Stop it now, Labour!

A visceral post.

Imitation is said to be the sincerest form of flattery. And that’s just what Labour is doing by offering itself up as Reform Lite, including all the dog-whistle politics about immigration. ANd getting nowhere. And betraying its working class roots.

Just to be clear here – immigration is a good thing, always.

The local election results just go to show that imitating right-wing populist policies and attitudes do not help a mainstream party which used to be left of centre. Why vote for a red that’s gone a pinkish, blueish, greyish mishmash of nothing, notwithstanding some of Labour’s innovative social justice policies?

Just to be clear here – cutting benefits for the disabled, continuing to prosecute environmental protesters, agitating against immigrants, speaking out against rejoining the EU, continuing to prohibit protests, discriminating against trans people under the guise of a Supreme Court clarification, continuing to fund Israel; none of this is social justice.

Treating a nation’s budget like a household budget, refusing to tax the rich effectively, refusing to tax corporations which pay no tax despite making profits – what does that achieve? Nothing. Introducing those taxes would allow social justice policies to be implemented which would be effective.

The trade agreement just announced with India – how do those air miles protect the environment? How does that deal with an extremely nationalistic and right-wing almost dictator, and point the UK in the right direction, when our closest trading partner and community is just off our coast? We should be rejoining the EU now and reinstating Freedom Of Movement.

The kowtowing to Trump, the refusal to withdraw the state visit invitation for that odious and evil man – how is that standing up to tyranny, dictatorship? How is that being left-of-centre anymore? How is that leading the coalition of the willing against the twin threats of Trump and Putin? It’s not.

Persisting with the First Past The Post voting system – how is that expanding democracy, how is that making democracy sustainable, and extremism less likely? It’s not. We need a decent and workable and effective system of proportional representation. Starmer said it himself – politics is about the greater good, about the good of the country, not about the good of a political party.

Then act on that, Labour. If you don’t change tack right now, you won’t have a voter base left.