Give us chance to ditch Tory rabble

Rishi Sunak was planning to base his party’s re-election hopes on an economy in recovery.

He wanted to say he had cut inflation and presided over lower taxes and energy bills. Yesterday’s news that the economy was officially in recession has killed off this barmy notion. Sunak has completely failed to undo the damage of his dangerous predecessor Liz Truss. Truss and her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng nearly wrecked the British economy through a series of unfunded tax cuts for the rich. The plan sent the economy into a tailspin and resulted in mortgage rates rocketing. If anything, Sunak has tried to mimic this dodgy tax cut plan. He slashed national insurance in January and is promising to go further in his spring Budget. The Tories have messed up largely because of their pursuit of short-term populist economic measures. A better approach would have been to tackle low pay, poor productivity and the skills deficit that keeps us uncompetitive. Rishi’s recession shows the chickens have come home to roost and he has no one to blame but himself. The Tories once prided themselves on having a reputation for sound economic management but this has long gone. The Conservatives have made every aspect of the UK worse since they came to power 14 years ago. Public services are in a state of neglect, the economy is a shambles and our institutions are run down. The time has come for a new approach that puts the interests of working people first. A general election must be called immediately so voters can deliver their verdict on this Tory rabble.