit Party.  It is a strategy of going for broke.  What they lose on the swings they hope to gain on the roundabouts. The LibDems have also gone for broke.  They hope to gain from the division on Brexit lines, with Remainers deserting Labour.   Labour it is feared will be squeezed in the middle. Labour's only hope in a general election is that a sufficient number of remain voters will see that the only way to stop Brexit is to have a people's vote.  For that, a sensible and credible deal is needed. So, currently, the proposition for voters is: Vote Tory for a no-deal Brexit; vote LibDem to stop Brexit; or vote Labour for a negotiate...

The Conservative Party has adopted an aggressive set of campaign advertisements targeted at 60 constituencies contrasting "hard-working families" and "people who don't work." This divisive advertising represents once again their attempt to label the unemployed as lazy 'benefit scroungers'. It also demonstrates how little they understand unemployment and poverty. The notion that there are 'hard-working families' and 'people who don't work' assumes these groups exist as separate social groups. One result of the recession is that hard-working families are affected. Company failures, factory closures, and lay-offs don't just impact on 'scroungers'. This is why the results of austerity are so devastating. It is indiscriminate in its effect. It is also why austerity doesn't work. It drives families, hard-working families, into poverty.  Unemployment is a key driver of poverty. Two-thirds of working-age adults in fa...