In honour of today’s UK General Election (for which polling stations across the country have just opened), I will list some of Tony Blair’s achievements in office, and the manifesto commitments (from 2001) that relate to them.
- 272% increase in university tuition fees through ‘top-up’ fees system (2001 manifesto: ‘we will not introduce ‘top-up’ fees and have legislated to prevent them’)
- 1 in 3 children in England leave primary school unable to read, write and add up properly (2001 manifesto: ‘Poor education is a cruel injustice… primary schools are achieving their best results ever’)
- Rising tide of violence, drug use and general disruption in schools, with headteachers left powerless to do anything about it thanks to ‘social inclusion’ rules (2001 manifesto: ‘We will continue to ensure that headteachers have the powers they need to tackle disruption and unacceptable behaviour in schools’)
- Billions of pounds and hundreds of valuable staff wasted on NHS Direct (NHS 24 here in Scotland) CALL CENTRES! (2001 manifesto: ‘nurses… will be given new enhanced roles’)
- Refusal to allow wiretap evidence in court despite legal experts and human rights groups arguing that it is preferable to the (illegal, under human rights law) detention without trial of so-called ‘terror suspects’ (2001 manifesto:‘reform rules of evidence to simplify trials and bring the guilty to justice’)
- Don’t have a manifesto quote for this one, but last but not least eight wars in nine years since Blair took power in 1997
I don’t favour any party, but I am against Tony Blair and his cronies. If you’re one of the (apparently) 33% of people who is leaving it to the last minute to make up your mind, I hope that I (with the help of the links in this article) can be of service.
See Also:
- Compare your views to those of candidates standing in your constituency (including your current MP)
- Dump Blair
- Find out the best way to get rid of Tony’s Cronies in your constituency
EDIT: I’ve not got anything major planned for tomorrow so I’ll be staying up overnight to watch the results as they happen. If you’re doing the same you are welcome to download and print a list of expected result times for important constituencies such as those of Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet Ministers. [file now removed since the election is over, reference to file remains for article continuity]