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Corbyn forces the Tories to take him seriously

david cameronAfter all the slurs about unelectability, the Tories have very quickly changed their tune and acknowledged that they are now facing a very real threat that they’ve not encountered for the last 30 years. At a meeting of the political cabinet last Tuesday they decided to focus on the idea that they offer a better future through lower taxes, a higher minimum wage, more jobs, and better public services, while a left-wing agenda would deliver insecurity through higher spending, higher taxes and more borrowing. If that is their plan, they have a real fight on their hands since almost all of their claims are downright wrong.

Taxes have been lowered for the top decile and for multi-national corporations, but the severe cutback in tax credits in Tuesday’s Finance bill will increase taxes for the bottom third of the population, even after the increase in the personal allowance is taken into account. The £9 an hour minimum wage, which will not be reached till 2020, is actually unlikely to exceed by much, if at all, the uprating that the minimum will have reached by then.

As to more jobs, there are still 1.8 million people unemployed and the jobless figures are already starting to rise again. Moreover, the quality of jobs created over the last 2 years has been poor: 40% self-employed on a pittance wage and most of the rest insecure, low-paid, and on zero hours contracts, and even then 11 out of 12 jobs created have been in London or the South-East. As to better public services, are they serious? The NHS is being outsourced and privatised strongly against the wishes of the public, education is being made to fit Tory ideology, and legal aid is being drastically pared back.

A left-wing agenda that produced growth and better-paid and more sustainable jobs could be generated at minimal higher spending while interest rates remain at 0.5% which will be for some long time yet. But it would produce the opposite of what the Tories claim – higher income and greater security than the Tory option of prolonged austerity. Again a left-wing agenda would certainly increase taxes on the very rich who are holding the country to ransom by their industrial scale tax avoidance, but it would lower taxes on the poorer half of the population. As to more borrowing, the Tories have a cheek at throwing that at Labour when they themselves are forcing the 13 million households in poverty in the UK, half of them in work, to borrow more because of the £12bn welfare cuts about to be imposed.

11 Comments

  1. Bazza says:

    Absolutely Michael!
    Jeremy’s massive mandate from grassroots members means that after nearly 20 years or so of some cautious Labour MPs amost treating Labour members as children – WE ARE ALL ADULTS NOW!
    And many of us are bursting with ideas!
    This is the real victory.
    So let ideas from all flow and through respectful and honest debate and in the spirit of comradeship, friendship and solidaity also let discussion and the democracy of voting decide.
    We should all be positive!
    Yours in solidarity!

  2. Bazza says:

    Labour could also give shadow ministers responsibility for the North, South, East & West of England and have a Labour MP overlooking the likes of Yorkshire, Cornwall etc – reporting to the Shadow Cabinet.
    Will help counter the charges of London-centric.
    For example HS2 benefitted the South/South East economy and from a Northern perspective it is probably only fair that it too gets HS2 – so we need to listen to and involve voices from all corners of the UK.

  3. David Ellis says:

    Corbyn only has to remain consistently anti austerity and he will win a landslide in twenty twenty. In fact in about two months time the lib dems will be to his left. socialism will be a bit harder to achieve than getting the obvious elected.

    1. John P Reid says:

      Are you saying that he’ll do a u-tun because he’s been forced to by the PlP or because he wants to,or the Libdems will swing even further to the left?

      1. David Ellis says:

        The Lib Dems will swing to his left. A landslide is perfectly foreseeable as long as he doesn’t fuck it up like Kinnock. By 2020 Corbyn’s proposals won’t look that radical at all and not because he’s changed or abandoned anything.

        1. David Ellis says:

          Of all the things that could lose it for Corby his anti-austerity position is not the one. That is what is going to see him win big. It is his to lose and two things that could lose it for him will be not supporting OUT in the EU referendum and getting to close to the Putinite left and the liberal imperialist no borders lunatics.

        2. John P Reid says:

          Kinnock,mistake at the 1992 election, was he’d been there too long, he fully endorsed the 1973 manifesto, how could he stand in one, 8 years later that was the total opposite,

  4. J.P. Craig-Weston says:

    Dear Job Centre,

    Just a deeply cynical thought about this working for no pay nonsense, (and no I’m not very positive or enthusiastic about it,) I’ve worked in both warehousing and manufacturing during the Christmas rush and I’m really not keen on the notion of now having to chase around with a bunch of people up to 40 years younger than me, faster, fitter, with much better eyesight and hearing, (I was practically deaf when I was wearing my earplugs and the machines were running in my last job.)

    As I think I mentioned, I had a particularly positive interview with Park Cakes a couple of years ago during which I was pretty much promised; and on the basis of my previous experience in FMCG/food production, (4 years at Ashton Foods in High Risk,) which was then fellowed by 3 separate and different rejection letters telling me they didn’t want me after all.

    But despite that they’d now be quite happy for me to work there for nothing ?

    I’m sure they would.

    Other than that I’ve just applied for the post job; and the civil service administrative officer, (the on line test isn’t available until 24,) as you suggested and spent half an hour completing a long application for a job with Guinness trust and a few others less promising.

    I’ll let you know how I go on anyway,

    regards

    JPC-W

  5. David Ellis says:

    The removal of New Labour saboteur MPs must begin straight away. Withdraw the whip from those who refuse to get behind the party’s stated will to oppose austerity and shame them into resigning their seats so that bi-elections can be held with socialists standing for the party in place of these clones.

    1. John P Reid says:

      SDP 1981?

    2. Robert says:

      According to Blair Progress and the right are now the moderates within labour as labour are now to the hard left and I kid you not.

      Progress moderates, I would have said close to the hard right my self.

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