Quote:
Originally Posted by Stanaccy
The problem labour have had is following conservative policies since they came into power. Selling off the state owned industries, maintaining strict public sector budgets, bringing in private industry to run public services at the lowest possible cost (pay peanuts get monkeys). Using civil servants to combat inflation etc.
To bring in an earlier thread they should have followed more socialist ideals regarding the public sector, that way health and education would have improved and they would have been able to point to positives that have been done.
Until labour returns to it's roots then it will always be a pale shadow of the tories. The closest to any viable alternative to the tories is the Lib dems unfortunately.
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I think you have missed a couple of points here. Yes, Labour have adopted some concepts of original Conservative policy. Mr Blair's Public Private Partnerships were just one example of using the private sector to attempt to increase competition in the delivery of services. They did however apply their own little brand of socialism to these policies which shouldnt be ignored. These are not policies that have been lifted straight out of Thatcherism and implemented under a new name - they have been overwhelmingly re-worked whilst cherry picking the best bits. Other examples include the NHS Trusts and railways.
They have not "maintained strict public sector budgets" - dont be naive with what you hear on the news. Public sector spending has gone through the roof, as has the amount we are now taxed - but its all done in a modular fashion; things are broken down so you can quote the low figures, or the amalgamated set depending on what suits. Pet projects, government schemes and hedge funds all contribute to this. Labour governments have always been 'big' governments - they tax more and they spend more. This is one of the fundamental differences between the two main parties - I'm not going to get on my soap box, instead (and alas rather crudely) il just try to stay neutral and say with a Labour government, you have to hope they dont waste all your money, with a conservative government, you have to hope they collect enough and put it where it needs putting.
Big governments end in tears, and socialism in its purest form cant exist because it is incompatible with human nature. The communists tried it and found out that 'some are more equal than others' because human nature allows it to be so.