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Our esteemed leaders have had better weeks.

Having written in the Coalition agreement signed in May 2010:

"The parties agree to implement a full programme of measures to reverse the substantial erosion of civil liberties under the Labour government and roll back state intrusion........ Ending of storage of internet and email records without good reason;"

Theresa May published yesterday the very similar plan that Labour dropped after opposition, which will store everybody's internet, phone and email records.

Having introduced a huge mandatory work programmes for the unemployed to work in the private sector, the Department of Work and Pensions produced a report on the effectiveness of the scheme. The study which compared the outcomes of more than 3000 Mandatory Work Activity referrals and 125.000 non-referred jobseekers concluded that the scheme had had a zero effect in helping people get a job. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research was asked by the DWP to peer review the report. THeir conclusion was that Chris Grayling's decision to expand the scheme flew in the face of the evidence that showed it was not working.

But hey at least Argos apparently have been cutting back on employees' overtime hours because they have so many jobseekers working for them.

And when Cameron told us in autumn 2010, that because of the wonderful job his government was doing we were coming out of the recession, little did we know that the Bank of England would be printing ?325 billion and giving it to the banks (some good bonuses eh?) via quantitative easing. That doesnt include the ?5 bn a month announced today, at rock bottom rates that banks will be able to get from the Bank of England to help in these double dip recession times .

Time for a country supper for Cameron and Ozzy round at Rebecca Brook's. You know the Rebecca Brook that texted Call me Dave "I am so rooting for you tomorrow not just as a proud friend but because professionally we're definitely in this together. Speech of his life? Yes, he CAM."

"In this together!? Have I heard this before.

Fuck me! give it a fucking rest, I think the group understands your Political leanings, don't you have some donkey's to feed?

I thought Jim Slip would be interested! That was the only reason I posted it!

!wink!

Jesus fuck! Give us an alternative then. Labour`s just as bad or I`d have kept voting for them. Don`t forget on top of monitoring your calls, emails and net usage Mandelson wanted to tax your internet so Lily Allen wouldn`t go poor

Fair comment.

On the subject of storage, emails and voice mails, you are right Labour did have plans to bring this in but the advice they got from a range of anti-groups was that it was a dumb idea that wouldn't work anyway so they dropped the plan.

Despite saying the opposite two years ago, the coalition are going ahead despite the business advice of 2 years ago and the feedback they have had recently from civil liberties and security experts.

WIth regard to the Mandleson Internet tax you mention I can only recall a plan to introduce a ?6 per year landline charge to help fund the spread of basic broadband and high speed superfast broadband which I would have thought would have been in the interest of pornoland.

As to the "Give us an alternative then!" that's the really difficult one. If you consider the range of ways it might be possible to run a government is 1 to 100, what you can actually do in the globalised world when industries and capital can relocate incredibly quickly, the range is more like between 40-50 for the UK. In that situation, there are not very big differences so it is just a question of picking the least worst and for me the least worst ain't the Tories.

Opposition always oppose government policies - that after all is supposed to be their job - and always or nearly always put into effect what they opposed when they were on the other benches. Reason: because there is a not a fag paper's difference in major policies between all of them.

Have to say I dont agree.

I don't know where you live now but if you said to the vast majority of people living in the North East of England for example - there was hardly a fag paper's difference in policies between Thatcher and Tony Blair they would look at you as if you were bonkers.

You would get the same reaction anywhere in the North of this country.

Not like you David to be so unobservant. I said there isn't "a fag paper's difference in major policies between all of them".

I said major policies.

Invasion of Afghanistan/Iraq - we would have gone in whether Blair was PM or Major/Hague/Duncan Smith/Howard.

Reform of Welfare State - Tony Blair told Frank Field to think the unthinkable and when he did he sacked him. Cameron has told Duncan Smith to reform the Welfare State and although there have been suggestions, nothing has yet been done. The ?30k supposed cap hasn't seen hundreds of families evicted from "rich" areas. In many cases people get more from benefits than they would from working and nothing has been done despite both Tories and Labour promising to do something.

EU - neither party when in power wants/wanted to give us a referendum on staying in/getting out despite their promises in manifesto/opposition.

Education - neither party wants to reform comprehensives and reintroduce grammar schools despite that being a proven way to aid social mobility. Academies are just tinkering around the edges.

Crime and punishment - the majority of people would like to see more prisons built and people actually punished and no automatic reduction of 50% on sentences. Again, both major parties have the same liberal wishy-washy policies that criminals are the real victims.

Drugs - despite tough talking both major parties do nothing to fight the so-called war on drugs.

Immigration - since neither party will give us a referendum on the EU, neither can do anything about EU immigration (with a couple of exceptions but that doesn't seem to do anything to stop them anyway) so they talk tough on non-EU immigrants. And again nothing happens...

