SECTION

How Tory spending on education is set to decline drastically


by Éoin Clarke    
June 26, 2011 at 10:04 am

We have a lot to apologise to America for. For one, we use their public services as a reference point for what not to do.  I am certainly guilty of this myself.  Of course, that is just us lefties. Neo-Liberals & Trans Atlantic enthusiasts often use America as a reference point of what to do.

Forgive me, I am an old fashioned lefty. I measure things by state spending.

Thus, when I seek to compare our education system to America, my starting point is how much we in the UK, and they in the USA, spend on Education as a percentage of their GDP.
continue reading… »

Obsession with affluence tore the soul out of New Labour.


by Éoin Clarke    
June 16, 2011 at 9:00 am

In Doncaster last year, more than 1,000 people were declared bankrupt. In Tony Blair’s backyard (Sedgefield) personal insolvencies grew 500% on his watch.  Whilst wages stagnated over the last 5 years, inflation has been volatile.   People made up the shortfall by availing themselves of consumer debt. Using ‘credit’, we were told, showed entrepreneurial spirit, since you were aspiring to accumulate wealth.

In fact, it wrecked Britain. If you didn’t have disposable cash you dare not say it, and so in Henley or Buckinghamshire people flaunted real cash, while in impoverished regions of the north of England people borrowed.
continue reading… »

Labour has an affordable housing problem, not an immigration one


by Éoin Clarke    
June 12, 2011 at 7:11 pm

Labour lost almost half its private renting voters between 1997 to 2010. The largest loss was at the last election dropping from 36% to 25%.

Bearing in mind that 18-35 are the ages people are most likely to rent privately, it should be no surprise that they were also the age categories who deserted in the largest numbers. In fact 46% of Labour’s lost voters where aged 34 or younger, too young to have voted in any General Election before 1997, thus they are first generation Labour voters.

We stopped attracting young private rental voters.
continue reading… »

¦ ¦ Newer Entries »
Liberal Conspiracy is the UK's most popular left-of-centre politics blog. Our aim is to re-vitalise the liberal-left through discussion and action. More about us here.

You can read articles through the front page, via Twitter or RSS feed. You can also get them by email and through our Facebook group.
RECENT OPINION ARTICLES




33 Comments



22 Comments



50 Comments



66 Comments



25 Comments



23 Comments



48 Comments



88 Comments



13 Comments



28 Comments



LATEST COMMENTS
» Bob B posted on The real reason UK is talking about an attack on Iran

» Cylux posted on Is our intervention in Libya already back-firing in our faces?

» steveb posted on Critics of #occupy movement are more anti-capitalist than the protesters

» Ken posted on Graph: How the 1% have prospered, not the rest

» Man on Clapham Omnibus posted on Ed Mili endorses aims of #occupyLSX

» Reposter posted on Critics of #occupy movement are more anti-capitalist than the protesters

» Planeshift posted on How the left could take up the case of 'economic democracy'

» Tim Worstall posted on How the left could take up the case of 'economic democracy'

» jungle posted on How the left could take up the case of 'economic democracy'

» Joe posted on How the left could take up the case of 'economic democracy'

» DisgustedOfTunbridgeWells posted on Critics of #occupy movement are more anti-capitalist than the protesters

» jungle posted on How the left could take up the case of 'economic democracy'

» Man on Clapham Omnibus posted on Critics of #occupy movement are more anti-capitalist than the protesters

» Planeshift posted on Other demands that #occupyLSX could make

» Paul Newman posted on How the left could take up the case of 'economic democracy'