BORIS Johnson has been accused again of using Thatcherite tactics to let unemployment rates rise. .
The SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford accused the Prime Minister of making a “deliberate decision to let unemployment soar like Thatcher did in the 1980s” during Prime Minister’s Questions.
The MP reiterated the importance of introducing a better financial scheme for those struggling during the pandemic, insisting an 80 per cent wage subsidy similar to that offered with the furlough scheme was needed.
He said: “Behind closed doors, Boris Johnson is complaining that he can’t get by on his £150,000 salary yet, he arrogantly expects workers to get by on a fraction of that when Tory cuts sink in.
“Yesterday we saw this total disregard for the people in Greater Manchester, a Tory attitude that people in Scotland and all too familiar with
"Millions of families are struggling to get by and this Tory government wants to cut their incomes in the middle of a pandemic.
“It is clear that the Prime Minister has made a deliberate decision to let unemployment soar just like Thatcher did in the 1980s.”
Mr Johnson dismissed Blackford’s statements, saying it had “no relation to the facts or the reality of what the government is doing”.
He added that the government had made a “£200 billion pound investment in jobs and livelihoods” and said: “What we also are engaged in and what we will continue to deliver is a colossal investment in education, in health, in housing and infrastructure that will deliver jobs and growth throughout this United Kingdom for a generation.”
Sir Keir Starmer attacked the Prime Minister over the lockdown strategy which has led to political rows in the North of England.
The Labour leader urged Mr Johnson to end his “corrosive” approach which results in “local battles” over funding, and instead support a Labour motion for a national criteria.
He said: “This is a Prime Minister who can pay £7,000 a day for consultants on track and trace, which isn’t working, can find £43 million for a garden bridge that was never built but he can’t find £5 million for the people of Greater Manchester.
“I really think the Prime Minister has crossed a Rubicon here, not just with the miserly way that he’s treated Greater Manchester, but the grubby take it or leave it way these local deals are being done.
“It’s corrosive to public trust to pit region against region, mayor against mayor, council against council, asking them to trade away their businesses and jobs.”
Mr Johnson said he is “proud” of the Government’s support to the entire country, adding: “I think it’s the height of absurdity that he stands up and attacks the economic consequences of the measures we’re obliged to take across some parts of the country when he wants to turn the lights out with a full national lockdown.
“That was his policy last week, wasn’t it? Perhaps he could confirm that’s still his policy.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel