Ultimately, it comes down to needing to find a party to trust in the upcoming election. Yeah yeah... I can hear you sniggering and asking why I would put my trust in a party that has failed on so many of it's pre-election promises. Well, as I mentioned in my previous post, I can't say I whole-heartedly trust any political party, but let's face it - it's crunch time and it's time to pick sides.
I just can't trust David Cameron. He comes across like so many of the heartless, high-powered, self-obsessed executives I've worked for and his party show continued disrespect to the lesser-privileged individuals in society. Their communication is unclear, unsubstantiated and shows a lack of understanding of how engage with the working class. At best, their policies to provide help to those who need it are unrealistic. At worst, they are patronising. Their sums don't add up, and crucially their plan to repay the public spending deficit does not seem to be backed up with any explanation of how this will be funded. When you look at their other pledges, such as the promise to get people off welfare and back in to work, I can't help but think that this hole will be filled by substantial cuts to services for those most in need.
Labour have introduced many initiatives and services that have improved life significantly for those most in need, and indeed the Conservatives opposed many of the projects. The one that stands out, of course, is their opposition to the minimum wage.
Most worrying is Cameron's continued insistence of the magnificence of Margaret Thatcher's leadership.
So Gordon Brown may not be the most inspirational leader. He may not have been elected by the public. But what he and his government have done is stabilise an economy badly hit by and INTERNATIONAL recession - not a recession caused by the current government as David Cameron would like you to believe. To change government and move in the direction that the Tories are proposing would risk significantly damaging the recovery, and put the most vulnerable in an even tighter situation.
But crucially, the pledge that finally swayed my vote can be found in Gordon Brown's election pledge speech:
I know that in this time of cynicism and lack of trust in politics, there are some people who will say that politicians will promise the earth but never deliver, that a pledge isn’t worth the paper it is written on.
And I understand that, but these are not general pledges without dates, without tests, without scrutiny. these are our pledges to every single citizen, tied to timetables, regular reporting and proof of performance.
So I want to build-in accountability mechanisms to the pledges we are making, so that you can hold me to account, and we can test our progress against our promises in the year to come.
I believe the business of government should be more business-like – that the British people are the boss and like any employer they deserve to know about the performance of their team.
And so I am proposing the following.
Firstly, Sir Tim Berners Lee, the man most associated with the invention of the internet, is the government’s advisor on data openness and transparency all across the internet.
In the months to come he will be ensuring that there is the maximum possible information available to the public at all times.
This rapid extension of transparency will show in real time how government are delivering against our pledges.
Now understand, as I mentioned previously, Labour are very much in the last chance saloon with me. If Labour can make good on this promise, I believe this will sway many of the doubters.
It has taken me months to arrive at this decision. I have deliberated over every little detail, many of which I would have to admit that I don't understand. However, I realise that I now need to put my faith somewhere, and the only party that seem to be able to back up what they say with real facts and figures are the Labour party.
