Today's 'Autumn Statement' and its accompaniments is a prime example of everything that's wrong in the governmental arrangements of our nation.
New Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, made a reasonable job of delivering a difficult statement though it will no doubt eventually be divined that his announcements on spending were mostly, if not entirely, repeats of earlier announcements. Small increases in minimum wages, a slight amendment to benefit withdrawal rates and the freezing of petrol duty will probably be more than cancelled out by the increase in insurance premium tax and the rental increases that will inevitably result from his proposal to ban letting agents from charging fees to tenants. All-in-all, it was the same old mix of playing with numbers and tinkering at the edges.
What followed was almost farcical. Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell made a rambling and largely incoherent political statement that had little to do with the Chancellor's original. On television, this was followed by interviews with an assortment of figures who expressed varying degrees of satisfaction, understanding, dissatisfaction or outright condemnation. The one thing that was clear was that most of those interviewed were only interested in their own parochial views of the world, the politicians involved being the worst offenders by far.
Our elected representatives do nothing other than promote their own pet projects and political preferences; they do nothing to try to do the best for our country, only the best for themselves. They trot out the same tired old platitudes, make the same protestations and put on the same appearances of outrage and consternation. MPs of all parties do it and none ever shows the slightest sign of living in the same world as the rest of us.
The one thing that's certain after today is that the vast majority of us will be poorer in the years ahead. It's 'deja vu' all over again.
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