Making the case for an early election

THIS latest Conservative government, barely three weeks old, has already demonstrated a dangerous mix of arrogance, incompetence and indifference which, left unchecked, could literally destroy the economic and social pillars of our country.

Following the mini-budget announcement just under two weeks ago, the UK’s economy feels like it’s in a chaotic freefall.

With this one announcement, Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng brought panic to financial markets around the world and anxiety to millions of ordinary people who must now deal with increased mortgage costs on top of the existing cost of living crisis… and then spent four days hiding from

the media.

When she finally came out of hiding to do a series of local radio

interviews, Liz Truss came across as someone with a complete lack of empathy for the British people.

She seemed more like a neoliberal ideologue than a dignified leader trying to quell a national crisis of her own making.

Only three weeks in, many people, including significant numbers of her own backbenchers, are already asking themselves whether this Truss government must go.

As a member of the West Berkshire and Newbury Liberal Democrats, our party has spent years pointing out what happens when politicians, unchecked, take advantage of political power to serve their own ends.

Allowing politicians to abuse our political systems and centuries-old conventions has been devastating for our country.

It has brought a disastrous Brexit; one of the worst Covid-19 death rates in both EU and G7 countries; a Prime Minister convicted of breaching lockdown laws; an energy bills crisis; crippling inflation.

And now a currency crisis; run on pension funds; unfunded tax cuts; the lifting of the bankers’ bonus cap; and an increase in borrowing costs. I could go on.

The policies which Liz Truss is forcing on the nation have no

mandate from the electorate.

They were not voted for and Liz Truss has no authority on which to implement them.

Nor, for that matter, have the electorate ever had a say on the Brexit Trade and Cooperation Agreement, or ongoing attempts to

rip up the Northern Ireland Protocol which the Conservative government itself negotiated as part of the Withdrawal Agreement.

The Liberal Democrats have called for an early general election.

That should happen sooner rather than later, so the electorate can have its say on the course currently being charted by this government.

Justin Pemberton

Thatcham