Labour has decided it’s fine to be unpopular right now
The winter fuel payment cut for millions of pensioners is just the start of a series of unpopular policies not in Labour’s manifesto.
In the same way that Labour bosses divided the party’s time in opposition into distinct sections – change the party, attack the Tories, advance the solutions – the first phase of the Starmer government is becoming increasingly clear to see.
As with the economy and prisons before the summer break, this week will see ministers set out the scale of the crisis in the NHS in the starkest and most eye-catching terms, before once again pointing the finger of blame firmly at the previous Conservative administration.
Much like the accusations that “the Tories broke the economy” and “the Tories broke the prison system”, the charge that “the Tories broke the NHS” captures much to be believed while also being a somewhat simplistic and very political message.
For example, you can sketch out a fair argument that the 2012 reforms pushed through by the Tory-led coalition left the NHS in a fragmented and overly complex state and unfit for modern demands on healthcare.
Equally, it is also reasonable to point out a key reason the NHS is under so much strain is because of the pressures of an ageing population and the impact of a once-in-a-century pandemic.
The government’s political strategy in all this is more clear cut.
Labour is building itself a battering ram of blame which it will use to force through a series of unpopular and controversial policies that were not in the party’s manifesto.
The cuts to winter fuel allowance are one of these measures.
Read more:
Health secretary ‘not happy’ about winter fuel payment cut
NHS waiting lists need to be ‘millions lower’
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Yes, finding ways to save money is necessary – such is the dire state of the public finances.
But, how the government is doing it is born of political choices and ideological priorities.
More sparks will fly and more feathers will be ruffled in the coming months.
A huge majority and years until a general election makes that tolerable though.
The calculation is that it’s fine to be unpopular now, providing your standing improves by 2029.
