UK Election 2024: Relief no Joy!
“Get The Tories Out!” is what most British people wanted at the UK general election on July 4. After 14 horrible years in government, the right-wing Conservatives (Tories) were booted out, with their lowest number of seats (121) ever. Many people voted tactically, across party lines and political beliefs, for whichever non-Tory candidate was likely to win.
The UK economy, society, and public services are in a terrible mess. They have been ruined by neoliberal austerity policies – the same as those of the IMF, Ranil Rajapaksa, and the SJB. In the sixth largest economy in the world, more than 2.56 million people needed a ‘food bank’ in 2020/21 to feed themselves.
The Labour Party won nearly 2 out of 3 seats (412 out of 650). It promises to take the railways (but not yet water and energy) back into public ownership. After privatisation, corporations make super profits while consumers have bad services at a high price. Labour declares it will also limit precarious work and improve employment rights.
Its leader and now Prime Minister Keir Starmer thinks his victory is because he took his party to the centre. Beginning from Tony Blair, the Labour Party has been trying to dress like the Tories to look more attractive to the business, political and media establishment. It says it will not increase taxes on big business; it will quicken the removal of asylum-seekers while reducing immigration; and increase military spending to 2.5% of GDP while remaining in NATO.
But at this election Labour won only 34% (or 9,634,399 million) of the vote. In 2017 with Jeremy Corbyn’s progressive policies, the Labour Party won much more – 40% (or 12,877,918 million) of the vote – but lost the election. The UK’s first-past-the-post (FPTP) electoral system is unfair and undemocratic.
Leftists around the world are celebrating the re-election of Jeremy Corbyn; as well as the incredible victory of four others campaigning to end the war on Gaza and for Palestinian rights. We should also celebrate the four Green Party members elected to highlight the climate change crisis and for a just transition to a green economy.
But let us not forget that the far-right Reform Party got 14% of votes, and now has 4 parliamentarians. This is a scary situation. It pushes politics even further to the right as the main parties try to win some of its popularity. Unless there is working class and social movement militancy, and a broad Left that unites to undercut the appeal of the far right, the Reform Party can only grow from the collapse of the Conservatives and the continuity of many of their policies by Labour in government.