The "cuts" - both parties would instigate cuts; the only difference is how quickly and that Brown talked of Labour investment and Tory cuts.

The NHS - despite being overburdened with bureaucracy, neither party will do anything to reform the NHS. Both parties claim the NHS is safe with them. Labour introduces NHS Trusts while the Tories introduce "choice" - neither has made much difference to patient care or as the bureaucrats put it "outcome".

Public transport - neither party seems able or willing to do the only thing necessary with the railways which is to renationalise them. The Beeching Report was one of the biggest disasters of the 20th Century. Both parties are in hock to the anti-car lobby resulting in anti-car policies. Most modern cars are fuel efficient and take you exactly where you want to go 0 buses trundle along often 2/3 empty and spew out fumes every five minutes when they stop.

Power - both parties continue to waste money on wind turbines when they are ugly, expensive and inefficient. Added to that, you have to keep a normal power station on at the same time in case the wind drops. It's like cooking your dinner in a microwave but having the gas oven on at the same time in case there is a power cut.

Eleven major policies - not a fag paper's difference between Labour and the Tories on any of them.

Not like you to completely miss the point of my post.

It is alway useful to have a grip of the detail because it is out of an understanding of the detail that you can make broad brush statements like you do. If you have no understanding of the detail, you are Jim Slip-like, not a happy state of mind.

To remind you

"I don't know where you live now but if you said to the vast majority of people living in the North East of England for example - there was hardly a fag paper's difference in policies between Thatcher and Tony Blair they would look at you as if you were bonkers. You would get the same reaction anywhere in the North of this country."

What did Thatcher and Major do to the UK.

1. Destroy the mining industry.
2. Destroy the majority of heavy industry in the north.
3. Privatise "the nation's family silver" according to Harold Macmillan, former Tory prime minister, selling it off to their mates in the City.
4. Leave the NHS in a condition that according to the Kings Fund in 1997 it was close to collapse.
5. Bring unemployment up to 3 million.

etc etc etc,



What were New Labour's successes in government after 10 years.

1. Longest period of sustained low inflation since the 60s.
2. Low mortgage rates.
3. Introduced the National Minimum Wage and raised it to ?5.52.
4. Over 14,000 more police in England and Wales.
5. Cut overall crime by 32 per cent.
6. Record levels of literacy and numeracy in schools.
7. Young people achieving some of the best ever results at 14, 16, and 18.
8. Funding for every pupil in England has doubled.
9. Employment is at its highest level ever.
10. Written off up to 100 per cent of debt owed by poorest countries.
11. 85,000 more nurses.
12. 32,000 more doctors.
13. Brought back matrons to hospital wards.
14. Devolved power to the Scottish Parliament.
15. Devolved power to the Welsh Assembly.
16. Dads now get paternity leave of 2 weeks for the first time.
17. NHS Direct offering free convenient patient advice.
18. Gift aid was worth ?828 million to charities last year.
19. Restored city-wide government to London.
20. Record number of students in higher education.
21. Child benefit up 26 per cent since 1997.
22. Delivered 2,200 Sure Start Children's Centres.
23. Introduced the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
24. ?200 winter fuel payment to pensioners & up to ?300 for over-80s.
25. On course to exceed our Kyoto target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
26. Restored devolved government to Northern Ireland.
27. Over 36,000 more teachers in England and 274,000 more support staff and teaching assistants.
28. All full time workers now have a right to 24 days paid holiday.
29. A million pensioners lifted out of poverty.
30. 600,000 children lifted out of relative poverty.
31. Introduced child tax credit giving more money to parents.
32. Scrapped Section 28 and introduced Civil Partnerships.
33. Brought over 1 million social homes up to standard.
34. Inpatient waiting lists down by over half a million since 1997.
35. Banned fox hunting.
36. Cleanest rivers, beaches, drinking water and air since before the industrial revolution.
37. Free TV licences for over-75s.
38. Banned fur farming and the testing of cosmetics on animals.
39. Free breast cancer screening for all women aged between 50-70.
40. Free off peak local bus travel for over-60s.
41. New Deal ? helped over 1.8 million people into work.
42. Over 3 million child trust funds have been started.
43. Free eye test for over 60s.
44. More than doubled the number of apprenticeships.
45. Free entry to national museums and galleries.
46. Overseas aid budget more than doubled.
47. Heart disease deaths down by 150,000 and cancer deaths down by 50,000.
48. Cut long-term youth unemployment by 75 per cent.
49. Free nursery places for every three and four-year-olds.
50. Free fruit for most four to six-year-olds at school.

Perhaps you could point out all the wonderful things Cameron and co have done in their two years in power? I haven't noticed too many around Blackpool to be honest.

Any body else reminded of the 'Peoples Front of Judea'? And I paraphrase slightly, 'But what have New Labour done for us?'