Saturday 30th May

Why do we need a Labour Party? By the looks of it we might as well all just join the Conservative party because all the potential leaders, and some deputy leadership candidate, seem to now agree with all their policies!

Andy, are you really going to support £12bn welfare cuts and a reduction in the cap to £23,000? And Ms Flint, even though I do agree that ‘living off benefits’ should not be choice, ‘giving people a kick up the backside’ does not seem to be the best way to achieve this. It may use the language that some UKIP and conservative voters may like to hear, but surely there is a better way of ensuring people rely less on benefits when they have a voice. Have we really thought about what we are saying as a party or are we just now going to go along with everything the Tory’s say because more people voted for them than us? I hope not! Even though for 2013/14 the country’s welfare budget was £251bn and £12bn may not seem a high % (although it is about 5%), over £100bn is spent on pensions so that only leaves about £150bn from which cuts can be made (ie. nearly 10%). So the £12bn welfare cuts are will affect many people especially those that really do need help.

And Liz, I believe all Labour Party members want to ‘love their party’ and ‘want it back in government because it’s the only way we will change people’s minds, and their lives’ but what really does that mean in practice? She really needs to explain what this means.

Sunday 31st May

So Yvette has decided to speak..at last and saying some good things; ‘not swallowing  the Tory manifesto’ is right but she will need to, more clearly and more precisely set out labour ideas for the future which do reflect labour values and are policies for the many and not the few! Also glad she is supporting the 50p income tax band, which is fair and progressive, and she is speaking out against the kind of language some of the candidates have been using which could stigmatise those who need to receive benefits. She talks about ‘radical changes’ to suit 2020, which could be very exciting, but what these are only time will tell.

We can’t ditch everything the Labour Party said just over three weeks ago…although many seem to think we can.
I’ve only just got round to seeing the challenge she gave May and Gove in… which was impressive and demonstrates that she has the potential to hold the government to account.

Monday 1st June

The 1st day of summer and the 1st flagship Conservative Manifesto pledges to turn into a fiasco! 30 hours free childcare for each working person per week…sounds great, and people liked it…but the Government don’t quite know how it’s going to work! Yes, they should have thought this one through before the election, but they hadn’t and non-one seemed bothered to ask them. There were numerous questions to Ed about the mansion tax was going to work but not a ‘dicky bird’ to Dave about how his childcare policy was going to work; one rule for one and one rule for the other…as usual.

No wonder they don’t know how to implement it, because their current 15 hours of free childcare isn’t even working; many childcare providers are not getting the money to pay for the 15 hours and they, and parents, have to provide the rest. It’s so bad that I heard some nurseries had refused a visit from Cameron…good on them.

And … this policy is wrong. It does not help the people who really need it to get back to work or continue to work. Working parents, regardless of what they earn, will get free childcare. I’m sure that most of the money will go to those who are already working and paying for childcare, ie. those who can afford it. Why do they need more free childcare? Wouldn’t it be better giving more childcare to those who need it…maybe those who are on the minimum wage so they can actually work the hours they need to work to earn a decent wage. 30 hours of childcare is only 6 hrs per day and many jobs require you to work at least 7 hours a day and often at weekends or evenings and I am sure childcare will not be available at those times. Labour could provide a better policy that really helps people to go back to work…one that is fair and progressive.

And Nicola, where have you gone? Are you on holiday? I’m so used to you being in the news every day, politics doesn’t seem the same without your coordinated chic suits!

Tuesday 2nd June

Just heard Charles Kennedy has died; I remember him as an authentic politician who spoke about what he believed in and not what he thought he should say. I know he will be missed by many both inside and outside politics.

Have to chuckle about the way Jeremy Hunt is tackling the problem with agency and locus staff costs; hasn’t anyone ever told him about supply and demand? I thought he belonged to a party that believed in the free market and entrepreneurship; don’t now criticise the agencies who may have exploited this position…although I am sure it is only a few agencies not all of them. I agree that the money spent on agency and locus costs should reduce but this needs to be achieved by the NHS directly employing more staff and training more staff to meet the future demand.

