Labour politician confused about capitalism shock!

Passing over Yvette Cooper or Ed Balls in favour of Alan Johnson for Shadow Chancellor had only two things in its favour – he’s a natural communicator and, as a ‘Blairite’, the appointment papers over the cracks between the left and the right within Labour.

The problem of appointing a Blairite communicator soon became apparent when Labour was left without a policy on student tuition fees (because AJ and friends wouldn’t back a graduate tax), and is now leading to an incoherent economic message.

The centre ground is about to shift leftwards as cuts bite and fee and tax increases take hold. Some of us voted for Ed because we believed him when he said he was the man to help move Labour to where it needs to be (more ‘left’ and more ‘liberal’ than New Labour). Ed’s failure so far isn’t quite as bad an error of judgement as, say, backing the Lib Dems at the last election, but it’s beginning to look very similar.

“He should have said that he was an instinctive believer in growing the economy to deal with the financial crisis.”

Regardless of the size of the budget deficit, relative to Britain’s GDP, and the consequences for the cost of government borrowing?

Papering the cracks within Labour? He’s also papering the cracks within our tax system. It really is time for Labour to take a serious look at how to tax fairly and effectively while encouraging appropriate economic growth and moving towards a better society.

Income taxes seem fair enough and can be progressive. How about abolishing or drastically reducing corporation taxes but increasing taxes on bonuses and dividends and taking a serious look at a Tobin tax?

Something needs to be done to reduce long-term house price inflation (or land pricing if you want) to make housing affordable once again.

I don’t hear much about this from the people who should be seriously considering these as progressive ideas.

God bless Alan Johnson and all who sail in him. Not sure whether I agree with him on 50% or not, but he’s quite right to emphasise fiscal responsibility. Thank the Lord Liberal Conspiracy isn’t in charge of Labour’s economic policies – it’d be the 1980s all over again.

Ed M was quite right to pick someone of his stature from the moderate wing of the party; a majority of MPs and members of the party supported a moderate outlook in the leadership election, after all.

Not confusing at all:

“The programme pursued by the Government to get people on Incapacity Benefit back to work is exactly the one that we were due to implement over the same period.” (AJ, this week).

I’d say this is perfectly clear. A quote to bear in mind, too, when next listening to Sunny hyperventilating about Labour’s mission to oust the eeeeeeevil Tories.

“Not only was the 50p tax rate hugely popular ”

We really do have some slow learners.

Developing 4. Cherub, is there really no discussion out there about a land value tax?

Only time will tell if he is cut out for the roll. He is a supreme ducker and diver though.

@george mclean I dont understand ive got the New Statesman from the 18th October front page cover full of gloriously outrageous facts about land and wealth. Two of my favourites being that less than 200,000 families own 3/4 of the country and Prince Charles owns land worth £1.25BILLION as for the Duke of Westminster!! the LVT website has been around for yonks the libdems have Alter. There is a couple of us on CiF who bang the drum at ever opportunity. How is it still not talked about by everyone? While i agree it isn’t a panacea it would be a bloody good start to a fairer tax system and a more stable economy.

A good website for Land Value Tax is http://www.labourland.org/

Undoubtedly it would be a good idea for reducing inequality and focussing tax on passive ownership rather than wealth creation.