Travel back to January 1979. With lorry drivers, gravediggers, refuse workers and some NHS staff on strike the country ground to a halt. Stagflation was at its peak, with inflation coupling with worsening unemployment so that Britain became what many described as the “sick man of Europe”. The Jeremy Thorpe trial lay round the corner, with a level of sleaze in Parliament putting trust in politicians at then record lows. Prime Minister James Callaghan, raised in a working-class family in Portsmouth and once seen as the “wearer of the cloth cap”, has seen his once friendly unions become radicalised by frustration. The country seems on the brink of change, and for many, the only solution is a radical rethinking of the way in which the country should be run; from industrial relations to the “mixed economy”.
One can draw so many similarities to this January that it is rather frightening to think how volatile our country has been in its history. Workers across many sectors are striking over the management of their industries and the stagnation of wages, with industry leaders and politicians determined to continue squeezing blood from a stone and hoping it doesn’t break. Many members of Parliament having recently been disgraced in sordid sex scandals or through corrupt lobbying, has made being a politician one of the least respected professions one could take, second maybe to being a columnist for the Sun. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, from Portsmouth’s neighbouring city of Southampton, has provided little in the way of solutions and seems determined to distract from the crisis with a careful use of scapegoating, designed of course to overturn his disastrous poll ratings.
The country seems on the brink of change, and for many, the only solution is a radical rethinking of the way in which the country should be run;
As a history student, and one in particular with a fascination for the politics of the post-war consensus era, I have a tendency to always look back in order to make sense of the presence. I draw this comparison as a means of granting myself hope, and also to understand the ingrained hope that runs through us all. It is truly remarkable to me how common it is to hear people talking openly about how we need some radical changes to solve the problems we are faced with, much like in 1979. For better or worse, consensus fairs very poorly in a time of crisis, even when the alternative seems little better.
Much like Margaret Thatcher in this fateful winter, Keir Starmer finds himself in the enviable position of knowing that without divine intervention he will be Prime Minister at the next election. The desire for change is so great, that it matters little what that change is. I have given up trying to defend the politics of Keir Starmer, given he represents this mentality so potently; it matters little what change he’s presenting because it’s probably better than staying true to course. Conflicting policies week by week have done little to affect his reputation and have proven to be a successful tactic, given it won him the leadership and will now probably win him premiership.
I draw this comparison as a means of granting myself hope, and also to understand the ingrained hope that runs through us all.
My only hope is that unlike in 1979, the change which comes is not one that seeks retribution against those who helped in some way to bring it about. Those striking for better pay and working conditions and most importantly a fairer society where greed and corruption is less commonplace, should see their needs met by the Labour Party. They have stood up against a stagnating bereft of ideas and who represent the maintenance of a status quo that has seen their wages fall in real terms, and should have some of their goals realised. Our society is deeply unequal, and we can only hope that each cycle of each can attempt to correct that.
Image credits: Right, Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing on commons.wikimedia.org – Left, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_of_Discontent
Image descriptions: Right, Rishi Sunak’s first speech as Prime Minister – Left, The Sun’s Headline ‘Crisis, What Crisis?’
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Winter of our Discontent
Travel back to January 1979. With lorry drivers, gravediggers, refuse workers and some NHS staff on strike the country ground to a halt. Stagflation was at its peak, with inflation coupling with worsening unemployment so that Britain became what many described as the “sick man of Europe”. The Jeremy Thorpe trial lay round the corner, with a level of sleaze in Parliament putting trust in politicians at then record lows. Prime Minister James Callaghan, raised in a working-class family in Portsmouth and once seen as the “wearer of the cloth cap”, has seen his once friendly unions become radicalised by frustration. The country seems on the brink of change, and for many, the only solution is a radical rethinking of the way in which the country should be run; from industrial relations to the “mixed economy”.
One can draw so many similarities to this January that it is rather frightening to think how volatile our country has been in its history. Workers across many sectors are striking over the management of their industries and the stagnation of wages, with industry leaders and politicians determined to continue squeezing blood from a stone and hoping it doesn’t break. Many members of Parliament having recently been disgraced in sordid sex scandals or through corrupt lobbying, has made being a politician one of the least respected professions one could take, second maybe to being a columnist for the Sun. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, from Portsmouth’s neighbouring city of Southampton, has provided little in the way of solutions and seems determined to distract from the crisis with a careful use of scapegoating, designed of course to overturn his disastrous poll ratings.
As a history student, and one in particular with a fascination for the politics of the post-war consensus era, I have a tendency to always look back in order to make sense of the presence. I draw this comparison as a means of granting myself hope, and also to understand the ingrained hope that runs through us all. It is truly remarkable to me how common it is to hear people talking openly about how we need some radical changes to solve the problems we are faced with, much like in 1979. For better or worse, consensus fairs very poorly in a time of crisis, even when the alternative seems little better.
Much like Margaret Thatcher in this fateful winter, Keir Starmer finds himself in the enviable position of knowing that without divine intervention he will be Prime Minister at the next election. The desire for change is so great, that it matters little what that change is. I have given up trying to defend the politics of Keir Starmer, given he represents this mentality so potently; it matters little what change he’s presenting because it’s probably better than staying true to course. Conflicting policies week by week have done little to affect his reputation and have proven to be a successful tactic, given it won him the leadership and will now probably win him premiership.
My only hope is that unlike in 1979, the change which comes is not one that seeks retribution against those who helped in some way to bring it about. Those striking for better pay and working conditions and most importantly a fairer society where greed and corruption is less commonplace, should see their needs met by the Labour Party. They have stood up against a stagnating bereft of ideas and who represent the maintenance of a status quo that has seen their wages fall in real terms, and should have some of their goals realised. Our society is deeply unequal, and we can only hope that each cycle of each can attempt to correct that.
Image credits: Right, Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing on commons.wikimedia.org – Left, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_of_Discontent
Image descriptions: Right, Rishi Sunak’s first speech as Prime Minister – Left, The Sun’s Headline ‘Crisis, What Crisis?’
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