Comments on: The biggest back to work scheme since the 30s? A history lesson for the PM

By: Laurence Turner

Laurence Turner — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 11:11:33 +0000

Cameron claimed at #pmqs he's introducing biggest job creation programme 'since the 1930s' – but got the history wrong http://t.co/7K7P9Oe9

By: Noxi

Noxi — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 23:52:07 +0000

RT @myinfamy: Biggest back to work scheme since the 30s? A history lesson for our PM http://bit.ly/fEUH4n #ConDemNation

By: FDR

FDR — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 12:30:32 +0000

@ Stephen W; further to my previous comment, it also seems that the Coalition are mistaken in their comparison, since FDR relied on expansionary macroeconomic policies to create jobs for people, whereas the Coalition believe that recalibrating existing state welfare policies will remove barriers in the labour market that are stopping the unemployed getting into work. They seem to hold this view regardless of the fact that there aren’t nearly enough job vacancies for the unemployed to take, however much the welfare system bullies them into taking whatever’s on offer.

By: FDR

FDR — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 12:22:14 +0000

@ Stephen W. I do not think that is a fair reading of the article. The government brought the 1930s into it, presumably because THEY are thinking about FDR’s policies as their precedent, and they (rightly or wrongly) think that they were effective. They do think they live in the West Wing, after all. In Britain, however, it was an article of political faith that nothing could really be done about unemployment. There are legitimate questions to be asked about whether what the US attempted in the 30s was effective, consistent, or Keynsian in the postwar sense. But at least, at times, FDR allowed himself to be seen to be trying. The whole political logic underpinning the National Government was that it would be financially irresponsible to even TRY to create jobs for people. That political logic is depressingly familiar.

By: Stephen W

Stephen W — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 10:51:30 +0000

I’m sorry, that was slightly rude. Let me rephrase myself.

The article is making a comparison between the National Government and FDR in analogy to the two suggested alternatives to responding to the current deficit and recovery, especially in terms of combating unemployment.

This is relevant because these bear rough philosophical comparison to the suggested Labour and Coalition strategies. No-one who is not stark crazy, however, is suggesting Stalinist slave dictatorship as a further credible option, thus rendering your comparison nonsensical and totally invalid.

By: Stephen W

Stephen W — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 09:44:52 +0000

Wow, you’re right. The National Govermment and Stalinist Russia are indeed comparable. Thanks dumbass.

By: Bodva

Bodva — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 18:02:13 +0000

Do you realise that throughout the Great Depression unemployment was lower in the USSR than in UK?

The National Government’s brilliant policies cannot have been that brilliant then. Nor Stalin’s that useless.

By: Tom Usher

Tom Usher — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:47:19 +0000

RT @leftfootfwd: The biggest back to work scheme since the 30s? A history lesson for the PM: http://bit.ly/fEUH4n by @GreggMcClymont #PMQs

By: Stephen W

Stephen W — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:59:05 +0000

@FDR

That’s fair enough. The government obviously displayed a touch of historical ignorance as there were no major work programs in the 1930’s. That is true.

But then the writer goes on to spend half the article just slagging off the national government and by analogy the current Coalition. Pointing out that FDR’s more Keynesian policies were not actually noticeably more effective than the National Government’s less Keynesian policies is reasonable if the supposed brilliance of FDR and supposed incompetence of the National Government is being used as a stick to beat the current government.

By: Nick Robertson

Nick Robertson — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 01:35:02 +0000

RT @leftfootfwd: The biggest back to work scheme since the 30s? A history lesson for the PM: http://bit.ly/fEUH4n by @GreggMcClymont #PMQs