It`s not only the Parliamentary Labour Party which
can divided up into "optimists and pessimists" (Leader:Corbyn asserts his
authority,25th September). I really enjoyed reading Helen Lewis`s piece on what
will happen when austerity starts to hurt "the sharp-elbowed middle class", as
it pointed to an obvious conclusion (The Politics Column,25th September). The
article`s thesis was that the Tories` austerity measures over the next five
years would have such dire consequences for professionals like lawyers and
doctors, (austerity has been affecting teachers for so long, presumably they
don`t count any longer!) Osborne would be prevented from repeating his previous
achievement,"cutting public services and still getting re-elected". Imagine my
disappointment; I was convinced the conclusion was going to be similar, but
actually confessing Corbyn was electable!
With Osborne`s austerity allied to his
cosying-up to the Chinese government, promising a
French-owned energy company extravagent bribes to invest in Britain, selling off
RBS to his friends in the City at ludicrously low prices whilst insisting every
penny counts, and in future almost certainly privatising Channel 4 and most of
the BBC, Corbyn`s policies will soon be resonating with millions more. It`s not
only Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett`s generation to whom he has given hope!
Around fifteen months ago, Jeremy Corbyn wrote an
article for your paper about "New Labour`s chief lieutenant Peter Mandelson",
who then, as now, was warning about Labour making "any move to the left"
(Morning Star,09/07/14). Corbyn`s reply was that the "tide was turning" and that
now was the "time for a radical alternative".
Corbynites last week will have been delighted
to see yet another attempt by Mandelson to return the Labour party into the
hands of the routed Blairites This time the pleasure is compounded, not just
for the usual reason that every time this one-time spin doctor tries to tell
party members what to do, the natural reaction of most of them is to do the
exact opposite, but because he has admitted that Corbyn must be given time. How
gracious of him, also, to give up his self-appointed role as lead
policy-strategist of the Labour party; he now wants "the public" to "decide
Labour`s future", as if they haven`t just done that. Call yourself a democrat,
Mr Mandelson?
Time, and
a fair hearing, are all that Corbyn needs. With Osborne making Britain even more
of a debtor country, following his deals with human rights-denier, China, and
offering a "state guarantee" of another £2bn to persuade companies owned and
controlled by the French and Chinese governments to invest in the Hinkley Point
nuclear project, Corbyn`s problem of choosing topics for the party conference
speech, and for future PMQs, has been eased somewhat. Add to this the
government`s dubious silence about the strategy, and the consequent need for
debate about it, and you have some very good reasons for the Labour doubters to
show some unity for once; the Tories are clearly over-confident, and
underestimating the opposition!
Corbyn`s policy of the British taxpayer taking ownership of the
railways will gain inceased popularity, when the electorate discover how
much the Chinese already own here, including "a third of the UK passenger train
fleet"; it`s up to the Labour MPs to shout such details from the rooftops. They
can talk loudly, too, about how, in time of a housing crisis and huge shortage
of affordable homes, the Tories are forcing housing associations, which build
around 40,000 properties each year, to sell homes under the right-to-buy scheme,
and taking on their £60bn of debt. One wonders, too, about which state-owned
broadcasting company will buy, probably at a knock-down price, Channel 4, and
what that would tell us about the prospects for the BBC.
All this, and it`s only two weeks since the
leadership result was announced; carry on like this for a couple of years
and Corbyn will not only be electable, he`ll be a shoo-in
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