‘They've made our economy the slowest growing in the G7’, says David Lammy as he slams 12 years of Tory rule
20 November 2022, 21:36 | Updated: 20 November 2022, 21:38
Disappointed by the Autumn Statement, an emotional David Lammy let out an impassioned rant on LBC, where he pointed a finger of blame at the Tories for the ‘deep scars’ etched in Britain.
In his moving monologue, David Lammy made clear that he feels the government are content with making the poorest and most vulnerable in our nation shoulder the heaviest burdens of the cost-of-living crisis.
“Warm hubs are being set up across the nation,” said David Lammy.
“What’s going on in Britain in 2022 if you’ve got to set up warm hubs so that people don’t freeze to death!”
The poignant comment was nestled within a 15-minute-long take down of 12 years of Tory leadership.
David Lammy’s criticism of the current Conservative government - and its Tory predecessors - spread far and wide, ranging from anger at the shrinking economy, to the squeeze on the pockets of working people, and the “collapse” of certain NHS services.
“Hunt outlined very difficult times ahead as he described [in his Autumn Statement],” began David Lammy.
“With a package of tax rises of around £4,000 a year per family, which is the highest tax burden in our country’s history outside of the Second World War!”
There's no doubt that the LBC presenter is well-versed in the world of politics, having been a politician since 2000. The Labour MP for Tottenham currently serves as the Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs.
With his role in the opposition, it comes as no surprise that Mr Lammy would be keen to take down the Conservative's management of the nation.
While dissecting the failings - as he saw them to be - of the Autumn Statement, David Lammy raised his confusion as to why Jeremy Hunt had decided against revoking non-domicile tax status.
“They refused to change position for people who should be paying tax in this country when they come from abroad,” said David Lammy.
For those who have criticised the budget in the days since its unveiling, overturning non-domicile status would have served as a redeemable quality for the cabinet.
READ MORE: The winners and losers of today's autumn budget announced by Jeremy Hunt
The politician-turned-presenter then went on to state that the Conservative party always rush to blame the gloomy economic landscape on international events, like the COVID-19 pandemic, Brexit, or Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“They claimed that this was a recession made in Russia,” said David Lammy.
For David Lammy, “the doom and gloom [Autumn] Statement” encapsulates the past twelve years of Tory economics, which the politician deemed, “A financial regime hell-bent on cutting public services and increasing taxes on working people.”
“The result is that our economy is now in an economic doom loop,” said David Lammy.
The presenter argued that the Tories' approach - or the “anti-growth coalition” as David Lammy called them - to the economy has led to low growth, so low that the prospect of improvement does not at present seem within reach.
“This low growth leads to higher taxes, lower investment, and squeezed wages,” said David Lammy.
Angered by the Tories’ handling of the past 12 years, David Lammy began detailing the harrowing state of many household chequebooks and the “decimation” of the nation’s public services.
“[Many working people] can’t afford things because their pay packets at the end of the week just seem to be getting smaller and smaller,” continued David Lammy.
READ MORE: Single father ‘struggling’ amid cost of living crisis with 14p left for next three weeks
To drive home his belief that 12 years of Tory rule has destroyed the nation’s health, David Lammy said: “the effect of these 12 years has left deep scars on our society, look at our health system, spending has been slashed, and Hunt removed the bursary that supported nursing students.”
David Lammy acknowledged that Hunt's removal of the nursing bursary had left many unable to become nurses, which in turn left the nation with, "greater numbers of sick people with fewer people to care for them."
“The NHS was under strain before the pandemic even hit UK shores,” said David Lammy.
The presenter went on to argue that the Tories have widened the wealth gap in our society and that, “successive Tory MP’s have continued to support inequality.”
To drive home how fragile our services are, David Lammy said that: “110,000 staff vacancies, collapse of ambulance services, record high waiting lists.”
