Thread (1/13)
Sunak says that “government can’t be expected to solve every problem.”
Here is a list of problems this government cannot be expected to solve.
If we want them solved, we need a different government.
(2/13)
We cannot expect this government to solve the cost-of-living crisis.
“Where other governments have supported consumers and small business and imposed windfall taxes and price caps on energy companies, ours has declined to act.” 99-percent.org/cost-of-living…
(3/13)
We cannot expect this government to fund the NHS properly.
“We shouldn’t always go first to the state – what kind of society would that be? Health and Social Care: it begins at home. It should be family first, then the community then the state.” 99-percent.org/amending-the-h…
(4/13)
We cannot expect this government to prevent the UK from having a COVID death toll among the 30 worst in the world. statista.com/statistics/110…
(5/13)
We cannot expect this government to stop the UK from having an economic performance worse than virtually every major developed economy. 99-percent.org/time-to-change…
(6/13)
We cannot expect this government to stop our rivers and coastal waters from being pumped full of sewage. 99-percent.org/the-sewage-reb…
(7/13)
We cannot expect this government to tackle the scale of corruption it has created.
(11/13)
We cannot expect this government even to leave us with the right to peaceful protest. 99-percent.org/what-kind-of-c…
(12/13)
We cannot even expect this government to treat us as having rights as citizens.
“The new Sovereign Individual will operate ... in the same physical environment as the ordinary, subject citizen, but in a separate realm politically.”
In opposition, Rachel Reeves and Sir Keir Starmer spoke of the need for a decade of national renewal; and since they have taken office, the evidence of the need for that renewal has grown even stronger.
(2/12)
And they have also spoken about a “financial black hole, the £22bn of unfunded spending commitments, concealed from our country by the Tories” and the Chancellor has talked about the need for “iron discipline.”
(3/12)
Rachel Reeves also said,
“Yes, we must deal with the Tory legacy – and that means tough decisions. But I won’t let that dim our ambition for Britain. So, it will be a budget with real ambition. A budget to fix the foundations. A budget to deliver the change that we promised. A budget to rebuild Britain.”
It is critical for the country (and for Labour) that this second viewpoint predominates as the Budget is prepared.
The House of Lords Inquiry into Debt sustainability has just reported.
This thread explains our serious concerns about the methodology and findings of that report.
(2/15)
The Chair of the HoL Economic Affairs Committee launched his Inquiry with the words,
“Our national debt stands at an incredible £2.6 trillion. A recent OBR report stated that the 2020s were turning out to be ‘a very risky era’ for the public finances. Our inquiry will explore if and how the UK can manage this level of indebtedness.”
Words which suggest that he had already decided the answer he was expecting.
(3/15)
The Inquiry invited submissions from concerned individuals and organisations. It also took oral evidence from selected individuals.
Thread (1/21)
The media are making comparisons with 1997.
But 1945 may be a more apt comparison.
When we compare…
(2/21)
… the state of the country now with 1997:
“In 1997, the incoming New Labour government … enjoyed the luxury of rapid economic growth…
Reeves, if she becomes chancellor, will not. Her task would be far harder. It would also be correspondingly more important. New Labour had to avoid messing things up. Today, a new government would have to effect a transformation.”
(3/21)
So perhaps a comparison with 1945 is illuminating.
Materially, things were far worse then than today, but in terms of the national mood and democratically, they were far better…
Thread (1/14)
We will not know the final outcome of the election until the morning of 5 July.
On that morning, I do not want to wake up to more of this…
(2/14)
I do not want to see more of a government which treats environmental issues as a barrier to profit and climate change as a myth peddled by “eco-zealots.” ft.com/content/02ecb9…
(3/14)
I do not want to wake up and see that the government which has brought 4 million children into poverty, will be funding tax cuts for the wealthy by “tackling welfare.” itv.com/news/2024-07-0…
Thread (1/19)
Yes, this election is about our future. And our children's future.
Based on the evidence of the last 14 years, we know what to expect from the Conservatives … and it is nothing like what Sunak says it is. 19.com/RishiSunak/sta…
(2/19)
Based on our personal experience we know that, if the Conservatives retain power, we should expect to be poorer…
Thread (1/21)
This thread looks at why the Conservatives are so keen to focus the debate on the future, not the past.
Despite saying that they wanted to be judged on their record.
So, let’s take a look at that…
(2/21)
After the Global Financial Crisis, the Tories told us that because of what they claimed were unprecedented levels of debt, there was no choice but to implement austerity… 99-percent.org/debt-hysteria/
(3/21)
But we should not worry about that because, once the state was rolled-back, growth would be even stronger.