The current political situation in the UK should be of much concern to all of us. not least because the most likely result of Labour's poor showing in the 7 May elections will be that the government will move to the left.
Keir Starmer would appear to be "safe" for now – at the price of being held hostage by two left-wing terrorists (Angela Ray-of-Sunshine and Ed Rubber-Band), while keeping his seat warm for a third (Andy Burn-Your-Boats).
An editorial in today’s Times has this: “Were Sir Keir serious about fixing his premiership, he would tackle the deep-set issues giving rise to Reform UK and the Green Party. He would acknowledge that the stifling tax burden, now at a 70-year high, needed to be reduced. He would accept that energy costs were too high and move more quickly to build new nuclear power stations. He would rethink the employment red tape that his government has introduced. He would seek to seriously reduce the welfare bill, and engage in a big, programme of rearmament. He would instigate serious reforms to the planning system. In fact, he would do almost the opposite of everything Ms Rayner set out yesterday in a lengthy proto-leadership pitch.”
Very depressing.
You think the British economy is already in intensive care?
Come back in nine months’ time and see what it looks like then!
Yesterday events took a number of unexpected turns. I may have been premature in suggesting that Keir Starmer would appear to be safe for now. We will probably know within the next 48 hours.
Either way, this is an exceptionally worrying time for the United Kingdom.
Governance of a nation is not a game, and politics is not entertainment. Yes, Starmer has proved to be a pretty hopeless Prime Minister (although, I would argue, not quite as hopeless as the generality think him to be). But he ought to be allowed to continue for now, and try to steady the ship – not least because any of the alternatives potentially available would probably wreak great damage on Britain. My suggestion would be that he announces that he will resign in a year’s time, which would give his successor two years before the next General Election.
The Labour MPs expressing their lack of confidence in Starmer are being silly, short-sighted and immature. As Adam Boulton said yesterday on Sky News, the rest of the world is seeing us as a basket case, although (he added) that has been the case for some time.
The problems facing Britain are but intractable. Reform UK and the Greens are offering us only a magic wand and the long-famed magic money tree. The Labour left, in opining that more needs to be done to help working people and so on, do not understand economic reality.
The situation is as expressed in the famous note left for his Tory / Lib Dem Coalition successor in 2010 by the Labour Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Liam Byrne, in which he stated: "Dear Chief Secretary, I'm afraid there is no money. Kind regards – and good luck! Liam."
We all (or almost all!) have to accept the deeply unpleasant fact that we are getting poorer. And if the Government did what it should do – spend much more on Defence and much more on fighting climate change – we would all be poorer still.
And of course the poorest always suffer most. ’Twas ever thus.
But Britain needs to face reality.
Accordingly, I am starting a new party, Admirable UK, committed to telling the truth. Our slogan at the next General Election will be, “Doomed, doomed, we’re all doomed.”
We may not get many votes.
