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Originally Posted by Bifta
Back in the day, the conservatives managed to bump unemployment up to around 3 million, now, under Labour it's around 1.4 to 1.5 million, not far off though  |
Headline-grabbing statistics do little to paint the bigger picture of the success or failure of any government. For example, quoting 1.4 million unemployed under Labour implies that it is their policies that are responsible, when unemployment levels have actually been falling steadily since 1993 (one year into the last Conservative administration). In fact, the peak in 1993 came at the end of the recession of the early 90s and when you take a look at the last 25 years as a whole you see a rapid rise from 1979 to 1983 (although levels were rising
before 1979), followed by a downward trend to where we are today. Taking a long-term view, it is possible to argue that Thatcher's reforms, after some short-term upheaval, have been for the long-term benefit of the UK.