'Rebuilding Labour's Future'

What future?

Sorry Nick -- the correct headline should "Attempting to buy Labour's future through bribes".
All a touch too late -- his game is up and the people won't believe this type of spin anymore. The UK public know that the country can't sustain the current level of public spending and pretty much every commentator is saying the UK must curtail not expand costs if it is to recover.
UK needs an election NOW.

Well that means that my Son due to leave school next year will not get a job for 12 months as all the leavers from this year with their 6000 goverment rebate to the employer will garantee3 them a job even if my son is better qualified!

"Local homes for local people"

This sounds dangerously like a BNP policy- I hope this bit doesn't get through parliament.

Aside from that, This sounds like a good set of Policies, but any bets on the length of time until The opposition and Lib Dem leaders start to (predictably) say that it's wrong?

So that would be one of the world's shortest books then: "Rebuilding Labour's Future".

None of the above will actually happen of course, Labour are in denial about spending cuts, and now backtracking on the "non-negotiable" Royal Mail privatisation because they are too busy!

What we need is an election and a fresh government with a renewed mandate.

um how to rebuild labour lets see firstly i would clear out these neu-labour idiots that have ruined the traditional labour party.
but to be honest labour should just close up and shut down its day has past and it like all other parties are destroying parliment.

Dosen't a lot of this sound familiar? Maybe a few words changed here and there? They ran out of ideas a long time ago, and now we have run out of our money. Thank you Labour.

Why should we trust Gordon Brown?

He tell lies. He also doesn't deliver on his electoral promises.

The thought of Gordon Brown continuing at the helm "Building Britain's Future" makes me retch.

'Look at the eye-catching headline-grabbing....'

'The chancellor pledged.....'

'..which promised...'

All from your very own blog, Nick. For 12 years we've endured this bull. Three times the biggest minority of electors bought into the bull.

It won't wotk any more. No one believes a word he says anymore.

The unemployment of young people is once again going to be a major social problem in the not too distant future as all those schools and universities churn out their new graduates into an economy that is busy making experienced and skilled workers redundant. So what jobs are these young people to have? What training are they going to get on top of all that education they have already had to make them more employable?

Furthermore the adoption by Labour of the BNP housing policy is nothing more than squalid opportunism of the lowest order. What better statement is there of the complete political and moral bankruptcy of this Labour government.

This is nothing about Building Britain's Future; it is not even a sick joke. It is a vile insult to our intelligence.

Yeh local homes for local people, just like British jobs for British people.

Wait until the Human rights lawyers get that one in court, or someone from Africa or Eastern Europe takes the local authority to the EU courts,

1, The local authority will have to house them
2, The local authority will be fined which will then come out of council tax payers pockets.

Once again we, the British people will not have a say in what can or cannot be done because of Labours pro European stance.

Its quite laughable to here this guy set out a "vision" for the future because neither he nor many of his supporters will see power again due to the way they have devastated the economy of this country.

I suppose we will have to A) borrow more or B) print more money just remind us again Nick just how much over the predictions we are already and just what the total will be when all the hidden contracts find their way onto the balance sheet.

Labour = Epic fail and all they are doing is topping up there more than adequate pension pots while condemning us all to even more years of drastic cuts.....they know it, you know it ,but they just wont take their heads out of the sand and admit it.

I laughed when i saw that the Monarchy costs us 69p each how much does all the Parliaments we now have cost us ???

How do u figure ZanuLabour has a future?????? - did Mandy tellu??? - or r u just showing your usual Liebour bias???? - more LIES, SPIN, AND DECEIT, from the whiter than white, cleaner than clean, party. HILARIOUS if it was not so tragic for us, our children, and their childrens children, and it is ALL abou Liebour and zilch about UK.

What a feeble effort!

If that's the best that Brown and his cohort can manage, then Britain has no future.

Why is it always "the Government" who has to create jobs? WE can't afford the taxes to support even more public sector employees. I've nothing against public service - just the waste it seems to bring.

Anyone notice the Office of National Statistics report?

Since 1997, 2.9MIL jobs have been created in the UK.

1.1MIL were in the private sector.

1.9MIL were in the public sector...

So 50percent more jobs were paid for out of taxes (or borrowings) than created in the real economy. I just haven't noticed 1.9MIL new-jobs worth of improvement in public services.

Has anyone else?

Is that it? Populist lollipops?

The trouble with Labour's initiatives is that they don't actually carry them out.

So hot air there then.

Re Housing. In my mind, legally, there are two criteria to be fulfilled when allocating council housing (the same as in a divorce settlement coincidentally) and those are :

NEEDS
and
ENTITLEMENT.

First establish there is a need. Good. Right. If there IS then establish if there is an ENTITLEMENT.

Anybody ever done it that way? Probably not.

I would also add my twopenneth in that this government are probably acting unlawfully on many many accounts. Not least that there was absolutely NO consultation with people on what they thought about immigration - unchecked - and its effects on the areas where they live. In other words they should have asked us FIRST if we would like our towns to be turned into slums and inhabited by millions of people who cannot and don't want to even speak the language of OUR country.

Nothing much exciting here, whoever's future the document is detailing - they are in for an underwhelming time.

Sounds like recycled tired ideas, most of which should plain common sense, the absence of which is behind many of New Labours policies. The detail of these usually ensures that nothing much chnages or gets done for the better. No ideas, no initiative, no energy - a tired end to a tired government.

I misread the first paragraph as 'Stick a red nose on the front ...' When I finished the article I thought my opening paragraph may be more appropriate!

