When Labour finally started making some tentative noises about the banks, bank bonuses and opposition to the Tories inheritance tax plans they were attacked for starting a class war. But rather than address the issues that were raised Labour was slammed for starting a class war because Brown made a quip about a tax policy devised in the playground of Eton. Talk about being oversensitive.
But the class war planned and publicised by the Tories is not shown for what it is. The Tories consideration of prison ships, the reduction in the level at which the inheritance tax cuts in, the Tories willingness to lie about the crime statistics, Ian Duncan Smith’s regressive marriage tax proposals which gives the biggest benefit to those who are in the top 10% of taxpayers not to mention the inequities of deciding on whether someone is deserving depends upon whether they are a married or not.
Thatcher’s class war clearly resulted in a huge increase in both income and wealth inequalities in this country, Labour has clearly not been fighting a class war otherwise inequality would have fallen rather than become a bit worse during their 13 years in office.
Yet there is no mention of the Tories class war, their preparedness to lie about the crime statistics to provide a backdrop for their broken society meme, and a justification for stricter sentencing which will result in criminalizing of the poor.
The Tories proposals can only result in a further rapid rise in inequalities. So I ask you, who is fighting a class war and who has waved the white flag?