Osborne
Today we have the first (I think) economic policy proposal from George Osborne. He will match Gordon Brown's spending targets for 2008-2010 which allows for real expenditure to grow by 2% per annum. The reason for this is that he does not want to be accused of cutting public services to fund tax cuts. "New" Labour said exactly the same thing in 1997. I appreciate that this is the Conservative Party and that DC is wary of publishing his manifesto too early, but it does fill me with despair when they announce spending targets without all the details of the accompanying policies. In 1997 Labour was felt to be a breath of fresh air. Ten years later, the Tories can only resort to TB tactics and offer Labour's economics with a change of personality. It's been said before yet worth repeating: no wonder people are disillusioned with politics. Surely somebody can come up with some interesting new ideas or have we all been brainwashed by the tabloids?
posted by Whispering Walls at 9:09 am
6 Comments:
I agree. I am fed up with hearing the same old ideas being trotted out as if they were new.
Yup - but I am also pathetically hopeful that GB's attempt to draw in brains from the broader political spectrum is the way to go - intelligent rather than party politics.
Mopsa - I hope you're not referring to John Bercow...
Mopsa - GB's present strategy is fiendishly clever. If these traitors come up with a good idea, if he adopts it, he looks statesmanlike. If he rejects it,it is easy enough to say that it didn't fit in the overall strategy ( and they disappear after making maxium mischief for DC). Dizzy and Guido have good pieces on this.
After Bliar had been in power for about three years, he did an interview which included the words " I think we are going in the right direction, but there is some distance to go" What a wonderful comment! Noone could possibly take exception to it, and the 2001 election was won largely on the back of " he hasn't had time enough yet" - which is exactly what GB is banking on.
mopsa - but how would you go about punishing them if you didn't like the policies ? You couldn't vote them out if half of them belonged to opposition parties !
We could end up being as denied of a democratic right to kick out people and policies we do not like as we are of the ability to boot out EU policies we don't agree with...
Anon: punishment would be a simple relegation with no further opportunities for playing with the big boys and girls - a political playground spat tactic. WW - not referring to John Bercow but to the concept which, like King Lear I think is a v clever one.
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