... and 2.1 billion for affordable homes?
how and where will those funds be disseminated, I wonder.
Or perhaps none will quite reach the councils or housebuilders I suspect.

Remember the 100+ million 'Enterprise Strategy', serious funds being made available for underwriting young and keen-to-grow businesses, even a capital fund of 12.5 million for women-led companies.......... signed up to by all the major banks. Did barely a penny reach who it was supposed to?

Regards, in a totally disillusioned sort of way..

I live in a small village in Somerset, where a new developmemnt of about 30 houses was recently built. Of these, 8 had to be made over to 'social housing' via a charity. That is all well and good, but the policy for who gets a house was all wrong, and it looks very much like Local Homes for Local people will fall into the same trap. It should not matter how long you have lived in anarea to qualify for a house. It should depend on how much value you create for the local community. We now have eight families who have never donne a days work, given their houses for a peppercorn rent, merely due the fact that they grew up here. On the other hand, the school mistress, post man, hair dresser etc, can not afford to live in the area.

4 General Fondue

"This sounds like a good set of Policies, but any bets on the length of time until The opposition and Lib Dem leaders start to (predictably) say that it's wrong?"

==========================
The opposition usually don't have to do this. As with everything New Labour, the devil is in the detail, and things are never quite like they seem.

I agree with your comment about local homes for local people. But what does it actually mean ?

4. Oh for goodness sake Fondue!

Are you naive or what? Just get out and see the problems immigration has caused with housing.

You should have heard the Jeremy Vine programme on the wireless this morning.

Almost without exception the public rang in and said the immigration has caused the problem and why are they still arriving here, homeless, with no job prospects?

Where is my Alka Selzer?

Does Roy Kinnear write Newlabour polict proposal?

Certainly looks like someone is in the backround shouting - Catchphrase!

Local homes for local people? What on earth does that mean? Built out of local materials only? Nobody can have any hope anymore to move out of their area? If I want to move into your area I can't because I'm not local? This is more newlabour spin and foolishness which will fall as flat as every other attempt to relaunch the good ship Bismarck/Brown.

He has no idea; 75% want public sector spending to be cut - get on with it or call an election.

Labour has no future judging from that speech by Brown today.

A stale government going through the motions who will not walk away. If only they would.

I fear for those under 25's who will be bullied into doing the most mundane created jobs either with or without good qualifications. A quick fix but completely soul destroying for the young people concerned.

What maddens me most are the lies. Brown says the tories did nothing in the last recession to help young people. Has he not heard of the Youth Training Scheme introduced by the Conservatives in the eighties.

Young people leaving school were given an allowance for a year to try out different jobs. Employers were able to give them training and were able to empoly them on a permanent basis in many cases.

It enabled young people to gain experience in many types of employment and was invaluable to those without higher educational qualifications.

It was a creative scheme unlike the new proposals which appear to be telling young people they have to do something they don't want to or lose benefit.

Brown keeps talking about growth. Perhaps he needs to find out how to stop a recession first.

It's just another exercise in rehashing stuff we already knew about and making promises we all know they won't have to keep, not least because they won't be around to call to task when their failure becomes apparent. Put simply, the money just isn't there for all these promises. We know it, the Tories know it, government ministers just about admit it, but Brown lives in a world of total fiction now. I just wish someone would close the book on him.

This might be seen as a plan for Labour's future, but let's all be honest about it: they don't have one.

https://cogitodexter.wordpress.com

Seems to be a list of policies Labour would normally condemn, indeed Beckett was condemned by her fellow Labour Party members for even suggesting something along the lines of 'Local Housing for Local People.'

It would appear that Labour have realized that most of the BNP's votes have come from disaffected Labour voters, and are altering policy to try and get them back.

And how many relaunches has this been for Brown now? Given the abject failures of the previous ones, I can't see anyone falling for this one - especially as Labour are refusing, via cowardice, delusion or outright dissembling, to acknowledge the depth of public spending cuts that will be needed soon.

Mind you, they could be hoping their economic forecasts are correct, although given they haven't ever managed that before, perhaps they should remember what we describe people who repeatedly do the same act and expect a different outcome - insane.

Another suggestion for a headline Nick: 'Rebuilding Brown's Future'?

Another day, another relaunch. The public is sick of it and want a general election.

This election manifesto has Mandy's name written all over it with a couple of glaring omissions such as the Royal Mail sell-off, future of Trident and a comprehensive Whitehall spending review.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Brown is trying to find a few crumbs of comfort for his legacy and shore up his position ahead of what could be September's leaving party.

It's an admission of failure and begs the question what have they been doing for the last 12 years?

https://theorangepartyblog.blogspot.com/2009/06/mandy-manifesto-with-dollop-of-brown.html

Well if this could be a Labour manifesto then we already know they could be prepared to break any promises contained in it.

I would spend some time putting together a structured point by point critique, but what's the point?

There's only one response to this pathetic 'vision' - rofl.

Nothing on this earth could persuade me to vote for these vile,lying troughers.

FFS GIVE US AN ELECTION

5. At 4:02pm on 29 Jun 2009, yellowbelly1959 wrote:

"What we need is an election and a fresh government with a renewed mandate."



And the exact mechanism - by which you intend to achieve that outcome - is?

Like, dream on.

You only get an election when one particular person decides it's election time, or the parliamentary term is up, or - perhaps - if Mr B resigns as PM, some other Labour-chosen 'prime minister' decides it's election time.

Of course, if Mr B were to stand down, it's not impossible - though surely unlikely - Labour would not choose another prime minister in advance of the next election. So, remember the Lord Secretary of State, Chief Cook and Bottle-Washer (what IS that title of his?) can be prime minister in the interim. That's dearest Mandy, of course, and as he IS a member of the House of Lords, he COULD undertake the role of prime minister.

