Austerity is something we had to do

THE severest austerity measures ever imposed on the British people was carried out by Labour after the second world war! I make no criticism because they had no choice to do anything else. The country was broke and had no money, due to the war.

So when Labour now say that the Tories made a political (unnecessary) choice to introduce austerity, when they came to power, they are being disingenuous with the truth, reality, and history.

So why has John McDonald, the shadow chancellor, intervened to stop the Treasury from publishing it’s (independent) costings of

Labours’ spending plans, which he argues would be beneficial to the Tories?

Ironically, Clement Atlee, the Labour Prime Minister after the war, found the Democrat President Truman and the Senate were refusing to give Britain any financial assistance, because they didn’t trust Labour to spend it wisely? In an act of desperation, Atlee appealed to Churchill for help, and in an act of magnanimous generosity, putting country before party politics, Churchill went to America and got them to assist Labour.

As the Lib/Dems now disassociate themselves from austerity measures, supported by them when in coalition, and faced with reality, as usual they do not say what alternative was open to the Government?

As we go to the polls, let us not forget the misery we have had getting out of the mess left by Labour.

As a gulf opens up between my generation and the “millennials”, largely due to their inexperience of life, I have no objection to their rejection of my beliefs in support for Jeremy Corbyn, and extinction rebellion; as it will be them who will inherit the debt and be restricted by the legacy of the left, because only then will they come to their senses.

Steve Vickers