Norman Lamb, Lib Dem MP for North Norfolk and political advisor to Nick Clegg, writes over at The Guardian about his view of how the party is delivering in government. First he defines the audience he is addressing: open-minded progressives:
For some on the left, the mere act of working with the Conservatives is a sin. We’ll never convince those people driven by hatred of the other tribe. But for progressives willing to examine the facts rationally, it is time to reassess the case. After all, 13 years of Labour government ultimately disappointed.
Norman then identifies two specific policy areas where he argues the Lib Desm are creating impact:
First on tax. Remember Gordon Brown’s decision to scrap the 10p rate of income tax? And compare that with lifting the threshold of income tax to £10,000. Already, nearly a million workers on the lowest pay have been taken out of tax. For Lib Dems, the priority will remain easing the burden on low-paid families, not cutting tax for the wealthy.
His second is tackling ‘entrenched privilege’:
There is nothing progressive about a welfare system that traps people in dependency or an education system that lets down so many. The missed potential of so many teenagers leaving school at 16 with no qualifications worth their name makes me impatient for change. We can see what is possible. Visit schools like St Paul’s Way Trust School in Bow or the Globe Academy at Elephant and Castle and you see amazing achievement, but this is still the exception not the rule. The consequences of this failure impact on us all.
Norman’s conclusion? ‘Coalition isn’t comfortable. It isn’t easy but Lib Dems are meeting this historic challenge.’
You can read his article in full here.
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3 Comments
There’s no doubt that the Lib Dem contribution is positive. But regressive changes to Sickness Benefit, Legal Aid and – yes – Tuition Fees, make it a mixed bag.
I don’t consider issueing benefit warning letters to terminally ill recipients fair at all.
Ian Bell is, of course, absolutely right. All we can hope is that the shock felt by the public will shame the government into thinking again – if only because it makes such a nonsense of the “we’re all in this together” slogan. Tax cuts for the rich anyone?