Under those circumstances, I can't see an election happening all that quickly and if one was imminent, why is Mr B giving out all the signs of digging himself into the bunker for the duration? (Unless that is some sort of double-bluff).

Ref. 23 by Robin JD "relaunching the good ship Bismarck/Brown" is a good analogy!

The Bismarck did a fair bit of damage during her short foray into international waters, was damaged, lost all steering, went round in circles, and eventually sank without trace taking many crew with her. For Brown, only the last stage remains (hopefully).

It is not Labour's future that needs re-building. Nor is it Brown's. It is Britain's. And there is no chance of even starting on that until this shower are voted out.

"The rules governing council housing will be reviewed to allow councils to favour local people ... instead of new immigrants."
So no immigrants from Scotland to be housed in Downing Street in London, England, then?

It is very important that all young people should have the opportunity of a worthwhile paid job, but 12 months seems a long time to have to wait. Could it not be much shorter?

It is typical of the harsh attitudes of our times that so much emphasis is put on what should happen to people who do not take a job that is offered. Presumably this is done to back up the big lie that young people who cannot find work, do not try.

Typically young people start looking with great enthusiasm, but become seriously depressed after repeated failure. If there really is a fairy godfather or godmother, who can conjure up jobs, then they should intervene well before this stage is reached.

#11

European immigration is not the issue here - more British people live in other European countries than Europeans living here.

The problem is the open door policy allowing in people with backward, mediaeval outlooks on life driven by a fundamental, patriarchal religion that is totally at odds with our way of life.

A significant majority of such make no effort whatsoever to integrate with the existing population, learn about our way of life and adapt....which must beg the question - why on earth are they here in the first place?

Gordon Brown spoke for 15 minutes about legislation that due to devolution will almost exclusively affect England. Yet he did not mention the forbidden E word once.

Cynics might conclude that the PM who represents a Scottish constituency won't mention the E word for fear of reminding the English that he has absolutely no mandate in England, yet England is the only place he can pass law.

Not one member of the house complained or spoke for England either.

Something is very wrong. English Parliament now!

So after a delay of 20 Years in Office Brown is now suggesting that Labour is going to build Britains future.

For, if this Country was not in the total mess that it is currently in, Brown's idea would be Joke of the Week, for just how many fools are there in the U.K. that truly believe what any Politicians have to say AFTER their Expenses Scandal.
So lets start with Gordon, yes thats ONE, now whom wants to be Number Two. [Any OTHER Fools, sorry takers.]

Even The Guardian welcomed these new schemes as non starters because they cannot be paid for. What is the point of Gordon Brown? He's so obviously well past his sell by date!

""Stick a red rose on the front and it could be a Labour manifesto.""

Why did I read that the first time as '"Stick a red nose on the front and it could be a Labour manifesto.'? Certainly seems more apt!

" "Take a job or lose benefit"

Young people who refuse the offer of a government-created job - after being unemployed for more than a year - will face having their benefit docked. "

So the party that brought us the 'National Minimum Wage' will now be bringing us the National Subsistence Wage, and how long before such 'rational' is inflicted upon all job seekers - wasn't it the 1930s the last time this sort of policy/rational was used in europe... Look out for the next Brown policy announcement, at the Labour parties conference, renaming New Labour the 'National Socialist Party and installing himself as leader for life!

Nick,

Could you let us know whether these 250,000 jobs the Chancellor will be creating are in addition to the 100,000 which the Prime Minister said he would creat at the beginning of the year?

Brown continues to lie.
Mandleson continues to lie.
The rest of the labour ministers and MPs have no integrity.
PATHETIC.
I hope that labour get thrashed at the next election.

So, what you're saying, is that the Labour Party has used the machinery of government for party political purposes. Is that not against the rules?

Is it unreasonable to expect the Government to think about what might be best for the country at a time of record deficits, rising unemloyment and plumetting tax revenues, rather then what might help them hold onto a couple of extra seats come the election?

'Building Britain's Future' should be a very short document.

Because there isn't one.

Unlike, England, Scotland and Wales, countries for whom there most definately is a future, and a bright one at that.

This is an odd website:

isgordonbrownstillprimeminister.com

Why the hell doesn't Gordon just give up now? He is just prolonging the agony and is in total denial.

Let's change the answer in the above website.

34 DialSquareDomination

You appear to be out of touch with what is happening elsewhere in the world.

We are now seeing the voluntary return of expats from all over the world as other countries bow to the will of their people and are having to introduce new policies that natural born indigenous people take priority for jobs.

This country as always will ignore what is happening elsewhere and will follow rules that everywhere else ignores. This is storing up big trouble for the future.

Dear Nick, You might like to check with a local authority. The days of council (social housing) waiting lists have longed passed.
"Clients" have to bid (on line) for housing according to a complex set of priorities which accrue points and the properties have to be let to those who have the highest points. This is why people who have come from another country, who have the legal right to be here and whose points total is higher appear to "jump" the housing list over those who have been waiting a long time but whose points total is lower.
European and Human Rights laws apply and there is no way, this government is going to ignore them. It doesn't have the will or the courage. Sadly this is yet another empty promise from Gordon Brown.

#34 You wrote :
"European immigration is not the issue here - more British people live in other European countries than Europeans living here."

