'Nobody really believes any politician when they promise anything at all' - Your Letters: September 24
PICTURE FROM THE ARCHIVE: Sir John Hunt, who led the 1953 expedition which conquered Everest, visited Trench Boys Modern School, Trench, where he is pictured pointing out where he travelled to. pointing to a globe. Sir John was the patron of the school, which later became the John Hunt School.
NEW LABOUR IS START OF PROBLEM
We have seen a few letters from Roger Watts that talk of plans to fix Britain. Go into any pub or communal space and you will hear many theories of how this can be achieved. The problem is to make progress you must first ask the right questions and do some analysis.
The state we are in is dire to say the very least. Most people sense there is something profoundly wrong but feel utterly powerless to do anything about it. Nobody really believes any politician when they promise anything at all. It is as if they know instinctively that politicians are misleading us, they are simply not able to deliver.
The reasons for this malaise have their origin in 1997 and the election of New Labour. What that government did has transformed UK politics making it less democratic and effective in delivery.
There are two key reasons for this. The first is the New Labour reform that shifted power to experts who head up government funded agencies. An example is the monetary policy committee at the Bank of England to which interest rate decisions are outsourced. At a stroke New Labour moved economic policy out of the hands of politicians whom we elect and gave it to" the experts" this has been modelled in many other areas of public policy. Quangos proliferate wielding power and influence but accepting zero accountability to you and I the voters.
