The Cruddas manifesto

Ray

The Cruddas Manifesto sounds like a perfect recipe for dumping Britain in exactly the kind of mire that Mrs Thatcher had to haul the country out of in 1979.

mitch

More taxes then!

FergusMac

They never learn. Council houses, far from being 'decent homes' have long been a byword for jerry-built, damp, crumbling and poorly-maintained hell-holes. That is the case in much of the Central Belt of Scotland, and in particular in Glasgow (a Labour one-party state these many years).

The theory of Socialism might appeal to some, the reality is not something you would wish on your worst enemy

Water

With regards to the website that was linked to Cruddas came third, Johnson came second and Harman as we all know took first place.

James Forsyth

Water, Apologies--pre coffee blogging.

Water

Ahh you changed it, good stuff.

Water

Not at all don't apologise we all need our coffee. Just a friendly hint nothing more.

Ian C

Ray, I would add that Cameron et al are going to have to do again - why it is important to get an early election so that the damage of the past 11 years is held to a sustainable level and not compounded in the Gov'ts deathrows at double the rate of the peace of decline/damage infliction thus far.

Prodicus

Copyright Barbara Castle 1965. So 'progressive' is still Labour-speak for 'going backwards', then.

Nicholas

The list is hardly a "smart" mix. It is heavy with the oppression and authoritarianism already adopted by Brown and practiced by the socialist machinery under Blair. The clear red water is the difference between big government with state in your face and Cameron's less obtrusive vision.

Compulsion and coercion in political ideology ultimately does not work and is a damaged journey with much destruction and human misery, which should be bleedin' obvious by now, given the number of examples. Labour must be really thick not to understand this or really sinister in their intent to pursue it regardless.

TevorH

"enforce fairer prices" --- aka Prices and Incomes Policy
"revenue from fairer taxation" - prohibitive private and corporate tax.
"a tough framework" - draconian legislation/tax and spend
"better rights for those who work" - even more red tape/reduced productivity
"let councils step in" - return to council housing/sink estates

All this is quite risible. Brown might as well resign as enforce this. As Brown sinks his party becomes ever more uncontrolable.

Water

Thank god we have something more long the lines of blue water ready to purge the socialist tabernacle.

Matthew Blott

@ Ian C

A bit of perspective - things might be bad but this isn't 1979.

Another point - I think it's far from certain Labour is going to tack significantly leftwards - Denis McShane wrote a very interesting piece in today's Telegraph ....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/05/27/do2701.xml

Mike, Brighton

The political point is that Blair always said that elections are won from the centre. Is it me is NuLab vacating this centre faster than a speeding bullet? The left senses weakness in Labour and Cruddas, McDonell et al are happy to push their agenda onto the party. It is an agenda for political oblivion and a generation out of office

Louisa

What guff this Cruddas man is full of.

He's right on the fact that a change of leader won't do anything for them. Did you see yesterday's Sunday Times headline: "Miliband is ready to save New Labour"?

What dozy chimp wrote that?

Richard Littlejohn, who correctly predicted that Brown wouldn't call an election last autumn, spells out with perfect common sense why Muppetbland won't make a blind bit of difference.

Much as the meejah love to talk about personalities, this isn't just about that, it's about the whole tax-thieving, high-immigration shebang finally being rumbled. Much of the country was too drunk to notice all this going on while they could get their hands on a credit card, not any more.

Still, it's great fun watching them rearrange the deckchairs on the Titanic, it's all they're fit for.

Louisa

Oh, and here's the link to Littlejohn doing what only he can...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1022032/LITTLEJOHN-Whats-difference-MPs-expenses-stealing.html

Matthew Blott

@ Louisa

Richard Littlejohn is just a ranting right-winger. He's entitled to his opinions of course but if you are looking for any insight his columns aren't the place to go. He's a sort of right-wing Seamus Milne. One of the things I like about the Spectator is it provides a right-of-centre commentary from a more measured perspective as opposed to the baseball bat round the head treatment I get when I read something in the Daily Mail.

Paul B

Cruddas priorities, is a crude list of crudities. Backwards looking tax and spend, married to heavy handed socialist dogma, all dressed up in a a cockney accent to try to appeal to Sierra man & Basildon women. Its belongs in a Dagenham dustbin.

Cruddas vision is a pre-historic land of long extinct, delusional dreams than amount to no more than pure hogwash. The comrades really haven`t understood or taken on board a single lesson from the past 30years of economic history. It would be tragic if it were not so risible.