Do you have any evidence to back up this statement ?
I suggest you take a look at these sites :
https://www.statistics.gov.uk/CCI/nugget.asp?id=260
https://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/one-in-nine-people-living-in-uk-is-foreign-born-report_100159562.html

Legislation to remove remaining hereditary peers in Lords. Powers to disqualify peers guilty of misconduct. Draft Proposals to reduce size of Lords and to "democratically constitute" the chamber.
phase one of the removal of a system that has stood for centuries.
next will be from prime minister to president and once that happens this country will have totaly gone to the dogs.
many of the preposals were announced by mr blair many years ago and looked good then so have been revived, what a waste of taxpayers money.
get rid of the lot before they ruin us all.

englandrise @ 35

You are absolutely correct when you say that something is very wrong when we have a PM who represents a Scottish constituency and won't mention the 'E' word for fear of reminding the English that he has absolutely no mandate in England, yet England is the only place he can pass law.

Furthermore, as you point out, not one member of the house complained or spoke for England either, which I find hugely offensive and more than enough reason on its own for English people to vote out those MP's at Westminster who do not stand up for England.

What wretched politicians they are, who cannot even fairly represent their English constituents - an early political grave beckons.

This is an English political pressure cooker which must blow soon, hopefully at the next General Election.

So the clear choice at the election is Tory cuts versus Labour completely bankrupting the country.

I don't think the British electorate are that stupid. Brown is now so desperate, he feels that misleading the country is the only avenue left to him.

Where's the moral compass gone Gordo?

i notice among the micky mouse finances GB is spending 2 billion to build 100,000 new hoses....that is 20,000 pounds per house....that would not even buy the plot of land!

I don't know what you are all being so cynical about, all Gordon has to do is continue spending vast sums of money at an increasing rate and we will all be fine. Everyone knows you don't solve debt by making cuts like those nasty tories, you must "invest" your way out of a recession. I'm sure our great leader knows what he is doing!

#51. At 6:04pm on 29 Jun 2009, jolo13 wrote:

"i notice among the micky mouse finances GB is spending 2 billion to build 100,000 new hoses....that is 20,000 pounds per house....that would not even buy the plot of land!"

Who said about buying land, who said anything about buying the bricks etc, marvellous things government bonds - they work just like IOU notes, in fact they are IOU notes, to be converted in to real money (if and) when the economy recovers, of course they will have a face value so that they can also be traded like Credit Default Swaps....oh hang on, isn't that were we came in?!

This does seem to be shameless misuse of government money - to issue manifesto-style documentation. As there isn't enough data to produce the scheduled spending review, this "new" programme cannot seriously have been costed, so it is no better than a BNP or Green Party manifesto - that is, a wish list.

As for local housing being for local people: didn't the government impose a statutory duty on councils to provide housing for homeless immigrants? Doesn't that give them top priority? I guess it takes lawyer to find the answer to that...

#52. At 6:05pm on 29 Jun 2009, DukeJake wrote:

"you must "invest" your way out of a recession. I'm sure our great leader knows what he is doing!"

Is that a bit like borrowing your way out of debt, well I suppose there could be worse places to borrow money than the IMF...

Oh, and yes I did note your original sarcasm "DukeJake".

Dear Mrs Brown,

I write in response to your query over Gordons failure in his recent examinations despite the predictions made by his teachers at the start of his courses 2 years ago.

In Politics he was ungraded despite a predicted A* , the reason was that large sections of his coursework essay Building Britains Future submitted for the final exam were simply copied out from previous essays submitted for previous modules or other courses.
Simply copying them and changing a few words was insufficient to count as a new piece of work and was highlighted by the examining boards plagarism filters. Therefore he was automatically disqualified.
It has to be said though copying out pieces of other essays which had been marked with low scores already was also particularly stupid and he would not have passed.

The economics examination was a particular disppointment to us all, however despite having built a convincing argument in his dissertation, several fundamental errors were incorporated and resulted in his essay ,Brownism, being marked failed due to poor understanding of the subject. The exam board have however asked to use this essay as a "how not to" example in future text books which should be some consolation. The grade U however remains unchanged.

Sociology was a major disappointment, however having given the poor his pocket money it was a bit silly to return later and beat them up to get it back and then lie about to the examiner when challenged. This was very disappointing.

Whilst normally we would offer the opportunity to resit the exams we feel in Gordons case this would be a complete waste of time and money so will not be inviting him back next year.

yours

Gen.Public

Forget it Brown .You have had ten years to put these policies into effect.This is just an exercise in vote winning,but you are deluded if you think the British electorate will be fooled at the next election.
Prepare for a stint in Opposition,you have earned it .

Nick I am afraid you have got it wrong. There has just been another newsflash from No.10.

The next NuLabour manifesto will indeed be the front and back covers you show but the inside pages will be left blank. Like the spending review, they intend to publish the contents after the GE.

This solves two problems:

1 They can spout promises by the ton before the GE and fill in the contents afterwards.

2 Nobody can accuse them of spin, deceit or lies with the added bonus - Nobody will be able to accuse them of breaking manifesto pledges.

Roll On 2010 - Thats the way to go!

Young people who refuse the offer of a government-created job - after being unemployed for more than a year - will face having their benefit docked.

Perhaps if they'd applied such a scheme to the millions they've kept on benefits - thier core vote - we might have a few extra quid in the coffers to get us through the recession with a little less pain. Still , it was inevitable in the end that they'd run out of money I suppose.

DbD

23. At 4:36pm on 29 Jun 2009, RobinJD wrote:
Does Roy Kinnear write Newlabour polict proposal?

Certainly looks like someone is in the backround shouting - Catchphrase!

Local homes for local people? What on earth does that mean? Built out of local materials only? Nobody can have any hope anymore to move out of their area? If I want to move into your area I can't because I'm not local? This is more newlabour spin and foolishness which will fall as flat as every other attempt to relaunch the good ship Bismarck/Brown.

