Only Tories facing up to real world

Sir, – Why are so many people like Alan Woodcock eager to spread that unfounded mantra about “Tory government austerity” (Letters, April 22)?

The financial crisis of 2008 resulted in a worldwide economic catastrophe which adversely affected all countries.

But at that time, Britain had been governed for 11 years by a Labour government under Blair and Brown. To name just a few disasters (in my opinion), we had endured an illegal war, followed by opening the floodgates to immigration, and the fiasco of Scottish devolution.

Then came financial mismanagement on a scale unheard of since the last Callaghan government.

As far as I am concerned it’s not outrageous to wonder why former prime minister Blair is not in jail; and to never forget that, after 13 years, there was “no money left”.

Of course, the last 14 years of Tory rule are open to serious questioning, and the farcical double act of Johnson and Truss can never be justified.

But I would suggest that the inept misconduct of those two misfits were as nothing compared to the lamentable 13 years of Blair and Brown.

We already see ominous signs we are threatened by more of Labour’s addiction to increased public expenditure and sabotage resulting from trade union barons’ ambition to run our country. Believe it or not, they have committed to renationalising our railways.

Attlee is one of my few political heroes, but I think it realistic to suggest his major mistake lay in nationalisation of our industrial base. I think we are still trying to recover from that gross error.

So, alas, the Tories are the best of a bad bunch. At least they have some people capable of facing up to the real world.

Jim Parker. Glenrothes.