Are things as bad as some people fear? I don’t know, but I would also wonder whether things were as good as people liked to think during the “upturn”. The “boom” was largely built on a public-spending binge, cheap money and Chinese imports. Has the British economy actually become more productive since the splurge started in 2001? Perhaps the business experts reading the blog can tell me the answer.
I find myself asking a different question quite often. Is there a sufficient feedback system in place to ensure that politicians of all hues have our best interests at heart? Apart from the satisfaction of having “done the right thing” is there a good incentive for our representatives to take decisions which might hurt now but bring us good fortune in future? It seems to me that the current government have fallen into the trap – highlighted by Sir Robert Peel – of assuming that any problem can be solved with a little public money.
The problem in politics is surely finding out where voters want to be and formulating a set of policies to get them there. What is the “destination”? I find it very hard to decide for myself what I want out of life. How do you decide as a nation? Are we willing to cede individual liberties in return for quieter streets? Are we willing to let the government control half our income in return for better public services? What is the best way to get people out of poverty?
I think we would be a lot healthier and happier as a nation if our politicians told us the unvarnished truth more often. If they admitted just sometimes that things aren’t all hunky-dory we might be able to trust them a bit more. We need more Darlings in this world and fewer Coopers.
I’m not a fan of ideologies, because Murphy’s Law has a tendency to kick in and best laid plans gang aft agley.
That said, you’re right that our political system, in particular our media, favour short-termism and pointless spending. The most useful reforms will generally take at least 5-10 years for effects to be felt measured, take for example Thatcher’s monetary reforms which caused pandemonium when introduced but, a generation later, formed the basis of our modern economy. These kinds of long term, worse-now-better-later measures are terribly difficult to achieve while maintaining a decent PR advantage.
Oh, and it’s verging on pointless to ask where the voters want to be – by the time you get there they’ll want something else. Being popular doesn’t hold a candle to being right. The problem with Gordon Brown is he isn’t popular or right – and his chancellor is far better at telling the truth than he is.
I remember a student debate in 1988 at which a speaker, having got the crowd behind him, called for honesty and frankness in politics.
Speaker: “We need to see some openness in politics”
Crowd roars its approval.
Speaker: “We need politicians who will speak out”
Crowd roars its approval.
Speaker: “We need politicians who will stand up and say things as they are”
Crowd roars its approval.
Speaker: “Like Edwina Currie“
Crowd “Ummm…. err…”