Daylight Robbery: Far Right in Raid on Low-Income Households
October 20, 2010 at 3:28 pm
(This post was last modified: October 20, 2010 at 3:30 pm by Existentialist.)
The Tory Government has today announced its intention to cut public spending by a fifth. The Chancellor's vandalism of social services, welfare benefits, defence and the BBC highlights the bulldozer strength of the far-right Conservative Government, when backed up by their right-wing "Liberal Democrat" collaborators. It is a typically British onslaught by an extremist government which has replaced policy formation with cynical opportunism, and which will spend the next five years telling lie after lie to the electorate in order to maintain a veneer of justification for pillaging of collective wealth we have created.
Today's raid on public finances is nothing less than a fundamental redistribution of incomes from the poor to the rich. The Tories have been itching to get an excuse to do this kind of thing for decades. Thatcher didn't even get close to the level of violence that will be done to the weak in our society by the withdrawal of vital help and support, despite the Tories' weasel words about protecting the vulnerable.
George Osborne, Nick Clegg, Vince Cable, David Cameron and their henchmen represent a ruling class whose only interest is in cutting its own bills at the expense of the less well off. In times of recession as well as boom, the British political settlement under Tories can be simply summed up as "the rich get richer and the poor get poorer" No other political analysis is remotely convincing or relevant. Let's look at the detail of today's contemptible speech by Osborne.
-7.1% a year reductions in council spending every year four years. Cumulatively this is a 25% cut to libraries, rubbish collection, paving, street lighting - all slashed and burnt by the Tories. Housing Association housing is to be 'reformed' - meaning tenants' rights will be attacked and their security it will be destroyed.
-£7bn additional slashing of welfare spending. If you're disabled, on a low income or on the dole, look forward to a struggle to make ends meet. Many vulnerable people will not make it.
-40% cut to higher education. 40,000 teaching jobs destroyed.
-Higher train fares, 3% above inflation until 2012, making train fares, already the highest in Europe, higher still in an increasingly chaotic rail system.
-Retirement age to rise to 66, (67..., 68..., 69 to come) to save on the dignity afforded by a decent pension.
-490,000 public sector jobs destroyed - at least.
This is just Day 1 of exposing the right-wing onslaught for what it is. The Tories, of course, have used a number of lies to sell this ruthless and destructive package - "Britain has run out of money", "We must do this to keep interest rates down", "the rich will be affected as much as the poor". But from this day on, the Tories' mask will begin to slip and the real reason for their money-grabbing schemes will become obvious - to rob from the poor and give to the rich. They must be stopped.
Today's raid on public finances is nothing less than a fundamental redistribution of incomes from the poor to the rich. The Tories have been itching to get an excuse to do this kind of thing for decades. Thatcher didn't even get close to the level of violence that will be done to the weak in our society by the withdrawal of vital help and support, despite the Tories' weasel words about protecting the vulnerable.
George Osborne, Nick Clegg, Vince Cable, David Cameron and their henchmen represent a ruling class whose only interest is in cutting its own bills at the expense of the less well off. In times of recession as well as boom, the British political settlement under Tories can be simply summed up as "the rich get richer and the poor get poorer" No other political analysis is remotely convincing or relevant. Let's look at the detail of today's contemptible speech by Osborne.
-7.1% a year reductions in council spending every year four years. Cumulatively this is a 25% cut to libraries, rubbish collection, paving, street lighting - all slashed and burnt by the Tories. Housing Association housing is to be 'reformed' - meaning tenants' rights will be attacked and their security it will be destroyed.
-£7bn additional slashing of welfare spending. If you're disabled, on a low income or on the dole, look forward to a struggle to make ends meet. Many vulnerable people will not make it.
-40% cut to higher education. 40,000 teaching jobs destroyed.
-Higher train fares, 3% above inflation until 2012, making train fares, already the highest in Europe, higher still in an increasingly chaotic rail system.
-Retirement age to rise to 66, (67..., 68..., 69 to come) to save on the dignity afforded by a decent pension.
-490,000 public sector jobs destroyed - at least.
This is just Day 1 of exposing the right-wing onslaught for what it is. The Tories, of course, have used a number of lies to sell this ruthless and destructive package - "Britain has run out of money", "We must do this to keep interest rates down", "the rich will be affected as much as the poor". But from this day on, the Tories' mask will begin to slip and the real reason for their money-grabbing schemes will become obvious - to rob from the poor and give to the rich. They must be stopped.
