Remember the rejection of modest welfare cuts by the current Labour government several months ago in order to trim back (more actually needed) the burgeoning and unmanageable welfare expenses which burden this country to the tune of £313 billion in 2024/25 and which will climb to £373 billion by 2019/30?
The draft law (a bill) was the Labour governments mainly failed attempt to trim the horrendous welfare expenses which is a burden the country can no longer afford due in part to the huge interest payments of £111.2 billion in servicing the country’s national debt of £2.537 trillion about 25% of which is index linked. The payments are unusually high compared to other European countries as a consequence.
Labour MPs including Barker rejected the idea of cutting welfare while knowing the alternative was to raise taxes which hobbles growth; a necessity to afford welfare. They have contrived to create a financial doom loop to use modern terminology.
Any Burnham is setting out his stall to oust Starmer as the Labour leader. Andy is also in favour of spending more while taxing the wealthy but we know as a fact that wealth taxes don’t work effectively as the wealthy often have the option to leave the country and circumvent these targeted taxes in other ways.
Barker said on BBC Radio 5 Live:
“My colleagues, who represent their constituents every single day, diligently, and stood up against welfare cuts, some of those were suspended for doing the right thing, for standing up for their constituents.”
We all know that welfare costs have risen sharply because of increased claims for long-term disability benefits by those able to work or train because of anxiety and depression. These are the infamous NEETS. Some are genuine claims while some are not. Benefits fraud is a big problem.
The welfare bill is expected to continue to climb when in about 10 years it will break the country’s finances.
The bottom line is that the UK needs to cut expenses and live in the real world rather than stifle economic expansion with more taxes.
The Times newspaper reports that the economy did not grow at all in July. The economy is weak as is growth which has been the status quo for a long time. Money needs to be freed up to invest in the nation. National income cannot be flushed down the drain in servicing massive interest payments and fraudulent welfare benefits.
But MPs like Barker think that money grows on trees and that there are no downsides to taxing more as opposed to spending less. The latter must always be the better course of action provided welfare is managed compassionately and fairly but also with great efficiency to weed out the fraud.
Historically, Labour have been poor on making money. They are also more interested in spending it which makes them the wrong government at this time when there is a massive need to make more – grow the economy. Almost all they have done has served to hobble the economy. That is their culture.
Dominic Sandbrook writing an op-ed in The Times of 13th Sept was referring to the contest between Tony Benn and Denis Healey and commented that “At the heart of the contest was a very familiar issue [concerning the Labour Party]: the tension between socialist principle and economic reality.”
plus ça change. Today the government must focus hard on economic reality unless they accept doing down the fiscal abyss of a bankrupt Britain.