===

It all seems very Royston Vasey.

Tie a blue ribbon around it and it could have been a Tory manifesto as well. Calls for a General Election are all well and good, but all that will happen is we'll change one bunch of unheeding shysters for another. We voted the Tories out 3 elections ago for the very same reasons this lot are doomed. They've both proved they're unfit to govern, let's have a real change for once.

It's clearly designed to appeal to the illiterate next generaton of voters that have been created by what is laughingly described as "Labour's education policy".
Or if you prefer, it's a last-ditch attempt to get the BNP vote back into the Old Labour camp.
Even a BNP-UKIP coalition could probably run the country better than the current bunch of incompetents.

It's hardly worth bothering to read - or post - comments here; it seems to be monopolised by some sort of permanent far-right Tory commentariat. They all sound the same - mostly insults and hatred. Do they pay them to lurk in various comment spaces to keep up a constant attack on "nulabour" (as they often seem to call it) as liars (or worse). They usually also claim that the BBC is a Labour outpost - although it certainly doesn't feel like that to anyone who is even slightly to the left of Ghengis Khan. This isn't political comment, it's mostly just bile.

Marvellous! These are good ideas, if not exactly original. Five years too late, but marvellous. Nothing will happen of course, either that or the 'initiatives' will be so badly managed that we'd have been better off without them.

"Stick a red rose on the front and it could be a Labour manifesto."

Unfortunately, it's not that funny.

Here we have Uncle Gordon standing outside the pawnbroker's window inviting us to look inside.

He keeps telling us he 'won't walk away' - but that's exactly what many wish he would do!

Cannot watch Brown and Mandy anymore.I automatically mute until they have finished spinning their lies.Cannot understand that they cannot see or hear that no one wants to listen to them apart from a few ill informed labour die hards.Please go away.

#63 hello Johnmallerstang

went to see my labour MP about the PUMA LEP and work being done in romania and canada (but an inferior solution)

he stated that it was wrong of GB to state "british jobs for british people"

so what is the point of spending taxpayers money so that it goes abroad
losing high skilled jobs and future employement for all ages
then try and keep the under 25 in work in a distored work place by these proposals.

Hold on I thought Brown annouce that the school leaving age had or is being raised to 18. So why annouce 1- to 18 year olds will be offered a place at college ?

What has happenned to the "New Deal" has this fallen down a big hole!

Offering all under the age of 25 yrs a job , I am sorry what about all the graduates that will be coming out of University with debts up to there eyeballs, will there be anything left for them.

Regarding social housing - this was announced before in October (during the banking crisis) £200 million here and there is now nearly 9mths on and the building industry is still waiting.

How is all this to be funded, I look at the Chancellor to the right of Brown and he does not look a happy chap.

take a quick look at some of brown's proposals:
"local housing for local people" "housing top priority for brown"
why then give housing associations millions of pounds 3 years ago, to take away housing from their local council?
where i live £27 million was offered for repairs if they stayed in council control, £42 million given if it went to a "public private partnership" of course the vote for tenants being given a new fire and new kitchens swayed the votes, shame they werent told that all excess land would be given away also as an incentive to the partnership!

housing should have been a priority before giving away the veto and extra powers to brussels on immigration - the problems the country face on housing are as a RESULT of brown/blair's failed policies!
(as should funding for the NHS, education, policing, social services, etc. but thats a different argument)
its no good putting extra funding into housing now (reactive politics) and made sure provision was in place before opening our borders (proactive)

"cut benefits of the young unemployed who refuse a job or training offer"
IF? brown's been telling us for years that benefit payments are suspended or cut when this happens!
benefits should be a safety net, not a way of life!

"By building new and additional homes we can also now reform social housing allocation enabling local authorities to give more priority to local people whose names have been on waiting lists for far too long,"
HELLO GORDON! anyone at home in 10 downing st?
more discrimination?
local authorities do not control most of our housing stock anymore!
maybe a reduction in salary for those in charge of public/private partnerships would be better?
i know ours went from £170,000 whilst working for our council to more than £330,000 to do the same job!

get a grip gordon.... call an election!

63. At 6:36pm on 29 Jun 2009, JohnMallerstang wrote:
It's hardly worth bothering to read - or post - comments here; it seems to be monopolised by some sort of permanent far-right Tory commentariat. They all sound the same - mostly insults and hatred. Do they pay them to lurk in various comment spaces to keep up a constant attack on "nulabour" (as they often seem to call it) as liars (or worse). They usually also claim that the BBC is a Labour outpost - although it certainly doesn't feel like that to anyone who is even slightly to the left of Ghengis Khan. This isn't political comment, it's mostly just bile.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please do feel free to expand and qualify your comments

Accept the fact people are tired and fed up with New Labour same happened when the Tories were in power for too long and got complacent and arrogant same old cycle when the only parties that get into power are either the Tories or Labour

It really doesn't matter of course what Labour put into their manifesto when they eventually publish one; no one will believe it anyway. There is still the small matter of a firm commitment on a referendum on the EU Lisbon treaty contained in the last manifesto which they simply reneged on by political slight of hand. Brown really must think that the electorate is stupid. It will come as a massive shock to him at the next general election, when he has the courage to call one, to find out that it is not.

The people are rightly angry over many things for which he is responsible in whole or in part, including the democratic deficit in England to which others have referred. He will be ejected from office in ignominy and it will serve him right. The man is a pathological liar, and all his talk about his presbyterian upbringing and moral compass simply demonstrates the contempt in which he holds us all. I will vote for a candidate from the "Anybody but Brown" party.

