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From London to Lisbon to Ljubliana, European governments have had the same dilemma for the last eight months. How can they find the money to pay for rearmament, after Donald Trump made clear that the US will no longer guarantee Europe’s security? In Britain the challenge is huge. As a proudly open trading economy, our country sneezes more than others when the global economy catches cold. And our economy is weaker now than it should be. As Rachel Reeves has rightly said, since 2010, the chaotic Brexit deal, Covid pandemic and Tory austerity have all hammered productivity. The new government has started work to set things right, from three big new trade deals to investing in the green economy to introducing free breakfast clubs for primary kids. And Labour’s facing up to one of our country’s biggest problems: inequality. Under Labour seven times more investment is going into the North East than under Boris Johnson, the Pride in Place programme will boost disadvantaged areas, and new employment rights plus the higher minimum wage will help millions. Nonetheless, fixing fourteen years-worth of crumbled public services and crashed public finances would create a headache for any Chancellor. Add on economic turbulence and the need to rearm, and the stakes are high for the upcoming budget. I resigned from government because I knew the cost of rearmament could not be covered by slashing one budget (international development) – especially when development helps support our country’s security. Inflicting further cuts would damage our country’s interests and not make us more secure. Rachel Reeves is, I believe, spot on when she says that those with the broadest shoulders should pay their fair share of tax. Last year, Labour rightly increased taxes on private jets and nondoms – but we had too little to say about it. This time, the government must seek to tax different forms of wealth much more effectively, while preserving our productive capacity. It should then confidently set out why higher taxation of wealth is both necessary and fair. If wider tax changes are needed, the big mistake would be to tinker at the edges rather than acting decisively. We’ve seen too much fiscal fiddling, with two predictions made every year by the public finances watchdog and commentators constantly calling for tax and spend changes. This hammers confidence when investors, businesses and working people crave stability and certainty. Too often governments focus on what could go wrong by taking big decisions and choose to tinker at the margins instead. It’s less common to consider the much bigger harm that can come from ducking big decisions. So this November, the government must think big and deliver - for the long term, and for our country’s security. Can you imagine every Londoner having to flee their home? It’s hard to fathom ten million people being displaced – but that’s what’s happened in war-ravaged Sudan. 24 million people there are living in acute hunger. And this week, there were horrific reports of 460 people being slaughtered in a maternity hospital in El-Fasher. The conflict can feel far away from us. But there’s been a surge in refugees from Sudan entering Europe; and international terrorists have ‘welcomed’ chaos in Sudan. I’m pleased that the UK government managed to cajole other countries in the UN Security Council – including the previous blocker Russia – to call for peace. Now we need to see the US, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and UAE put pressure on the belligerents to protect terrified civilians and allow aid in. Politics sometimes needs patience. The Cowley Branch railway line was closed to passengers in 1963, despite connecting council estates and suburbs like Blackbird Leys, Cowley and Littlemore into Oxford city centre. I’ve campaigned with residents for eight years to get it reopened. And now the Labour government and local businesses are stumping up the cash to make it happen, with our BMW factory in favour too! I’m over the moon. I was brought up in rural Aberdeenshire. I remember wandering around in the dark wrapped in toilet roll, until my ‘mummy’ costume unravelled! The “guising” we did then required singing or telling a joke before getting any sweets. And carving a neep (turnip) was harder than a pumpkin - although neeps can look much scarier!
