UK Politics

[on the UK election] In her acceptance speech, Angela Rayner [Deputy PM, UK] said that the result was a response of the electorate to 14 years of Tory failure. I don't think the Tories failed - they have been highly successful for the elite they represent. Since 2010, the country's top few percent have seen their wealth quadruple, while most people have seen their real-term income drop. Bankers enjoy unlimited bonuses, public sector pay has been substantially cut, the tax burden has been significantly switched from rich to poor, privatised utilities profiteer from monopolistic positions without hindrance, and our railways are among the worst in the developed world, while being among the most expensive. These are all amazing achievements from a neoliberal perspective. The chief reason for their being ousted is that they didn't persuade the electorate as successfully as Reform that immigrants were responsible for all this.