Darling challenged to listen to the left

Louise Nousratpour
Tuesday September 8, 2009
The Morning Star

Alistair Darling was challenged to listen to the left yesterday and implement a radical economic policy after he talked of "hard choices" on public spending.

In a speech on government proposals to "reprioritise" spending, Mr Darling declared that he "won't flinch from difficult decisions" before hinting at plans for more cuts and privatisation of public services.

But he stopped short of announcing what services were likely to be cut to address the public finance deficit, which has swelled in the past year due to the government's multibillion-pound bail-out of the banking sector.

Health unions are concerned that the NHS might be targeted after a leaked report last week revealed that ministers had been advised by private management consultants to "save" £20 billion by axing 137,000 health workers.

In his keynote lecture to the Chambers of Commerce at Cardiff City Stadium last night, the Chancellor said: "The global economic background means that spending will be tighter everywhere.

"This means more efficiency, continuing to reform, cutting costs, public and private sectors working together."

But left campaigners and unions argued that, rather than targeting essential public services, Mr Darling should plug the deficit by introducing progressive taxation, close down tax havens under British jurisdiction, scrap the multibillion-pound Trident nuclear programme and stop wasting young lives and public money on illegal wars.

The People's Charter - launched earlier this year in response to the economic crisis - also calls on the government to take control of the banking system and create new jobs through investment in productive industry, council house building and green technology.

Labour MP John McDonnell said: "Just like the great charters of the 19th century, the People's Charter is just a common sense distillation of what most people are increasingly calling for to tackle this crisis.

"If corporations and rich people who made fortunes out of us during the boom are not paying their fair share, then reform the tax system and close down the tax havens.

"If people need homes, then put councils and building workers to work to build them, buy up the empty ones and stop the repossessions.

"And don't tell us the money can't be found to do this because we now know from the bank bail-outs that, if needed, the resources can be found."

RMT general secretary Bob Crow, who is a signatory to the charter, challenged Mr Darling to consider the economic alternative put forward by the left.

"We now have a situation where both main political parties have got a consensus based around attacking public services through a severe programme of cuts," he said.

"But there is a very real socialist alternative which is mapped out in the charter based on redistribution of wealth and the protection and development of public services.

"It is a scandal that once again it is essential public services that are taking the hit rather than the spivs and speculators who engineered the economic crisis."

SNP Treasury spokesman Stewart Hoise MP had a "simple suggestion for Alistair Darling to cut his spending - abandon the unnecessary and unaffordable white elephant projects like Trident and ID cards."

And Communist Party of Britain general secretary Rob Griffiths said: "The reality is that both new Labour and the Tories intend to make deep cuts in our public services unless we organise to stop them. Mr Darling must now listen to the left."

Mr Griffiths added that a modest 1 per cent wealth tax on the super-rich would raise at least £20 billion, while the TUC has calculated that closing down tax havens could save the Treasury at least £4 billion a year.

Trident replacement is estimated to cost the public £100 billion over its lifetime and nearly £5 billion goes to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan each year.