Johnmallerstag.
You are so right. It is deeply depressing to read all the viciousness here but anyone who posts a comment even remotely supportive of government policies is immediately branded a 'troll' or accused of being Derek somebody's stooge. It really isn't worth trying to find out what this means. Central Office has these BBC blogs sewn up. I would like them shut down and the BBC should read out properly written letters sent through the post by real and literate listeners.
I merely popped in because I listened to Nick Robinson's radio programme yesterday and idly wondered what the bloggers would be foaming at the mouth about. The major topic seems to be whether or not to preface a comment with 'Dear Nick'.

At last some real worthwhile and common sense proposal from the Labour GOvernment...at last they are listening to us and seem to have got their head around what is the right priorities for the average voter. Thank you Gordon!!!

From the 1997 Labour manifesto

The Conservatives' lack of a housing strategy has led to the virtual abandonment of social housing, the growth of homelessness.
The Conservatives' failure on housing has been twofold. The two thirds of families who own their homes have suffered a massive increase in insecurity over the last decade, with record mortgage arrears, record negative equity and record repossessions. And the Conservatives' lack of a housing strategy has led to the virtual abandonment of social housing, the growth of homelessness, and a failure to address fully leaseholder reform. All these are the Tory legacy.
Labour's housing strategy will address the needs of homeowners and tenants alike.
We will reject the boom and bust policies which caused the collapse of the housing market.


And he wants another term to do what exactly.

Duff Gordon recently said British jobs for British workers. When in reality quite the opposite was happening:

New private sector jobs taken by foreign workers

The increase in immigrant workers coming to Britain has accounted for nearly every new job created by companies since Labour came to power, research suggests.

This certainly puts his Council houses for local people into context.

And to cap it all Liam Byrne, the male equivalent of Hazel Blears defending the indefensible on The News Channels today. I really cannot stand the man!

It's OK Gordon, we know you're trying to wear a brave face, but it's getting time to go... the Conservatives and Lib Dems will take over from here.

The Labour Party.
1900 - 2010
RIP

LOL!

72. At 7:06pm on 29 Jun 2009, doctordisraeli

===

Hello Doctordisraeli, long time no hear. How is your export business getting on? Is the VAT reduction still helping you?

73. At 7:07pm on 29 Jun 2009, davidou1234 wrote:
At last some real worthwhile and common sense proposal from the Labour GOvernment...at last they are listening to us and seem to have got their head around what is the right priorities for the average voter. Thank you Gordon!!!

===

Yes David, it's only taken them 12 years!

Labour is nothing but a party of pathalogical liars. What they fail to understand is that they have had 12 years to make Britain a better place to live in. By their own admissions today they have finally admitted at long last they have failed. They are now pledging, as if by magic, to put their misdeeds right in the next 11 months. They must think we are simpletons. Ministers are coming out of the woodwork saying they are going to have to prioritise things within their departments to fulfil the PMs pledges. What they mean is there will be deep cuts, pure and simple. To maintain the same number of police officers, doctors, nurses and teachers etc money will have to be found from somewhere. Waiting lists will become longer, equipment will not be replaced, overtime and vehicle mileage will be cut. Minor roads will not be maintained etc etc. Look forward folks to a second class Britain for the next decade at least. We should have made cuts ages ago. Paying for Gordon`s electioneering is going to hurt us all big time. The only bright thing on the horizon is that hopefully he will soon be long gone - writing his memoires by candle light on his croft in the northern isles - making a packet. Just like any good modern day socialist.

Well now we have solved the problem.
We will definitely now require more highly paid public sector workers to administer all of the new 250,000 jobs in local services and social care.
And of cause this would not include the extra benefit office staff needed to sort out those (slackers sic) defaulting on the training and community work opportunities demanded of them.

Yes, thank you, yellowbelly. Two more consignments to Germany today.

Political promises, now there is something you can count on. I believe all the bankers were employed at the time of bad loans and other financial misdealings. I would present that they did more damage than the unemployed and are the reason many are unemployed. It would be good to see people at work, seems odd that the taxpayers will foot the bill as most think of employment in other sectors. Drop out of school and get a job, that is a slogan a party can run on. The day-shift will dig the hole and the night-shift can fill it back in. I guess some crumbs are left over after the bailouts. Scapegoating the immigrants, another bold move. Drowning men reach for anything.

What I don't understand is how a grown man can stand in the gaze of the public and believe he's "making a difference" with that twaddle.

Take a peak at the communities.go.uk web site.

It shows that, in England the number of building completions by Registered Social Landlords in 2008/09 was 25,380. The TOTAL completions by Local Authorities was 520. That's right - 520 completions across all the local authorities in England.

So, Brown is REALLY going to make a difference to the housing market if he can miraculously find land in suitable polaces, force through planning consent and give money to Local Authorities to build houses.
Of course, most authorities don't build, so they'll have to find commercial (private) partners to do the job. Best guess - it will take 2/3 years to make any difference.

Then guess what... According to the Office of National Statistics, of the 1.1MIL jobs created in the private sector since 1997, 85 percent went to people not born in the UK. So we'll probably see more EU influx to build houses that Brown wants "prioritised" to meet "Local" demand - whatever that means!

(By the way, I only used the official figures for England as I don't believe the Brown way forward has any impact in Scotland. Not even sure his "vision" extends to Wales.)

It's all getting too much of a shambles.

