And Gordon's promises?
THE ECONOMY
Mr Brown sees his stewardship of Britain through the worst recession in living memory as one his greatest electoral strengths. In its 2010 manifesto, Labour sets out its plan to halve the deficit by 2014, introduce a new global levy on banks and create more than one million high-skilled jobs.
Five years ago, at the height of the boom, there was of course no mention of the impending global storm – let alone any plans to nationalise British banks.
There was, however, a declaration that Britain would march “forward to increased prosperity, not back to boom and bust”. The reality is that the UK now produces less per head of population than it did five years ago.
Under Tony Blair in 2005 Labour promised to maintain Mr Brown’s prized fiscal rules – borrowing only to invest and keeping net debt stable. Three years later, as Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, battled the forces of financial hell, he was forced to admit he would have to abandon the fiscal rules.
Meanwhile, net debt is soaring – and could hit £1.4 trillion over the next five years according to the government’s own figures.
In 2005 Labour stated that it would “maintain [the] inflation target at two per cent. Last month it was 3.9 per cent.
The party also pledged to eliminate youth unemployment – it is currently running at more than 920,000 among 16-24 year olds
TAX
In the run up to the 1997 election, Mr Brown famously pledged not to increase the base rate or the top rate of income tax for the lifetime of the forthcoming parliament. He did so again in 2001 – and kept the promise both times (although stealthily increasing other taxes to such an extent that Mr Blair’s original claim that New Labour would not put up taxes “at all” rang hollow).
In 2005 the party made the same pledge on income tax – aiming to underpin its third successive victory. However, in 2008 Mr Darling announced a new 45p top rate of tax for those on £150,000, putting this up to 50p in 2009. The new tax rate came into force this month.
Conservatives, moreover, say Labour’s plans for a National Insurance rise from next year (which they would partly block if elected) is a “tax on jobs” and a world away from Labour’s 2005 declaration: “We want a tax regime that supports British business”.
Council tax, which Labour said it was “committed to reform”, and pledged to keep “under control” in 2005, has gone on rising with plans for a property revaluation in England kicked into the long grass.
TRANSPORT
In June 1997, at the start of New Labour’s years in power, John Prescott, the former deputy prime minister, rashly declared: “I will have failed if in five years time there are not ... far fewer journeys by car.” By June 2002, car traffic was up by seven per cent.
Mr Prescott’s comments were not strictly a manifesto pledge – but they are symptomatic of the failure of successive Labour transport secretaries to get to grips with this issue.
In 2005 Labour promised to examine a new high-speed North-South rail link. Plans for the link were published this year – but only from London to Birmingham. Meanwhile, the pledge for major new funding boosts to expand capacity on the M25, the M1 and M6 was formally scrapped by Geoff Hoon last year.
The last manifesto also floated the idea of extending the M6 toll road – but this has not happened.
EDUCATION
Mr Blair began his final term of office with a renewed zeal for major reform of the public services – with education top of his list.
However, literacy and numeracy targets for 11-year-olds, which the 2005 manifesto promised would be met, have not been hit. Nor do all children receive two hours of PE or sport per week, which the document pledged they would do by this year.
In 2005 Labour promised a “nationwide week-long summer residential programme for school students”. Nothing like this has been introduced.
The party also promised a “bigger, better” higher education system with increased public spending. However, about half of Britain’s universities will have their budgets cut this year as the sector becomes one of the first big victims of government savings.
In 2005 Labour’s “aim” was for 50 per cent of young people to go on to higher education by this year – by 2008 the figure was only 39.8 per cent – a rise of 0.6 percentage points since 2000.
HEALTH
The 2010 manifesto promises patients a maximum 18 weeks’ wait for treatment. Laudable – until you remember that the same promise was made in the party’s 2005 manifesto and that for one in 10 patients this target has not been met.
Another great Blair idea – patient choice – saw a pledge that by 2009 all women would be able to choose where they had their baby as well as what sort of pain relief. However, the National Childbirth Trust suggests this is not true for 95 per cent of women.
Neither has Labour been able to do much to meet its plan to reduce health inequalities between rich and poor. 2010 targets in this area for both life expectancy and infant mortality are set to be missed.
Labour’s plan for “comprehensive” out-of-hours service by GPs sounded good – until 90 per cent took up a contract to opt out of such provision.
Even a relatively minor, achievable-sounding pledge, such as the 2005 promise to make fruit and vegetables part of every school meal, has not been met.
CRIME
More officers on the beat – tough action on problem families – a crackdown on anti-social behaviour. The pledges in Labour’s 2010 manifesto would surely be backed by any political party in any democracy.
So would their predecessors from 2005, however, which included a pledge for “historically high numbers of police officers”. Unfortunately, according to MPs, only four out of 43 police forces in England and Wales plan to maintain current staffing levels.
By 2007, Labour said, every offender would be “supervised after release.” Currently those who spend less than a year in jail are not supervised.
Labour also pledged in 2005 to introduce a “non-emergency” telephone service to report crimes which was duly launched the following year using the 101 number – only to lose direct Home Office funding in 2007.
An electronic borders system to track visitors to the UK was promised by 2010 – but will not be fully on-stream until 2014.
FOREIGN AND DEFENCE
In one of the most blatant examples of broken promises, Labour pledged in 2005 to put the European Union Constitution to a referendum in Britain. However, two years later the government forced through the Lisbon Treaty – substantially the same as the Constitution – without a public vote
When UK forces are committed, Labour said in 2005, they will “have the investment, training and strategy they need”. A range of senior military figures has disagreed with Government claims that this is the case, as well as Sir Kevin Tebbit, former permanent secretary to the Ministry of Defence.
