Bulletin No48 juillet 2024 The Labor Party led by Keir Starmer, new Prime Minister of Great Britain, won the elections (1) on July 4 against the Conservatives in power since 2010.
Labor has set itself six main measures to put in place immediately but nothing on the urgency of increasing wages!
*First, ensure economic stability and revive growth.
*Public services: recruit teachers and reduce waiting lists in the health system but no massive investment plan. Local authorities will not benefit from new funds, even though they have been largely affected by the budget cuts made by the Conservatives.
*Tackling delinquency and reducing incivility.
*Create a new border police force with extended prerogatives. The speech is not at odds with the Conservatives, with Labor calling for a reduction in net migration and opposing the opening of borders. Concerning the recently adopted law providing for the return of undocumented people to Rwanda, Labor says it is going back on this law not for humanist considerations but because it is an “ineffective political gadget”.
*Establish a public energy agency (Great British Energy) dedicated in particular to the transition to clean energy and not provide any new licenses for the exploration of gas or oil drilling.
Under the banner of change, Labor promises political stability...
The “change” for Keir Starmer’s party is a refocusing of its formation towards the right and its distancing from the more “left” line of Jeremy Corbyn. Labor's program does not propose a major break with the Conservative era. Labor remains within the framework of a capitalist economy, wanting to reorient budgets without increasing them: undress Peter to dress Paul by directing state resources differently.
Their speech is not at odds with the conservatives.
Several large company executives and business figures have supported the Labor Party. Keir Starmer reassured the sector by promising not to increase the corporate tax rate (currently at 25%). This shows in particular that Labor has succeeded in appearing as the party of entrepreneurship thanks to its “probusiness” discourse and program. The Financial Times says it has no political affiliation and believes in “liberal democracy, free trade and private enterprise and an outward-looking United Kingdom”. This has “often aligned us more with the Conservatives” , but “this generation of Tories has ruined its reputation as a business party” denounces the FT. “Keir Starmer's Labor Party is better placed to be the leader the country needs” continues the British economic and financial daily, the leading economic daily in Europe has more than a million subscribers. For The Economist "The economic consensus in the United Kingdom has moved away from the values of free trade, individual choice and limits to state intervention" deplores the weekly which considers that the best choice for the election of July 4 is the Labor Party . Just like the Sunday Times, a title that is nevertheless labeled on the right.
Yet the urgency is great.
The economic and social situation in the United Kingdom is serious: inequalities are at their highest, the proportion of working poor is increasing, public services are depleted. UK GDP fell in 2023 close to recession. The key interest rates are at 5.25% across the Channel.
The high inflation rate appears resilient, strongly affected by the rise in prices, with inflation having approached 10% between July 2022 and March 2023. Household consumption only increased by 0.4% in 2023, the rising prices having reduced the purchasing power of the British.
The increase in waiting lists in the health service (more than 7 million patients are waiting for treatment or an appointment).
Unemployment is increasing, although it remains at a very low level (3) .
The public debt is expected to increase further.
The Independent newspaper headlined: “Fridges are unplugged or empty as already exorbitant food prices continue to rise. Families can no longer meet the deadlines for their loans and other real estate borrowings, while interest rates weigh on their finances. Jobs are increasingly at risk as the job market deteriorates.”
Tensions between the government and unions over wages are still present and the number of strikes remains significant. During the period 2023, 4 million working days, the highest number since 1990.
In Britain, as everywhere in the world, the class struggle to slow down and stop capital is the only tool workers have to achieve this. The struggle is the objective of all workers in order to satisfy demands, increase wages, pensions and social benefits, prevent the destruction of public services, and roll back anti-social measures.
(1) Labor: 411 seats +209, the Conservatives 121 -244, Nigel Farage's far-right party, Reform UK, is increasing (14%): Reform UK 5 seats 0 forward, Liberal Democrats 72 seats + 61, the Scottish National party lost 39 seats.
(2) In 2022, the United Kingdom is the sixth largest economy in the world and the second largest European economy, behind Germany and ahead of France (according to the IMF. The United Kingdom's GDP per capita rises, ranking 23rd in the world, ahead of France by one rank.
(3) The employment contract is not obligatory and many odd jobs.