Despite learning how to smile, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves painted a grim picture of the ‘change’ workers can expect to receive in the coming months and years.
Resurrecting Theresa May’s plan to means-test winter fuel payments and maintaining the Tories’ vindictive two-child benefit cap are just two of the headline austerity measures Reeves is unloading onto the working class.
Even if she bends her fiscal rules to allow more borrowing for capital investment and raises a few taxes, like inheritance and capital gains, this will not remove cuts from her budget.
On the contrary councils will continue to go bust, schools will continue to close and the NHS will continue to limp from crisis to crisis. Whatever money is put their way will be tied to worse working conditions and outsourcing to the lowest bidder.
Labour’s reforms are all geared towards public-private investment, essentially where all the risks are taken by the taxpayer and all the control by the capitalist. The National Wealth Fund and GB Energy may have a few billion to spend but are designed to subsidise the bosses, who are then free, like Tata Steel, to exploit their workers, hold the government to ransom and shut up shop when the profits dry up.
Labour remains committed to the neoliberal policy of shrinking the welfare state and opening public services to exploitation by private profiteers. That’s what lies behind Starmer’s announcement of a crackdown on benefit fraud and Wes Streeting’s plan to hand over patient records to big data firms.
Make the rich pay
The RCN’s announcement, in the middle of Reeves’ speech, that nurses had overwhelmingly rejected the government’s derisory 5.5% pay offer, was a clear indication that Labour won’t be able to buy its policy of class peace partnership between unions, government and business, or it won’t be bought cheaply.
The left in Labour has disappeared, leaving opposition to the unions. Unite, CWU and FBU took a combative approach on the conference floor, and PCS and NEU leaders delivered militant speeches at fringe meetings — but now this has to be backed up with action.
• Fight all cuts and closures with strike action!
• Stop privatisation and bring outsourced workers in-house!
• Force union leaders to break with Labour and organise a fight against Austerity 2.0!