This is spectator so they are taking the most extreme right wing viewpoint on Labour’s recent policies to improve the nation’s health. I disagree with how they characterise it for the most part but they do seem to put their finger on the kind of authoritarian impulses inside the party. Definitely think the author misses the mark with their badly thought out/unsupported angle about it being patronising class politics.
I was too young to take in much when John Major was in power but remember New Labour with Blair/Brown very well. They were also keen to make similar kind of policies that were - for lack of a better phrase - nanny state-ish. I found it interesting thinking about that legacy.
Should also mention that both parties tend towards these types of policies. I suspect the civil service are keen on them and they test well in focus groups.
Article is paywalled so will post it in comments.
What? Who introduced the Soft Drink levy?
What are they wanting to say, that they feel they can’t?
Oh, here we go.
Yep that’s what the spectator is like. I still think their general point is interesting.
That Labour needs a Farage like face at the front to make it “fun”, or are you thinking more Ed Davey?
Personally? I’m a Lib Dem member but I care about civil liberties a lot. Probably obligated to say Ed Davey but he’s a bit too wet for me.
The only reason I mention Frarage was the rest of the language in that piece was a bit off.
Ed Davey is alright, he is fun yet also completely sincere.
Yeah the spectator are probably the most right-wing publication in the UK with wide readership. They have a lot of edgy columnists like this dude. They are probably somewhere between the tories and reform in terms of the right wing scale.
Edit: My boomer parents actually got me a subscription to it for a year, a few years back as a birthday present. I’d say like half of the political coverage was palletable and pretty good on the whole; half was swivel-eyed right wing garbage. The arts coverage was susprisingly good.