Meeting held on Tuesday 27th September 2024.
Seven people were present. Five gave their apologies.
Very favourable introductory comments were made on Andy Burnham and Steve Rotherham’s recent book Head North, which was then passed on within the group.
Aware that at recent meetings we have often voiced critical comments on the Labour Party and its leadership, we reflected upon the extent to which some of us identified with the Party, and put a lot of work into supporting it, whilst others saw themselves as more independent and content to voice very critical comments about it. It is important to be sensitive to such differences amongst members of the group. In this context, we had differing views about how we felt the Party had performed since its election success. Some were encouraged by Starmer’s apparent preparedness to take bold decisions (eg in resolving recent pay disputes, climate change). Others were disappointed by the lack of change or felt that it had not gone far enough (eg on Palestine, immigration).
In particular, disappointment was felt that the ‘problem’ of immigration was understood solely in terms of “keeping them out” rather than exploring safer routes to immigration.
The change in winter fuel arrangements, which are now to be means tested, was badly handled. This was a significant feature of a wider economic policy which is really no different from the Tories’. Rachel Reeves appeared to be totally unaware of developments in economic thinking which now views policies based on ‘austerity’ and the ‘fiscal rules’ as being altogether misconceived. They did not allow for the very considerable increase in investment, particularly in infrastructure, that is needed. We still felt, however, that we could not be sure about how the Party’s economic policies were developing until we had seen the Autumn Budget. Would this, as we hoped, lead to increases in the extent to which the wealthy would bear the economic burden? And more generally, would the party continue to be led by pressures from the right? Or might the Green Party have a progressive influence from the left? At the next election it might be as important for the party to appeal to those to the left of it as it has previously been to those on the right.
There is much disagreement, amongst economists, about the significance, and the importance, of debt. Labour needs to free itself from a naive notion that national debt is like family debt.
In a final discussion of the electoral situation in USA we were unsure about the chances of Harris winning. We were also anxious about the prospect of Trump loosing. There are even those in USA who have raised the possibility of civil war as Trump fails to acknowledge defeat.
Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday 16th October.