Gordon Brown is trying to make a virtue out of his remarkable U-turn over the 10p tax rate. Interviewed on BBC's Today programme this morning, he argued that the £2.7bn tax cut announced on Tuesday was to help Britain survive the global economic downturn as well as to compensate the losers from the tax shake-up.
"It was not brought about as a result of political expediency," Brown insisted. His interviewer John Humprhys begged to differ, saying the climbdown was a political fix to deal with the problems caused by another bit of political expediency - the decision to abolish the 10p rate in Brown's final Budget as Chancellor.
Eventually, the PM did admit that a mistake over the 10p decision had to be corrected. But for much of the interview, he tried to portray the decision to rewrite this year's Budget after only 10 weeks as a fairly routine event. "It is not unprecedented at all," he said.
Strange. I don't think it happened in his 10 years as Chancellor.
Gordon Brown has made a speech today in which he says he is the right man to lead Britain through difficult times.
And he's created them specially, to prove he can do it!!
Posted by: Neil McGowan | Thursday, 15 May 2008 at 11:00 AM
Brown has shot himself in the foot and made Labour more unpopular than a bad smell in a crowded lift. If we were to cut the spending on ballistic missiles, nuclear and chemical missiles that would save a few billion. If we told Europe that we had a financial issue on the domestic front and our bill for membership had to wait that too would save a few more billion. If Brown had the balls to cut out the outlandish expenses of MP's and all government waste that would help save money as well. In fact give me the budget of the country and I bet I could save the UK from the harsher times of the recession to come. I will not be allowed though as too many of Brown's political friends would lose out on the profits they would gain from others misfortune. I bet the government will still find the money to carry on with this ilegal war and the money to fight the threat of terrorist attack which is very suspect. Yes Brown I could save the country a vast fortune but it would mean upsetting a lot of your friends but then again I would put the people of Britain 1st; will you?
Posted by: John Finningham | Thursday, 15 May 2008 at 03:24 PM
FAO Neil McGowan:
I look forward to reading your explanation of exactly *how* Gordon Brown is responsible for the simultaneity of Peak Oil output with the sudden demand-spike as India & China industrialise.
And also how he made AMERICAN Bankers mis-sell mortgages to people who couldn't afford them, and then package these bad debts up in to a whole new sort of Regulator-proof Voodoo 'Paper'.
Or how Brown made other bankers BUY these arcane new debt vehicles, thus burying untraceable 'land mines' of bad debt throughout the global financial system.
He may indeed be responsible for many things - and the abolition of the 10p rate of Income Tax is (from a Labour POV) Weapons-Grade Stupiditude - but the oil price hike & the global credit crunch can NOT be laid at Brown's door.
Posted by: Ed R | Friday, 16 May 2008 at 12:20 AM