for Labour.
Basically the economy is back on track and tax earnings are up. In fact they expect to finish the year at half the budget deficit they inherited in 2010, nearly 5 years ago.
If we then go back to 2010 and remember what was being said, it is clear that someone was smoking crack and someone else was on a diet of total reality.
Labour Claims:
Austerity would damage the economy
Austerity would reduce economic output
Austerity would make everyone poor and the country would decline
Austerity would cause inflation
We had to SPEND money to get out of the situation
Only by INCREASING our spending to 200bn per year or more, would we be able to recover the economy
The Tories would destroy the country
Tory Claims:
The government was broke but the country could be fixed
A reasonable amount of Austerity was needed to stave off the state living off businesses
We had to get our finances under control in order for the country to be balanced
A balanced country was good for business.
Ok so 5 years later?
The UK is the fastest growing and most vibrant Western economy in the world
Our borrowing is down to almost 1/2 of the 180bn it was at in 2010.
The UK has avoided racking up at least £0.4tn in additional national debt in the last 5 years. In fact as the spending failed, probably £0.5tn or more. Given that the total national debt was at £1.0tn just about 2 years or so ago, another £0.5tn would have been a disaster
0.3% inflation.
Yes there have been cuts but nothing like as bad as Maggies time.
The bad. The total out of work category is at an all time high. But so is the number of people in work. Which means our little island is bursting at the seams.
Given that Labour took an essentially healthy economy and drove it right off the cliff into disaster, then mandated that we keep the pedal hard down all the way to the horrendous crunch at the bottom, just like Greece, how could anyone even think of voting Labour?
I assume they are not thinking?
Given the statistics on employment and out of work (not just jobseekers allowance which is what they call "unemployed"), Cameron has abjectly failed to keep the floods of workers our of our island.
Given the above, where would you vote? The Lib Dems have been instrumental in keeping the Tories from balancing the budget in the 5 year time period. OK they cushioned the blow. But all they did was ensure that we have to take multiple softer blows until the demon is excised.
I hope it's going to be an interesting election. Because if people were actually thinking about it, as they are in Scotland, Labour would be sitting in the corner on a cardboard box with the begging bowl out.....