And Nicola is back. But she needs to stop threatening the country; it did not help before the election and it is not helpful now. Her threats before the election made many people fearful and therefore did not vote in the way they have wanted to, if she keeps repeating her veiled threats the country may vote NO in the EU Referendum and end up leaving the EU. Be a bit more savvy and political for the sake of the country.

Wednesday 3rd June

The other Nicky is back too…I must be careful not to get the two Nicola’s mixed up.

She is now saying that parents do not know what is best for their children and therefore should not have a say on whether their child’s school becomes an academy but, of course, she still believes parents are always right if they think a Free School is the best one for their child; double standards. I do not support Academies but would be happy to look at the evidence that demonstrated that academies are better for children than an equivalent local authority run school, but I have not seen this evidence. Her agenda continues to be about diminishing the powers of the local authorities and teacher unions not about enabling each child to reach their full potential.

And we should all be asking why MPs need a 10% pay rise. I don’t buy the argument that we have to pay a higher salty in order to attract good people to become an MP. I have never seen a shortage of people wanting to put their name forward to be an MP and I really don’t think the additional £7k is going to make a difference. Considering the average salary is about £26k then the current MP salary is already way above that…and  MPs get considerable expenses in addition to a five year contract (often extended if they perform well), sick pay, holiday pay as well as a nice pension….not bad compared to the pay and conditions most people get). The main costs are incurred by people wanting to be an MP who often have to give up work to focus on campaigning. Oh…and we shouldn’t forget that they can also have a second, third, fourth..or any number of jobs on top of their MP job. Surely if being an MP is a 24/7 job they should not really have the time to do another job; even though I recognise that some MPs may need to undertake a number of hours work to keep their professional registrations this is very different from taking additional jobs which should be banned.

Thursday 4th June

I have to admit I read old papers; in fact I have been known to take month’s old papers on holiday with me in my suitcase to read whilst sitting by a pool. Is that weird? Anyway, I tell you this because I have just got round to reading the rest of the Sunday Times from 10th May and came across the headline ‘With so much choice of leader, surely Labour will get it right this time’…it made me laugh!

Less than 4 weeks ago, even though we had lost on 7th, there was some optimism about the potential for a new leader who would take the Labour Party forward to winning in 2020…or before, if Cameron’s majority disappears over the next few years. Now I look at the list of potential candidates and wonder why the nomination field is so small…no Rachel (although I do realise she is on maternity leave), no Chukka, no Tristram, no Dan…even though I hear that Jeremy Corbyn has thrown his hat into the ring! The Labour Party has many talented people who could be our leader, but most don’t want to be or prefer to go for the deputy post; that is sad. Being leader of the Labour Party used to be an honour…it feels like people don’t think that way anymore.

So I wonder where the first £2.5bn of efficiency savings announced today are going to fall? No detail yet…not surprised, but they’re likely to affect non-school budgets, public health budgets, local government budgets, and justice and defence budgets. They may appear relatively small and not directly impact on the cash people receive, but they will impact on the services we get which will have to be reduced…and those who cannot afford to buy them themselves will have to do without; so that’s what ‘One Nation’ means?

Hopefully we’ll get better value for money from selling off the remainder of the Royal Mail than we did last time. And what are the other assets they plan to sell off? Whatever it is they’ll sell if off cheaply and quickly!

Pleased to see Ed back in the Commons. He has taken defeat gracefully and in good humour and shows that he will not shy away from supporting the Labour Party in the future. Well done.

Friday 5^th June

So Yvette has got her 35 MPs, I’m pleased. But considering we are nearing the final date for nominations I wonder why others haven’t. Each MP should be required to nominate someone..they must want someone to be their leader? If each MP was required to nominate someone then there could possibly be a wider field to choose from. At this rate it could be a two horse race (Andy had already got his 35), although I am pretty sure Liz will get hers.

And the debacle about MP pay increases goes on…will they, won’t they? I really think they shouldn’t. I am pretty sure a Government does not have to accept a pay review body recommendation…they don’t for other pay review bodies! Why is this so different? Ah yes, it’s their pay and not the pay of the porter or the cleaner or the nurse who works for the local hospital. MPs pay should increase at the same rate as other public sector workers then they would be treated the same. And the excuse about them having to pay more into their ‘gold plated’ pensions…well so are other public sector works and they are only getting 1% not 10% increase!