Kevyn Bodman

Cruddas is on to something here.
Of course the majority of readers and commenters on a Spectator blog don't want these policies implemented, and neither do I.
What he is on to is the idea of pointing out the policies he wants and going some way to giving a statement of political principles.
I'd like to see ALL parties point out how thery are different from the others.
And I'd like to see Cameron come out with a statement from his viewpoint of how a government led by him would be different from another NuLab government.

Louisa

Matthew, darling, I know this might come as a shock to you but Richard Littlejohn represents a great many of us in the country.

i've had plenty of free gifts with my lovely Daily Mail over the years but I sadly missed the issue where they gave out a baseball bat. I should be more loyal a reader, clearly.

Yes, there's a time to be measured and provide detailed insight and there's a time to have a good laugh at the goons who rule us and that's what I get my twice-weekly dose of Uncle Rich for.

What's more, you'll find more substance in Uncle Rich's columns than in acres of plenty of other pseudo-intellectual trash that vainly parades around in magazines like this. Try anything by Venetia Thompson for a start.

Must go as I have to see if Trevor Kavanagh or Gaunty have put anything new on The Sun's website.

Love and kisses

Louisa

Matthew Blott

@ Louisa

Thanks for the love and kisses, that was very sweet of you. I'm well aware Littlejohn speaks for a constituency in England but what does that prove? So does George Galloway or plenty of other loudmouths you might care to mention. Of course, as you say, if it's just for a laugh then it's all good fun (I found Galloway's Talksport show surprisingly enjoyable much as I would readily concede Littlejohn is capable of a good funny line here and there).

Diablo

Contrast Cruddas's prescription for Labour with the one that Denis MacShane - that one man spin machine has put forward in the Daily Telegraph today (cut spending and taxes) and we have the wonderful prospect of Labour splitting itself into two factions. Sit back and enjoy!

Marin

Nothing original here; Lenin had similar policies more than one hundred years ago.

Ian C

Matthew
The point I was making was that another two years of this govt will have done alot more than 2 years of pro-rata damage compared to their length of stay. In today's climate and with the landmines they have planted over the past 11, their last 2 yrs will be more than 2/13ths of the damage, more like 6.

I think it is a mute point about whether they will tack left or not from here - McShane would say that wouldn't he?. There will be alot of pressure on the survivors of their coming demise to go left and will very much will depend on who is left standing, or in a seat, of which he is unlikely to be one. We can probably safely interpret his article as an early attempt at his own survival.

Tony

I love it when Littlejohn does one of his understated sentences before drenching somebody.

"This column doesn't do honeymoons."

You don't say! He used it when Gordon took the throne and when John Major did the same.

Hard to pick the best column in recent months, but the one where he went through Brown's cabinet at the start of the reign was great and the Stephanie Flanders "I'm a gnu" column was a cracker too.

Loved his appearance on Question Time opposite Pole Dance Pollyanna Toynbee too. Her face when he said: "You started it, pet" was a joy to look at.

Matthew Blott

@ Diablo

Is that what you want? I don't think it does democracy any good to have a government tearing itself in two (or an opposition). Surely it's best to support the progressive factions of a party.

Littlejohn Fan

I must say I absolutley love Littlejohn. He is not one of those luvvie journalists, granted, but he is a fantastic read and has a phenomenal ability to put into print what most right minded people are thinking.

Tina

Littlejohn, best columnist around to my mind. Never missed his columns when he was at The Sun and never miss them now he is at the Daily Mail.

Tel, Spain

'A howl of rage from the suburbs and the shires'

How Littlejohn described May 1st 2008 local election results for Brown, CLASSIC.

Tamsin

Apparently the Mail's sales have gone up, despite its rise in cover price. Is this true?

I have to say that I buy it for three reasons: Richard Littlejohn, Quentin Letts and Melanie Phillips.

They each do a very different job and clearly the first two are lampooners rather than straightforward commentators, but the three of them knock the socks of anyone else writing in any other paper anywhere.

We may be going to hell in a handcart but at least we'll go laughing.

David Lindsay

If the Tories really are picking up white working-class votes, then they are in fact picking up the votes of people who agree with Cruddas and are sick of waiting for Labour to implement such things.

If Cameron also did not do so (and, obviously, he wouldn't), then the Tories could only expect one term.

The people who violently disagree with Cruddas already vote Tory anyway. I don't know why they bother, considering the things in which they do believe, but that's another story.

Matthew Blott

I feel a bit like the Reverend Jeremiah Wright at a KKK convention here :-)

Claire

Matthew Blott, how typical of you lefties. When failing to impose your opinion on others envoke notions of racism. PATHETIC.

