Category: Politics & rants

The sky tonight is a fair reflection of my feelings about the budget …

Last night I sent

Dear Robin Walker,

it is very clear that His Majesty’s Government has departed very considerably from the manifesto on which it was elected. There is no democratic mandate for the financial policies now being pursued, which have caused widespread turmoil and attracted widespread condemnation. The current Prime Minister was appointed through the votes of a tiny number of Conservative Party members, and likewise lacks any shred of democratic legitimacy.

I would hope that you (as a self-described One Nation Tory) share my concerns both about the abandonment of the “levelling-up” on which your party won the last General Election, and about the financial gamble which has already threatened everything from the stability of sterling to the near-bankruptcy of some large pension funds.

This cannot go on. I urge you to use discussions with colleagues and Party members at the forthcoming Party Conference to seek a return to a responsible and fair financial policy. I would hope that you have sufficient courage to speak out, and if necessary to vote against the Chancellor’s policies in the House.

An article in The Guardian this morning (https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/jun/01/the-decade-that-broke-britain-the-disastrous-decisions-that-left-millions-in-a-cost-of-living-crisis) – also on archive.org –  prompted a mini-rant on Facebook from me:

From Facebook Memories 9 years ago this morning, but disturbingly relevant today:

Irritated by assorted readers of “Which?”, I posted the comment below on the Which? discussion boards a few days ago. I’ve just noticed that it’s now “comment of the week” !
I said:
I’m sure plenty of posters have a lot to feel smug about, but the reality for many people is that there just isn’t enough cash for energy and food. If you’re on benefits, Some kind of phone and internet connection are essential, especially if you’re looking for work. Many of those unexpectedly out of work will have long-term contracts (for example, Sky or gymn subscriptions) that can take a year to cancel, so these aren’t always luxuries that can be controlled! I know – it took me eight months to work through such items when I lost my last job.
Before posting smug condemnations of the feckless poor, please stop and think. If you lost your job or became too disabled to work tomorrow (or if both of you did, if you’re in a two-income household), how .long would it take you to set yourself up to live on the dole? What would you do if the fridge or boiler broke? How long would it take before you were able to grow even basic salads to cut down on food costs – what’s the waiting time for an allotment if you don’t have a garden?
The lecturing and patronising approach that some people take to the very real problems of poverty is a real contributor to the marginalisation that many of us feel.

“Britons should buy value brands to cope with living cost crisis, says minister” https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/may/04/britons-should-buy-value-brands-to-cope-with-living-cost-crisis-says-minister

Yet another attempt by Tories to shift blame from this dreadful government! Many people have been buying cheapest possible brands for many years, as the only possible way of eking out inadequate social security payments or pensions. It’s deeply insulting to all of us to imply that it’s our fault for not being thrifty enough to manage to survive, or that we lack the knowledge to do so.

I’m lucky, in that my massively broke period was some years ago, but I will never forget the despair induced by fortnightly purchases of ASDA “value” frozen sausages at £2 for 40, walking a mile to save 15p on half a gallon of milk, or sitting in the cold dark because the electricity meter had run out and money didn’t come in to my bank account until the following morning. So please, no more attempts to load responsibility for inhuman living conditions onto those that this government has so dismally failed to offer any meaningful support.

The Worcester News piece listing the candidates at the forthcoming elections is out. There’s a link (via the Internet Archive) here.

Only four candidates in the ward this time – great not to have the BNP standing! “The city’s Rainbow Hill ward will see one of four candidates elected with Parveen Parveen Akhtar for the Conservatives, Labour’s Zoe Cookson, Lib Dem Simon Cottingham and Nick Weeks for the Greens fighting it out. “