If there is one thing war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza strip has thrown up about British politics, it is the fact that the world’s oldest democracy cares more for then loyalty optics rather than standing on the side of humanity. Ironically, the United States of America and Britain are the strongest supporters (one cannot say allies) of Israel. And it does not take any expert in international politics, especially as it affects Israel and Britain, to know that Britain’s reluctance to call for outright ceasefire was just to be able to continue to supply arms to Israel.
Beyond the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza, the United Kingdom is facing its own crisis at home, both political and economic. A survey recently showed that British people have never been this unhappy due to economic challenges they are facing. And nothing illustrates this more than the recent increase in service charges payable on houses that had hitherto been described as “affordable”. A report in Guardian indicated that some of the country’s biggest housing providers have increased annual service charges by thousands of pounds, plunging residents into financial issued they did not plan for.
The residents who bought shared-ownership properties built as affordable homes were said to have been given bills in recent times that indicated more than 40% increase. The problem now is that some of them are unable to sell the properties having now been encumbered with “extortionate” charges with the belief that more increase in service charges might be in the offing in the very near future. And now, not less than a 1,000 people across the country are now threatening to refuse to pay the new service charges.
A member of the Social Housing Action Campaign, Suzanne Muna, said: “These are extortionate demands beyond anything which seems reasonable, and bear no resemblance to the services provided. There is widespread service-charge abuse. “Residents can’t move because potential buyers are not going to want to buy properties with these service charges.”
Clive Betts a Labour Member of the Parliament and chair of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities committee, lamented that people in these so-called “affordable homes” are facing what he called “outrageous” demands.
“There is absolutely no clarity on what people are being charged for,” he said. “These are not affordable homes and there is a lack of proper advice about shared ownership.”
Beyond the economic meltdown many Britons are facing, things are not looking northwards in the political front with the hierarchy of Tories who are in power do not seem to be too comfortable with the ‘Indian Boy’ who is serving as the Prime Minister and if feelers are anything to go by, they will be getting rid of Rishi Sunak as the head of the Conservative Party.
Members of Parliament are gone for the Easter holidays. Naturally, this will give Sunak a breathing space with the rumour mill agog of plans to oust him before the May 2nd 2024 general elections. However, that election has now been postponed till November and that might keep Sir Brady Graham, the chair of the 1922 Committee, busy.
Any move to remove a Conservative Party leader is usually is governed by the 1922 Committee which is a group of backbench Tory MPs. Any Conservative Members of Parliament who are tired of their party leader and want a new leader will have to write to the head of the 1922 Committee saying they have no confidence in the incumbent. Under party rules, 15% of Tory MPs need to write to Sir Graham in order to trigger a vote. As things stand, there are 348 MPs, meaning the 15% threshold sits at 53.
No one can say how many letters Sir Graham has received in the last few months since rumours started concerning the possible removal of the Prime Minister.
While the British people have not fared well under the Tories, the usual complaints have always been that the Labour Party government that came before them had ruined the British economy. It does not matter of the Tories have been in power for almost two decades. More than any time in history, the British people have to pay more for virtually every utility and this has triggered Labour unrest in the countries with many trade or labour unions lamenting that their salaries and wages can simply no longer take care of their basic needs.
Doctors, nurses, transporters and so on are asking for pay rise but the government keeps saying there is no money. Yet, those in government, especially Members of Parliament are getting as much as five per cent from time to time.
As November draws near, the question is whether the British people might be able to turn to the Labour Party to save them from the Tories and offer them a new lease of life both in economic and political fronts. In Kier Stammer, the Labour Party has a very good potential candidate for the Prime Minister’s office, but he might not be an option too going by his preferences. The Labour party is having serious internal issues like racism within the party and these have simply refused to go away. Stammer is known for his staunch pro-Jew stand and to him, only Jews suffer racism and not black or people of colour. And this is very incorrect. Just recently, some Labour MPs had raised issues over the dominant use of the union jack flag in Stammer’s election campaign materials amid fears that this may alienate ethnic minority voters and others.
These concerns were raised at recent meetings of the party’s black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) group at Westminster and also by London members of the parliamentary Labour party.
Starmer’s chief of staff, Sue Grey, and chief whip, Alan Campbell, were specifically told at a meeting of parliamentarians from ethnic minority backgrounds about how the sly emphasis on dominance of ‘briticocentricism’ in Stammer’s campaigns would not help the cause of the party especially from those who see Stammer as being too pro-Britain. A member of parliament was said to have described free post campaign material as being “plastered with union jacks”.
As the British people reek under the yoke of economic downturn and political uncertainty, the two main parties also seem to have more than enough internal wrangling to deal with. Since politics will always take precedence over any other thing, the people will always be the loser. Head or tail.