Our current government couldn't deliver a proverbial in a brewery. They could discuss it, hold "public consultations", issue White Papers, Green Papers, legislate for it (badly), raise money via taxes or borrowing then spin it into orbit - but then find after millions of expenditure that they really shouldn't as it could breach 'Elf and Safety regulations...

Just check out the initiative success rate. Brown has been on about creating apprenticeships for years. As far as I can see, from official statistics, we are currently running about 250,000 places BEHIND what has already been promised.

If private companies are shrinking, exactly what jobs will the young unemployed going to be forced to accept or lose benefits? Pray God not another load of make-weight public service nonsense positions.

There is absolutely nothing truly positive in the way of delivery to justify the vast tax burden and money-spraying that Blair and Brown have imposed on the UK population over a decade, compared with the spend involved.

I'm still waiting for Brown to repair the damage he did by withdrawing the 10p tax band and shoving millions of people into a dependency/claims nightmare.

If Brown did go back to teaching (which he seemed to suggest, then recanted) I hope he'll do it somewhere far away. Ideally in a country with no simultaneous translation capability.

Shows how desperate Brown is - he is trying to win back the BNP vote in Labour heartlands with more promises he cannot possibly keep. First we had "British Jobs For British Workers", not only illegal under EU law, but look where it got us, with workers trying to take the PM at his word. Now we have a "something" (unspecific) to try to persuade people that new immigrants and asylum seekers won't be able to queue jump on the housing ladder.

Oh come on Brown, give up your lies and spin - resign and let the people decide in a much needed General Election!

I find these proposals so out of character with Labour policies (e.g they contain a little commonsense)
therefore they must be like everything else Labour have promised, !!pie in the sky!! I must say they have no shame and will certainly not honour any of it.
the sooner they are out of office the better

I believe this weeks relaunch about as much as I believe all the other legion labour relaunches, from British jobs for British workers, through scrapping the 10p tax band not affecting the poor to any labour MP that has abused the expenses system will be sacked. NONE of these were true. The serial "flipper", Mr Darling, is still in a job, so that was more lies.

Brown is incapable of the simple act of telling the truth. The Government has run out of money and we are taxed until our pips' pips have squeaked. The ONLY way to fund his latest massive waste of expenditure is through massive and crippling tax rises. So either Brown is going to cut the number of nurses and teachers and doctors and the police, OR Brown is going to kill any prospects of a recovery stone cold dead with swingeing tax rises, or (more likely) he will be forced to do both. It never occurs to him to actually cut waste and scrap useless, pen-pushing quangos does it? No he won't hack into his client state, masses of feckless drains on the productive sector, all employed at way over the average wage in labour strongholds.

Brown's statement today was just more of the same old lousy labour lies. Can't believe a word that feckless, pathological liar says.

82. At 7:51pm on 29 Jun 2009, doctordisraeli wrote:
Yes, thank you, yellowbelly. Two more consignments to Germany today.

===

That's good to hear in these difficult times, so the VAT reduction has been a real help to your exports then?

Ruth kelly claim for burst pipe. Apparently excluded by her Insurer for non-occupancy. Policies normally state it has to be 30 or 60 days without any occupancy. Does that mean she never even went to 2nd home for maybe 2 months!!!!!

83. At 7:52pm on 29 Jun 2009, ghostofsichuan wrote:
Political promises, now there is something you can count on. I believe all the bankers were employed at the time of bad loans and other financial misdealings. I would present that they did more damage than the unemployed and are the reason many are unemployed. It would be good to see people at work, seems odd that the taxpayers will foot the bill as most think of employment in other sectors. Drop out of school and get a job, that is a slogan a party can run on. The day-shift will dig the hole and the night-shift can fill it back in. I guess some crumbs are left over after the bailouts. Scapegoating the immigrants, another bold move. Drowning men reach for anything.

===

A council worker was working in a suburban street, digging holes at regular intervals.

Half an hour later, another council worker came along, and filled in those same holes.

When asked what was the point of the exercise, the worker replied that his colleague who normally plants the trees was off sick that day.

I don't understand why labour are blatantly stealing BNP policies, as sound-bites, when they do not have to courage, decency or honesty to do what is actually required to legally implement them as policies.

The disillusioned ex-labour voters that support the BNP realise that in order to actually implement "British jobs for British workers", or "Local homes for local people", that we will have to withdraw from the EU first and foremost. So long as labour are a very willing supine slave to the EU, then NONE of their "local" or "Pro-British" policies can be implemented.

The BNP supporters know this and will NOT be taken in by labour's blatantly infantile, childish patronising. They are taking people for fools!

Anyone that falls for this latest labour re-launch, needs their head examining.

#63, JohnMallerstang

John, There are plenty of people who write stuff about things they just don't like about government actions.

I've no special allegiance to any party. I don't like the culture of spin that Mandelson/Campbell used to propel and keep Blair and Brown in office. (It's odd now to hear them bleat about the press not listening to and respecting govrenment statements, when so many "statements" are simply wind, to be followed by bad legislation, minimal delivery and with little correlation between the tax/borrowing involved and the real outcome.

Way back in the 1990s, Brown said he'd have a bonfire of the QANGOs. So how many more unchallengeable organisations do we have now?

Too many people seem to think that politics is just about ideas. It isn't - it's about how you turn ideas into something worthwhile and affordable by the population.

Give you an example: ID cards. I have severe reservations, as the current plan is not based on DNA (which I wouldn't really want, anyway!). ALL other methods have flaws. The government has tried to extol the benefits by praying advantages in all sorts of ways. But the worst and most damaging thing is that nobody has worked out how much it's going to cost to provide readers across every port, bank, shop etc in the UK. There's no point having a card (which the law says you don't have to carry anyway), unless people can check it. So if it's going to cut crime, security etc etc, how is that going to work unless every possible point where a check is required is NOT equipped with a reading capability? Maybe you have found some evidence of the proposed costs. I certainly haven't been able to.

