The year since the general election has not been an entirely happy one for Labour. The party’s re-election itself was marred by a low turnout, the unions and government have been sniping at each other over public sector reform, allegations of sleazy fundraising dog the party, and deep unease surrounds Britain’s likely role in the next phase of America’s ‘war on terrorism’. It’s hardly been the easiest start for so historic a second term.
We should not, however, underestimate what has been achieved since Labour’s re-election, nor ignore the signs that things may just be about to get better. Over
the past year, the government has moved to correct some of its own errors from the first term: asylum vouchers are, thankfully, going; a fairer system of student support
is being investigated; Railtrack is now, effectively, back in public hands.
The last couple of months have seen the government move off of the defensive and on to the offensive. Take three examples. First, House of Lords reform is back
on the agenda and, recognising the woefully inadequate reforms it had proposed,
the government is paving the way for the Parliamentary Labour Party to have its
way and opt for a second chamber which is, at least, 50 percent elected.
Second, the Prime Minister is showing all the signs that he is about to fire the starting pistol for the euro referendum. Despite the considerable political risks this entails (strong media opposition and public opinion which swings between, at best,
open-mindedness and, at worst, downright opposition), Tony Blair correctly
senses that Britain cannot remain long outside of a single currency which is, despite all the doubts and doom-mongering, proving itself highly successful.
Finally, it is no over-estimation to say that Gordon Brown’s Budget is a turning-point in recent British politics. A government has honestly and clearly put to the voters the case for raising direct taxation to pay for improved public services. The result has not been the much-predicted outburst of anger by an electorate conditioned, after eighteen years of Thatcherism, to expect something for nothing. Instead, polls show the Budget to be popular with voters and Labour did not,
as the Tories had hoped, pay dearly at the local elections for daring to ask more of people.
Indeed, in raising taxes the Budget builds on the philosophical shift which crystallised at the general election. When presented with the choice between tax
cuts and better public services, voters – for the first time since Margaret Thatcher walked into Downing Street – unequivocally chose the latter.
The government’s decision to bite the taxation bullet should not, however, be seen as a repudiation of all that the party has stood for since Tony Blair became leader. It is difficult to believe that Labour could have contemplated raising taxes
and dramatically increasing public spending were it not for the trust and economic stability which the Prime Minister and Chancellor fought so hard to establish after Labour came to power. Labour in government may seem natural now, but we should not forget that even many of those who voted Labour for the first time in 1997 did so with enormous apprehension. The party’s good intentions were never in doubt;
its ability to govern competently was very much open to question.
Neither must it be forgotten that both the new NHS investments and this summer’s public spending review are accompanied by a rigorous programme of reform, which recognises the need for greater accountability and independent monitoring; devolution to the local level; increased flexibility and the extension of choice.
While the second term is now beginning to take on that radical edge promised
by the Prime Minister, Labour must be aware that the challenges ahead of it are still enormous. Most worryingly of all, public disenchantment with politics and politicians appears to be growing not abating. Labour delivering on its promises will not alone reverse this, but failing to do so will, without doubt, exacerbate it. The last couple
of months indicate that the government is edging towards an understanding of this.