Labour chaos must not breed complacency

IF the last week of political posturing has shown us anything, it is the sheer scale of the catastrophe that would befall Britain if Jeremy Corbyn were handed the keys to 10 Downing Street.

First the Labour leader pointedly refused to rule out scrapping Trident. As he’s a lifelong campaigner for unilateral disarmament, this should perhaps have come as no surprise. But it was a repudiation of his party’s policy and, in an increasingly hostile world, losing our nuclear deterrent would disastrously weaken national security.

Next came Brexit spokesman Sir Keir Starmer’s risibly incoherent attempt to explain Labour’s policy on Europe.

One minute he voiced the party’s commitment to leaving the EU and ending free movement. The next he said Britain may stay in the single market and customs union, which would not only mean retaining free movement but also prevent us striking trade deals with the wider world.

So does Labour intend to honour the referendum result by quitting the EU? Well, yes… and no.

Then there was the disclosure that Andrew Fisher, the man in charge of writing Labour’s election manifesto, is even more extreme than his boss. He advocates disbanding the security services, slashing defence and disarming the police.

Add to all this the shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s strong hints of sweeping tax rises to fund a ruinous new splurge in public spending, and we see a party both at odds with itself and a serious danger to the country.

Other opposition parties have also had a humiliating week. Ukip appears to be in terminal meltdown and the Lib Dems’ deeply unimpressive leader Tim Farron has been bogged down by allegations of homophobia.

But Theresa May can’t rely solely on the weakness of her opponents to win her the election. Even though the polls suggest she’s heading for a landslide, there are still six weeks to go. Complacency at this stage could be fatal.

Her manifesto must live up to the promise she made on becoming Tory leader to make Britain a fairer country, working ‘not for the privileged few but for every one of our citizens’. She could start with an assault on corporate greed, of which there have been several egregious cases this week.

How can it be acceptable for the boss of a construction company to receive a £112million bonus – especially when his firm has saddled thousands of people with toxic leasehold contracts on new homes? It’s the kind of excess that breeds rage and cynicism and it must be tackled.

Of course, Mrs May is right to attack Labour but she must also provide an inspiring alternative.

When finalising her manifesto next week, she should remember Mrs Thatcher’s words in her last conference speech before the 1979 election. ‘We want to be elected so that we can do better, not because we could not possibly do worse. Labour’s dead end has to be our beginning.’ ■ THE revelation that police are making an average of one terror arrest every

day, shows how tirelessly they are working to protect the public. But as this week’s arrests and the recent Westminster attack have shown, the threat is ever-present and growing. With Islamic State jihadis now fleeing Syria and Iraq in droves – some undoubtedly heading for Britain – could there be a more crucial time to take back control of our borders? ■ IN a week when universities are set to impose yet another tuition fee rise, we discover that grasping vice-chancellors – on salaries of up to £450,000 – are claiming expenses for gardeners, cleaners and even council tax at their grace-and-favour homes. What an insult to their beleaguered, debtladen students.