This is originally from the Progress Daily Email. If you like what you see and would like to sign up to receive it, click here.
One of the big political mistakes of the budget – even before the speech was given – was scheduling it for a Monday. Having it so early in the week gives parliament, thinktanks and journalists more working days to dig in to the detail this week. It may sound ridiculous, but it will certainly play a role in how this budget unravels.
The tone has already been set, with the Institute for Fiscal Studies rubbishing the claim that the deficit will be eliminated by the mid-2020s.
The other big political mistake is, of course, the promise that austerity is over. That pledge increasingly feels like Theresa May aimed solely for a day of good headlines. It simply is not a promise they can deliver while sticking to the spending commitments they have already spelled out – which include more enormous cuts to, for example, local government next year. As people see their services continue to get worse or disappear, they will, fairly, ask what happened to that promise.
It also means that when they see those cuts come in, they will view them as a choice, not a necessity. For the past eight years, the Conservatives have framed cuts as something they have to do, rather than something they want to do. Now they claim the belt-tightening years are over, it is impossible to argue that services they continue to decimate are anything other than an ideological agenda.
As Brexit – a topic curiously absent from most of the budget – begins to bite, the lack of a sunny uplands will not only be seen as a government failure, but an intended broken promise too.
Not that it makes this week easy for Labour, necessarily. We have seen already some disagreement and, well, confusion, mainly, over whether or not we back enormous tax cuts. Sometimes, it seems, the progressive arguments need more clarity.
On that note: make sure you vote in the current strategy board elections. Just search for ‘Progress – Strategy Board Elections 2018’ in your email inbox.
– Conor Pope, deputy editor
Latest on Progress
Shaping tomorrow’s history
As Black History month comes to a close, Progress activist Abdi Duale explains how we can use education to shape the history books of the future
The age of myth
Human beings need narrative to make sense of the world, but is the new era of communication creating a world of myth, asks Peter Lassey
Progress strategy board candidate articles
We will be publishing up to two articles by all candidates standing for the current strategy board elections over the coming weeks.
The Joke is on us
The chancellor’s budget was full of weak jokes, but the joke is really on us, writes Paul Brant
Centre-left politics at the heart of local government
Local government is the cradle of innovation on the centre-left, writes James Beckles
Britain’s generational fightback
The fight to ‘re-order the world around us’ begins now, writes David Harley
The centre-left’s missed trick to the affordable housing crisis
Smartly designed supply-side policy can provide more genuinely affordable homes for low-income tenants, writes Christopher Worrall
Voting is now open in the Progress strategy board elections. The Progress strategy board exists to guide the work of Progress, and ensure the strategic aims of the organisation.
Click here to see your candidates.
The Progressive Britain Podcast
How should the Windrush scandal change the way we talk about immigration and citizenship? Has Donald Trump emboldened racism in the UK? And would a People’s Vote see a resurgence of the far right?
Conor Pope, Henna Shah and David Lammy discuss in this episode to mark Black History Month 2018.
Five things to read today
Key points from budget 2018 – at a glance
Richard Partington and Peter Walker, Guardian
As A Proud Student Activist, I Cannot Stand By And Watch The Tories Ruin This Country – It’s Time For A People’s Vote
Ellie James, HuffPost UK Young Voices
4 things to know about Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s new far-right president
Jen Kirby, Vox
LGBT activists have a new weapon against Russia’s ‘gay propaganda’ law: YouTube influencers
Jessica Bateman, Wired
Let’s celebrate LGBT+ leadership at all levels
Andrew Pakes, Prospect
Sign up to this email
Progressive centre-ground Labour politics does not come for free.
It takes time, commitment and money to build a fight against the forces of conservatism. If you value the work Progress does, please support us by becoming a member, subscriber or donating.
Our work depends on you.
