Polly Toynbee speaks at the October 2005 Labour Party conference (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is an excellent, MUST READ, article from Polly Toynbee, in the Guardian. Check it out!
I usually find that I do not agree with Polly Toynbee but on this occassion, I think that she has hit the nail on the head.
The Coalition government‘s economic policies are an omni-shambles yet they are always first to wield the stiletto on the last government’s economic record. Incidentally, Simon Wren-Lewis, the Oxford economist, in an independently reviewed paper has proved the Coalition government wrong about Labour’s economic management.
Any thoughts?
Related articles
Dr Alf's Blog 
Pingback: Beyond Polly Toynbee’s narrow view on the Labour Party – John Gelmini « Dr Alf's Blog
On the narrow point that Polly Toynbee makes I have to agree with Dr Alf.
This does not mean that I think the Labour Party has coherent and strategically sound economic policies or that I agree with the efficacy of Coalition policies under the “Undynamic duo”,Messrs Cameron and Osborne.
The Coalition,s policies represent one club golfing in that there is:
–No real effort to cut public sector costs or effect reform
–No action on the UK,s lack of productivity ,now 20th in the world
–No concerted action on corporation tax and competitiveness
–Insufficient action on export led growth
— Insufficient money for R and D
–A failure to improve State Education fast enough
–No real attempt to bring in Sovereign wealth
–A failure to act to secure:
-Energy Supplies
-Food self sufficiency
-Our Defence
-Our Borders
The opposition,s policies fail to address these problems as well and both fail to address the biggest question of all which is how is the UK going to pay its way in the future unless we start to make and sell enough of the things that people want.
Secondly ,what is the UK,s role in the world to be?
A member of the EU?
A member of the EU with repatriated powers?
A member of EFTA?
An independent offshore tax haven modelled on the best aspects of Switzerland and Singapore and with public expenditure dramatically reduced,lower population and a total and unremitting focus on prosperity,jobs,growth and minding our own business?
This last scenario given the rundown of our armed forces our low productivity ,our imbalanced economy and our inability to even afford a coastal protection vessel makes the most sense but under Miliband, Cameron and Osborne (the UK version of the “Three Stooges”)it is always going to be Option 1 plus a tendency to publicly lecture others and engage in foreign military intervention when we have neither the military power,money or public appetite to do so.