By Daily Mail Comment
Last updated at 2:00 PM on 18th June 2011
Dispiriting retreats: Prime Minister David Cameron stands on the doorstep of Downing Street
Six weeks ago, David Cameron was in a formidably strong position. Despite having begun to make painful but necessary spending cuts, the Tories had performed remarkably well at the local elections, and the PM had led the No campaign to a thumping victory in the AV referendum.
The Lib Dems had been humiliated, making a mockery of Nick Clegg’s claim that Britain wanted his party to have a ‘stronger voice’ in government. Labour, handicapped by the dire Ed Miliband, had been routed in the South and Scotland.
Yet, far from putting the junior coalition partner in its place, and building on the positive results of May 5, Mr Cameron has embarked on a series of dispiriting retreats – the worst being to duck a once-in-a-generation chance to reform the NHS.
The posturing Mr Clegg (and how typical of his hypocrisy that he is sending his son to a selective faith school – the very establishment his manifesto promised to disband) is being allowed to dictate policy, despite his crushing poll defeat. In the process, he is doing Britain great harm.
Not a day goes by without further evidence of how the Human Rights Act is making a mockery of justice. Only yesterday, we revealed how foreign criminals, asylum seekers and EU benefits tourists were using the Act to drive a coach and horses through immigration controls.
But, with the liberals regarding the Human Rights Act as an article of faith, chances of reform are non-existent.
The real danger is that Mr Cameron is starting to look spineless. His enemies scent blood. Chief among them are the unions, who were yesterday scathing in their criticism of the reasonable plan to raise the public sector retirement age.
Increasingly, they think if Mr Cameron receives only a gentle push, he will roll over – a dangerous scenario which, as Dominic Sandbrook writes on these pages, echoes the political cowardice which allowed the selfish unions to engage in crippling industrial discontent in the 1970s.
One thing is clear: if the unions persist in their irresponsible actions – which could wreck the fragile economic recovery – the Coalition must legislate to insist on a minimum 50 per cent turnout for strike ballots to be binding.
And, with the country £1trillion in debt, there can be no compromise over the modest reforms to gold-plated public sector pensions.
But most of all, the Tories must stop pandering to Lib Dems.
Mr Cameron showed skill and courage in forming the Coalition. He is now in a position of great strength. He must use it.
Given how the Europhiles sneered at Britain for not joining the euro, it is tempting to find satisfaction in the turmoil now afflicting the single currency.
For all his faults, we should be grateful that Gordon Brown dug in his heels and stubbornly refused to let Tony Blair drag us into this deeply-misguided union.
George Osborne deserves equal praise for taking such decisive action to cut the deficit – thereby saving us from the kind of debt crisis now convulsing Greece.
Civil disobedience: A dog barks at a formation of riot police near the Greek parliament in Athens during a demonstration against cuts
However, this is no time for schadenfreude: for, should Greece default on its monstrous debts, contagion could quickly spread to Ireland, Spain and Portugal – delivering a seismic shock to the global economy.
British exports would suffer and our banks, exposed to billions in bad eurozone debt, would be severely hit.
The problem seems to be terrifyingly intractable: pouring more aid into Greece will only defer the day when most economists think the country will have to devalue its currency to survive.
This of course would trigger a crisis in the euro.
For years, this paper has argued the one-size-fits-all single currency cannot apply to countries as economically diverse as Germany and Greece.
But, make no mistake, the Eurozone is in a mess. The stakes could not be higher.
Last updated at 2:00 PM on 18th June 2011
Dispiriting retreats: Prime Minister David Cameron stands on the doorstep of Downing Street
Six weeks ago, David Cameron was in a formidably strong position. Despite having begun to make painful but necessary spending cuts, the Tories had performed remarkably well at the local elections, and the PM had led the No campaign to a thumping victory in the AV referendum.
The Lib Dems had been humiliated, making a mockery of Nick Clegg’s claim that Britain wanted his party to have a ‘stronger voice’ in government. Labour, handicapped by the dire Ed Miliband, had been routed in the South and Scotland.
Yet, far from putting the junior coalition partner in its place, and building on the positive results of May 5, Mr Cameron has embarked on a series of dispiriting retreats – the worst being to duck a once-in-a-generation chance to reform the NHS.
The posturing Mr Clegg (and how typical of his hypocrisy that he is sending his son to a selective faith school – the very establishment his manifesto promised to disband) is being allowed to dictate policy, despite his crushing poll defeat. In the process, he is doing Britain great harm.
Not a day goes by without further evidence of how the Human Rights Act is making a mockery of justice. Only yesterday, we revealed how foreign criminals, asylum seekers and EU benefits tourists were using the Act to drive a coach and horses through immigration controls.
But, with the liberals regarding the Human Rights Act as an article of faith, chances of reform are non-existent.
The real danger is that Mr Cameron is starting to look spineless. His enemies scent blood. Chief among them are the unions, who were yesterday scathing in their criticism of the reasonable plan to raise the public sector retirement age.
Increasingly, they think if Mr Cameron receives only a gentle push, he will roll over – a dangerous scenario which, as Dominic Sandbrook writes on these pages, echoes the political cowardice which allowed the selfish unions to engage in crippling industrial discontent in the 1970s.
One thing is clear: if the unions persist in their irresponsible actions – which could wreck the fragile economic recovery – the Coalition must legislate to insist on a minimum 50 per cent turnout for strike ballots to be binding.
And, with the country £1trillion in debt, there can be no compromise over the modest reforms to gold-plated public sector pensions.
But most of all, the Tories must stop pandering to Lib Dems.
Mr Cameron showed skill and courage in forming the Coalition. He is now in a position of great strength. He must use it.
Given how the Europhiles sneered at Britain for not joining the euro, it is tempting to find satisfaction in the turmoil now afflicting the single currency.
For all his faults, we should be grateful that Gordon Brown dug in his heels and stubbornly refused to let Tony Blair drag us into this deeply-misguided union.
George Osborne deserves equal praise for taking such decisive action to cut the deficit – thereby saving us from the kind of debt crisis now convulsing Greece.
Civil disobedience: A dog barks at a formation of riot police near the Greek parliament in Athens during a demonstration against cuts
However, this is no time for schadenfreude: for, should Greece default on its monstrous debts, contagion could quickly spread to Ireland, Spain and Portugal – delivering a seismic shock to the global economy.
British exports would suffer and our banks, exposed to billions in bad eurozone debt, would be severely hit.
The problem seems to be terrifyingly intractable: pouring more aid into Greece will only defer the day when most economists think the country will have to devalue its currency to survive.
This of course would trigger a crisis in the euro.
For years, this paper has argued the one-size-fits-all single currency cannot apply to countries as economically diverse as Germany and Greece.
But, make no mistake, the Eurozone is in a mess. The stakes could not be higher.
