Re: June 8th General Election
Seems Mother Theresa makes a habit of u-turning
Quote:
Theresa May’s 9 U-turns. The prime minister is making a habit of retreating from policies
1. Brexit: Mrs May was not a vocal Remainer but she was a firm one, saying in April 2016 that “on balance, and given the tests I set earlier in my speech, I believe the case to remain a member of the European Union is strong”.
2. A British bill of rights: During the referendum campaign, Mrs May advocated leaving the European Convention of Human Rights, whose rules on the use of evidence gained by torture had frustrated her as home secretary. The convention, she said, “can bind the hands of parliament, adds nothing to our prosperity, [and] makes us less secure”. She called instead for a British bill of rights.
3. Hinkley Point: Almost the prime minister’s first significant decision was to review plans to allow an £18bn new nuclear reactor backed by French and Chinese companies. That reflected concerns about China’s influence over Britain’s power supply and caused a rift in relations with Beijing. But in September, Downing Street said it had completed the review and the go-ahead, with only minor restrictions on France’s EDF selling its stake during construction.
4. Workers on boards: In September, she promised to ensure “not just consumers [are] represented on company boards, but workers as well”. That was interpreted as meaning trade union representatives on boards, a prospect opposed by cabinet ministers including chancellor Philip Hammond.
5. National insurance: Mr Hammond’s budget in March announced that self-employed workers would pay higher national insurance contributions, breaching a promise in the 2015 Conservative manifesto not to increase the tax. The change would have raised an estimated £500m a year, but the headlines were terrible. Mrs May pulled the plug and a U-turn was announced a week later.
6. Early election: “There isn’t going to be one. It isn’t going to happen. There is not going to be a general election,” Mrs May’s spokesman said in March. A month later, with the Tory poll lead in double figures, she announced that she had “reluctantly” decided a vote was necessary to strengthen her hand before Brexit negotiations.
7. Energy price caps: Ed Miliband’s promise to freeze energy prices appeared to have been resurrected by Mrs May. “Ministers are poised to unveil a cap on energy prices,” reported the Daily Mail newspaper, days before the Conservative manifesto launch.
8. Social care: On Thursday, the Conservative manifesto was clear: rich people requiring care in their homes would be obliged to pay for it, unless they had less than £100,000 in assets including the family home. The move soon became labelled a “dementia tax”. On Sunday, Boris Johnson said he understood critics’ concerns. On Monday, Mrs May announced that care payments would be capped.
9. Foreign worker lists: There was consternation among business in October when Amber Rudd, home secretary, suggested that companies would have to publish figures on their number of foreign workers. The precise wording was that companies would have to “be clear about the proportion of their workforce which is international”. The UK Independence party branded the plans a “step too far”. The government later said no data would be made public.
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https://www.ft.com/content/e021c208-...6-25f963e998b2 (warning it comes from a filthy left wing communist rag...)
(Brexit, again , next ? ;) ) |
