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| | Hi Friend, "Has Animal Farm Moved Into Downing Street ?" ...
We are into the final decile of the Labour Government's first one hundred days. It feels as if we are into the final chapter of Animal Farm. By chapter ten in George Orwell's brilliant political satire, the pigs are walking on two legs, talking with the humans, drinking and playing cards with the former enemy, as the other unfortunate animals are urged to work harder and eat less.
The mantra "four legs good, two legs bad, four legs bad", has morphed into "four legs good, two legs better". The windmill investment providing cheap energy for all, has been annexed by the pigs to power the grinding mill, processing grain for the coffers of the elite. The milk and barley has been hogged by the pigs. The pig swill has been distributed to all in the fields, with demonstrative largesse.
"Has Animal Farm Moved into Downing Street?
In opposition, Sir Keir Starmer repeatedly accused the last Conservative government of cronyism, from its handling of contracts for personal protective equipment during the pandemic to renovations of the flat in Downing Street.
But just two months into government, the Labour prime minister and some of his most senior colleagues have been accused of failing to declare freebies including clothing and a trip abroad in the most transparent way.
For Rosie Duffield, it is all a bit too much. The Labour MP for Canterbury has quit the party over the freebies scandal, accusing Sir Keir Starmer of presiding over "sleaze, nepotism and apparent avarice that is off the scale."
Resigning her position, the MP for Canterbury, told Sir Keir that she was "ashamed of what he and his inner circle had done to tarnish and humiliate our once proud party".
She declared that he was unfit for office after "inexplicably" choosing to accept designer suits and sun glasses while at the same time pursuing "cruel and unnecessary" policies.
In her resignation letter to the Prime Minister, Ms Duffield said: "Someone with far above average wealth choosing to keep the Conservatives' two-child limit to benefit payments which entrenches children in poverty, while inexplicably accepting expensive personal gifts of designer suits and glasses costing more than most of these people can grasp, is entirely undeserving of holding the title of Labour prime minister."
"Forcing a vote on the winter fuel payment to make many older people iller and colder while you and your favourite colleagues enjoy free family trips to events most people would have to save hard for and you not showing even the slightest bit of embarrassment?"
Rosie Duffield has become the fastest MP to jump ship after a general election in modern political history.
It came after Sir Keir admitted on Friday that Lord Alli gave him £32,000 to pay for clothing, double what he previously declared.
Sir Keir also received £2,400 from Lord Alli for glasses, and the use of an £18 million penthouse during the election campaign and on other occasions. Members of his front bench team have also declared large donations from the peer. |
| | Why are gifts to Starmer in the spotlight?
According to the Financial Times, Starmer accepted £76,000 worth of entertainment, clothes and similar freebies from UK donors in the last parliament, more than any other MP.
The most generous benefit disclosed was £16,200 of "work clothing" and £2,485 of spectacles from Lord Waheed Alli, a Labour peer and former chair of online clothing retailer Asos.
The row intensified this month when it was reported that Starmer's wife, Victoria, had received £5,000 of clothing from Alli that had not been initially declared in the register of MPs interests.
Starmer fully declared that he had taken £20,437 of "accommodation" from Alli during the election campaign, which he has since said was used by his son for the period of his GCSE exams.
[The stay was from May 29 until July 13 but the GCSE season had ended by June 19, raising questions over how necessary the accommodation was.]
Starmer has promised to take no more clothing but he will retain the use of a box provided by Arsenal football club, which he says he needs for security reasons to continue taking his son to matches.
Liz Bates Political Correspondent for Sky writes,"The public were expecting to see one of their own in Number 10, but Labour ministers' "early life" struggles are now a distant memory for them. It appears that whatever they want is at their fingertips and they are making the most of it.
During the election campaign, Sir Keir made a virtue of his ordinariness and this has continued into government.
He sold the public the dream of a prime minister, not from Eton and Oxbridge, but a pebble-dashed semi, the son of a toolmaker, who was one of them.
In his conference speech he did it again, referencing "people of a completely ordinary working-class background like mine".
But now Starmer and his ministers are living a life of privilege, free clothes, free sunglasses, free tickets, parties paid for, the use of million-pound properties whenever they need them.
They may have started off trying to make ends meet, but now whatever they want is at their fingertips and they are making the most of it.
Voters, promised one of their own in Number 10, see someone whose life could not be further from theirs and it's jarring.
The rules weren't broken here but the public's impressions aren't just based whether particular guidelines were followed or not.
Some will think Animal Farm has moved into Downing Street. All animals are equal but some are more equal than others. Labour principles good, Tory lifestyles better.
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| Have a great weekend,
John
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References This week's post relies on extracts from our daily "What the Papers Say Review." Certain research and photo content has also been generated using Perplexity AI. This is our favorite AI research tool. Photos are from The Adobe Stock, The Saturday Economist Slide Deck and DALL-E
Liz Bates Sky News.
Camilla Turner, Telegraph.
Why Is Kier Starmer Under Pressure Over freebies ...
Jim Pickard and Anna Gross in London and Lucy Fisher in New York, Financial TImes.
Animal Farm Orwell's Brilliant Political Satire.
George Orwell
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| © 2024 John Ashcroft, Economics, Strategy and Financial Markets, experience worth sharing.
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