i am minded to discuss Brexit for the first time for a while. the economic costs of Brexit are clear. No amount of effort by Badenoch and the Daily Express can disguise the damage wreaked on the economy by that vote. I am however more concerned with the damage done to the fabric of the UK. Taking back control seems to have been interpreted by the Government to concentrate power in the hands of Ministers rather than Parliament. The lies told during the campaign have seriously eroded the faith of the public in Ministers and politicians generally.
Let me unpick these a little. The Brexit campaign was notable for the whopping lies told blatantly. All politicians lie, or are at least economical with the truth, however Brexit legitimised the avoidance of truth at all. Politicians themzelves are more likely to eminate from Universities where they read Politics and Economics than coming from jobs where they work for a livelihood, I do not mean a few months as an intern or a job in a corporate entities, but as a proper employee whether in management or on the shop floor. Angela Rayner seems to be one of the few real people in politics. The Covid Inquiry has revealed the shameful lack of scientists and engineers in the upper eschelons of politics and the civil service. The way government has switched people between completely different departments is indicative of a culture where the quality most admired is the ability to ‘put on a good show’ rather than evidence of substance and understanding. To move between department briefs, the inhabitants of these posts, develop the necessary skills of procrastination and fudge.
The budget was obviously a culmination of these skills. The MSP latched onto the bullshit with alacrity – claiming it to have been a huge tax cut. The cut was to public services which will experience a 4% cut – byebye any remaining ‘green policies’. Local councils will find further cuts impossible without closing valuable resources. Pot holes will become larger and more common. The budget also seems to have risked fuelling inflation. Much was said about the benefit of a National Insurance cuts, but nothing about the rise in energy bills, or the costs facing those who have to reset their mortgages. Nothing was said about investment in our infrastructure or National Health System.
So to be generous the budget was economical with the truth, ratehr than out and out lies.