Say it with figures

[senji]

In our first term we banished the demons of […] mass unemployment …

Tony Blair, in "The Labour Party manifesto 2005"

Comments

[atreic]

Humour us morons and remind me when labour first got elected?

But you're not argueing about the outside loos, are you? :-p

[senji]

I didn't know that schools still had outside loos in 1997, however a quick google produces this page which suggests that maybe I should be arguing about that…

[senji]

Oh, and I edited the dates in for you, as well :)

[cartesiandaemon]

I think it was Clinton who used the third derivative: "The rate of increase of inflation is going down." ie. things are getting worse faster than before.

[senji]

However even further derivatives appear to be unhelpful to the Labour cause here.

[senji]

Inflation is already a first derivative.

[khendon]

I think that's a little unfair.

There's nothing to indicate that under the Tories the cyclical pattern wouldn't have continued, rather than a steady downward fall. Just because the Tories happened to leave on a downward stint in the graph doesn't mean it would have carried on in that direction.

[senji]

This is indeed true; it would be fair for them to say "maintained the downwards trend in unemployment figures" or similar. "banished the demon of mass unemployment" is sheer hyperbole though.

generally caused

[ewx]

You don't think spiralling oil prices had anything to do with them, then?

[requiem_17_23]

Redefinition of unemployment one factor.

Independent central bank another! That turns a destabilising force on the economy (stupid politicians messing up interest rates) into a damping term on the economic cycle (conservative bankers working to keep growth steady and inflation low). Best thing Labour have ever done for the country, except possibly founding the NHS.

Independent central bank

[mooism]

Labour actually opposed this during the 1997 election campaign. I remember listening to a radio phone-in the week after that election, a caller was complaining that he wouldn’t have voted Labour if they’d said they’d make it independent.

It was in some ways a refinement of the previous chancellor’s policy. Kenneth Clarke instituted a schedule of monthly meetings between himself and the governor of the Bank of England, to decide on interest rate changes.

[ilanin]

Including founding the NHS, which was actually a mistake, not that I'm supposed to say that out loud, so I'll hide now.