Lance Diatessaron

As this thread has degenerated partially into a 'who's my favourite/least favourite columnist' fight, may I make a short plug for small-c conservative columnist James Bowman in The new criterion. Elegant, dry, funny. Also his diary at jamesbowman.net, and his excellent book Honor: a history.

As for rubbish columnists, it's a packed field, but I really honestly wonder what is the point of Andrew O'Hagan in the D Telegraph. I'd rather read Polly Toynbee: at least she's funny.

Calire

Sorry, meant invoke not envoke!

Matthew Blott

@ Claire

Hmm, this is bizarre. I've been called continuously called a neocon for months on the Guardian's Cif and now I am a leftie. I'm middle of the road politically, obviously most on here are to the right. Hence I am a minority. Hence the analogy I posted - it was a joke. I don't see where the "racism" bit comes in. I suppose I could have used another example - a Millwall fan at a Chelsea game, does that do? Please retract the "PATHETIC" remark, as it was a bit, er, pathetic.

Tony

Ah, Matthew has to laugh ":-)" at his own imagined witticisms, too, just because he knows nobody else will.

You couldn't make it up.

Matthew Blott

@ Tony

Do you want a fight?

Olly

The only thing wrong with Dickie is that he doesn't put enough of his old columns into his books. I do like to read his stuff over and over. I think the only other book of columns I re-read as much as his are Jeffrey Bernard's "Reach For The Ground" compilation of Spectator columns.

I tried a Lewis Grizzard compilation of columnsa while back as I heard he was a sort of American Littlejohn. Not so. Dickie well outdoes him.

He's the most popular and successful satirist this country has had over the last decade or so and seems to get to paint much more detail into his satire now he's back at the Mail from The Sun.

Claire

Matthew Blott, you're as bad as Brown. No-one likes you at cif and no-one likes you here, can't you take a hint?

Charlie, Bolton

Blott, would that be a real fight or a metaphorical one?? Haha!

June

Matthew, thank heavens you don't rely on your wit to make a living.

Carly

In the Daily Telegraph today, Dennis MacShane:

Every minister he knew was privately in 'despair at the 'waste of money on pointless projects, publications or legions of press officers'.

Mr MacShane warned that the party’s rhetoric about 'hard-working families' had ignored the needs of millions of single and childless voters in London.

The former Europe minister said voters were rightly angry when they saw the 'insatiable greed of the state ... take the people’s money for its own incompetent
and counter-productive ends'

Just about sums it up I say. If even the shameless publicity hound McShane gets it why can't Gordon?

Ian C

For you Daily Mail readers, for what it's worth:-
- It's known locally as the Daily/Sunday Fascist
- Every time I do buy it I always wonder why
- Q Letts and M Philips I gain access to in other media (the other bloke sounds amusing but I go 6 miles for a paper so it has to be worthwhile) and finally
- I tend to ask myself why I bought a Telegraph on the occasions that I have since Nial Fergusson went to the FT. Everyone else there is so long winded and with a specifically and slavish Tory slant.

Doesn't leave much worth reading - The Times is an advertising mag these days, but my wife likes the Sod u ko and occasionally Kaletsky sticks to economics (something he knows a bit about!) and yummy Mary Ann has left.

More fun doing this - unless David Lindsay is around!

Matthew Blott

@ Claire

Explain your last comment please?

Claire

Need it spelling out in plain English? OK here goes...

YOU DON'T FIT IN ANYWHERE!

Matthew Blott

Claire, I think you need to take a chill pill. No doubt you'll be pleased to know this is my final post as I'm going home now :-)

ChunkyLover53@aol.com

Claire, M Blott etc:

Please would you just exchange email addresses and abuse or seduce each other directly. Some of us want to post without this bickering.

James Forsyth

Folks, can we avoid getting quite so personal. Let's keep it civil. Best, James

David Lindsay

Happy to be of service, Ian C.

Cruddas has long argued that "Middle England" was only part of the New Labour coalition, and that it was just as important to keep on side public sector workers, ethnic minorities, "urban intellectuals" and the white working class.

New Labour didn't listen, and so started to lose those groups. But Cameron has done, and so has started to pick them up.

In other words, Cameron has started to make himself dependent on those groups. Ian, they don't agree with you about anything at all. On the contrary, they agree with Cruddas.

But Cameron doesn't agree with either you or Cruddas. So the Cruddas Coalition will at best give him one term only. And why would you mind if it did?

Ian C

Well DL if you've got new and worthwhile info. share it so 'housers can evaluate whatever it is you're saying.... I, for one, don't understand a word.

David Lindsay

You will.