Vive la difference!

After at least 20 years of political inertia, the wait for a straight choice is finally over. When the conference speech of Red Miliband came to a close this week, it is perhaps symbolic that one of those cheering the loudest was none other than the last Labour socialist leader, Neil (Lord) Kinnock. Like Miliband, he was also expected to win the next election with a socialist agenda but he failed spectactularly. The battle for the middle ground of British Politics first orchestrated by Blair and Mandelson has been one of the most tedious periods in British political history. Now at least, the electorate can look forward to straight choice between socialism and capitalism. Only the kingmaker Nick Clegg stands in the way of one or the other. The promise to freeze fuel bills for 18 months was the sign of a party leader feeling the pressure. The flaws are endless. To begin with, everyone is on a completely different tariff with a completely different company. Some are fixed anyway. Some are dual fuel (not everyone has access to this). Some are based on internet transactions (not everyone has access or knows how to use it). I could go on of course but the main point here is that Miliband has once again chosen the wrong target. His targets ought to have been two-fold. If the energy regulator was genuinely independent with real teeth, the worst excesses of the energy industry would be curtailed. The second point is the more important though. He fails to address the real problem which is our increasing reliance on fossil fuels. He ought to have been pointing to renewable energy projects to gain any credit. Same old same old. This promise is a short term nonsense cynically designed to garner a few votes in the marginal constituencies which will ultimately decide the outcome of the next election. In the meantime, be prepared for the "big six" fuel suppliers cranking up their prices in case the worst happens and socialism returns. Warnings of blackouts are far more realistic than people seem to imagine. Perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad thing if a new generation had a flavour of what it would be like to have no telly, no internet, no lights, no oven, no boiler etc. Children of my generation grew up with the three day week in the early 70s when the unions grabbed the country by the short and curlies and held it to ransom. I write this a day after the fire union staged a one day strike because they felt it unreasonable for a fireman to still be working at 60 instead of 55. Given that life expectancy is now in the mid 80s, its hard to see the injustice here. For the record, theirs is one of the most lucrative pension deals in the entire Public Sector - and that's saying something! Miliband also promised to deliver more power to the councils for compulsory purchase orders (CPO) to sequester land under private ownership not being used for housing. It might just be me but I was rather under the impression that the councils already have far too much power. Should this promise come to fruition, prepare for life in a new gulag where your local council has enough power to seriously affect your capacity to sleep at night. For the record, councils are not obliged to part with a penny until 6 years after a CPO has been granted. Beware if you are unlucky enough to own any private property because anything will be fair game. I've seen this going on locally in the last couple of years without the extra power so God help us if Miliband gives them even more. His assertion that Labour needs to rescue the NHS is somewhat misguided given that his party governed from 1997 until 2010 and presided over hospitals such as Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust. We all know the NHS is struggling but only long term thinking will effect any positive change. It would be far more prudent to seek the causes of increased demand on the NHS rather than just seeking to build more hospitals to cope with demand. There will come a point where there are more people leaning on the NHS than people working in it. That is a serious reality unless somebody starts to seriously address the causes of diabetes, liver failure, mental health etc. This morning, the former Labour minister Margaret Hodge was being interviewed on the Today programme. Asked what the difference was between the market domination of Tesco and the market domination of the "Big Six" energy suppliers, she explained that people could go and buy their bread and potatoes from wherever they liked. Putting aside the gross naivety of this answer, she surely must see the extent to which her government gave Carte Blanche for Tesco et al to serially destroy our high streets? If not, then I'm afraid politicians are just even more arrogant than I gave them credit for. Yes folks, socialism is back. Miliband wants to re-nationalise the railways too. There will be many who won't remember British Rail but there are a great many who do. Its funny, but no mention was made of freezing prices on rail tickets but then that probably wouldn't attract as many votes because everybody uses gas and electric. Once again, watch this space. If you think the railways are bad now, you are in for a taste of reality. For all that, I'm glad that we're to be given a proper ideological choice. Vive la difference but be careful what you wish for because sometimes better the devil you know...