That's not bile. Not anti any party. Just curiosity as a tax payer as to what benefits may be achieved and what the total bill could rise to.

BTW, I have no doubt at all that, if the ID database exists, it WILL be hacked into and all the pertinent data will end up with a name that isn't that of the true owner.

I'd like less innitiatives, less forcing of "political personalities" into everyday lives, fewer laws (so we can work out which ones we broke today that we actually have no clue about), and a bit more focus on delivering somethin of value to the community. Just happen to think we have wasted a huge amount of public money over a decade. It appals me that some of the worst perpetrators have sidled off into private companies. (Can you believe Pat(ronising) Hewitt is going to be the senior non-executive director at BT? This the lady who oversaw stupid negotiations with the medical professionals and forced them to accept more than they required...)

I'd like a part time parliament. BUT one that actually had to examine every new law and regulation (from Westminster or Brussels) in detail before allowing another mass of nonsense to strangle businesses which should be allowed to create profits and contribute to tax take.

I don't like Brown. He pretends to economic and financial competence. The records show something different.

Still fairlyopen though.

@43. At 5:44pm on 29 Jun 2009, flamepatricia wrote:

This is an odd website:

isgordonbrownstillprimeminister.com
----------------------------------------------

I think that the above website is not finished. It should say, "tragically, yes, but in name only. We all know that the unelected Mandy is the real leader of labour now."

RE 63. JohnMallerstang

"It's hardly worth bothering to read - or post - comments here; it seems to be monopolised by some sort of permanent far-right Tory commentariat. They all sound the same - mostly insults and hatred."

Fair enough. Maybe you could help me with something that genuinely puzzles me. No bile. No rude nicknames for the Labour party or the Prime Minister. Just this one question.

Gordon Brown insists that there will be no cuts in public expenditure under a Labour government. None now and none in future. Yet just about everyone, including the Treasury's own figures, say that isn't true and public spending cuts are inevitable. So my question is this. When the Prime Minister says these things is he

a) Correct.
b) Sincere, but wrong.
c) Blatantly lying.

It's not an academic question.

If the answer is a) then he's an economic genius of a sort the planet seldom sees - uniquely able to see the one true path when everyone else is lost.

If the answer is b) then he's a sort of Mr Bean character. Nice enough chap. Doesn't mean any harm, but clueless. He should step aside and make way for someone competent.

If it's c) then he's, well, what can I say? Every bile-filled insult ever thrown at him is fully justified, and indeed a whole lot more.

What do you reckon? If you pick a) I'd certainly be interested to hear why you think that.

@ 50. At 6:01pm on 29 Jun 2009, irmster wrote:

So the clear choice at the election is Tory cuts versus Labour completely bankrupting the country.

I don't think the British electorate are that stupid. Brown is now so desperate, he feels that misleading the country is the only avenue left to him.

Where's the moral compass gone Gordo?"
------------------------------------------

Almost correct. It is between timid tory cuts, or massive labour tax rises. Even the tories do not have the guts to cut as much as is desperately needed. I have not hear anything from Cameron about slashing the size of Government. Throughout history, countries run by tiny, unobtrusive government's thrived. When Governments became too big, totalitarianism, war and holocausts followed. (Stalin, Mao, Hitler etc...) We should be quickly going in the opposite direction to those vile regimes.

Labour are heading towards these vile regimes. Or does anyone seriously believe that this country is LESS like National Socialism today than in 1997? That we have more freedom? smaller Government? more efficient public services?

MOATS MORTGAGES AND MAYHEM

Never thought I would call Nick Robinson naive. But he seems not to realise that every party politician has PASSED THE IGNOMINY TEST by signing up as a rosette stand. To sell out constituency and self to a party (any party) speaks for itself. To submit to the whipping system speaks more.

Sorry Nick, some may be good spuds for a chat, but SOMETHING made them sell their souls on day one, and some rise to become SOULLESS PRIME MINISTERS giving us WEIRDNESS WASTE AND WAR.

Liars! Untruthful! Thieves!

It is pretty bizarre to read Labour and Tory supporting bloggers on here slugging it out to 'prove' that the opposition are worse than their lot.

As an independent, I'd say that there really isn't much to choose between either of them.

Neither party really deserve to have any significant sort of representation after the next General Election and I hope they do not.

You may say I'm a dreamer but sometimes dreams come true.

They certainly need to for the English.

For goodness sake, Gordon Brown has had more visions than someone who regularly consumes magic mushrooms. We have heard his rhetoric and the lies before and have had enough. Does he think that our heads zip up the back or something? Does he really believe that we are so stupid as to buy into this latest line in rehashed codswallop? While I don't much fancy the idea of a Tory Government, I don't want Gordon Brown either. Time he was gone I reckon.

Brown can publish as many manifestos as he wants; hardly anybody's listening to him, and the few who are don't believe a word he says.

spend more...more debt....let's just borrow as much as we can before the tories get in...let's ruin the country because it'll make the tories' life awkward and that'll be fun to watch after we've lost all our seats...

Brown/labour; just give up and go home before you do any more damage to the country please. We've had enough of your scorched earth policies and lies.

Gordon Brown is dragging the Labour party into the abyss, and by failing - twice! - to remove him, they have thrown away any right to a 'future'.

https://richardbooth.wordpress.com/2009/06/08/gordons-on-the-rocks-but-the-tide-hasnt-yet-claimed-him/