The Labour party fratricidal soap opera isn't relevant: their destruction of the economy is

The last few days have seen the newspapers filled with the carry on's of the internecine warfare in the Labour Party. To most people, struggling to keep their heads above water, the Labour fratricide is pretty irrelevant.

However, from all the verbiage in recent days, one thing does stand out: The fact that in 2006, Gordon Brown was warned that Government spending was out of control.  Restraint was necessary. Note that this was way before the banking crisis and the world recession.  Instead, Mr Brown began a £90 billion spending plan, virtually bankrupting the economy in the process.  The collapse of the banks and global economic disaster, meant that there was no money left to deal with the crisis.  The argument that Labour failed to fix the roof when the sun was shining holds true.

What is fascinating is the 2006 Cabinet document which said : "We have spent all this money and what have we got to show for it".  I remember as a Conservative candidate campaigning under the slogan "Taxes up, but where has all the money gone".  At the time the Tories were mocked.  Who's laughing now? Certainly not the UK Taxpayers' currently paying £120 million a day in interest rates alone - to pay off the debts and deal with Gordon Brown's deficit.

You can read more HERE.

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com

After the Budget dust settles, we learn that Labour's cuts will be more savage than the Thatcher years (in their own words)

After months and months of attacking the Conservatives for planning huge cuts - and promoting fear amongst the electorate -Chancellor Alistair Darling, said today on the BBC, that a Labour Government would make more savage cuts that occurred under Prime Minister Thatcher during the 1980s.

As always, this was a Budget full of smoke and mirrors. Hidden tax hikes, hidden cuts and re-announced measures. It was a Budget, which attempted to get the Government out of a deep hole of its own making and it failed.

Unfortunately, it will hit hard working families in Harlow hard:

• 3p more tax on each litre of petrol;
• 15p more tax on each pack of cigarettes;
• 2p more on each pint of beer, and 10p more on each bottle of wine;
• Higher National Insurance for Harlow's 40,000 workers - an extra tax on jobs, for anyone who earns over £20,000;
• A stealth hike in Income Tax, because the tax bands were frozen instead of rising in line with inflation. At the 20 per cent basic rate, this means that a Harlow taxpayer will lose an extra £48 in income tax this year, while a two-earner couple will be clobbered for an extra £96;

If this were not bad enough, The Budget red book shows that the national debt will soon be £1.4 TRILLION, or £23,114 per head. We will paying back Gordon Brown's debts for generations to come.

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Political Props?

Former Prime Minister John Major has accused Gordon Brown of using the army as political props, after the Prime Minister suddenly flew to Afghanistan, a day after speaking to the Iraq Inquiry. Mr Brown's Afghan visit, came at a time when he was under fire from senior Army personnel. A number of senior members of our armed forces have complained that the Government did not equip our troops properly, when sending them to war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In 2007, in the run-up to the election that never was, Gordon Brown suddenly visited British Troops in Iraq - during the week of the Conservative Party Conference. This effort was seen by many as a party political stunt and roundly condemned at the time. They say that history never repeats itself, yet Mr Brown again, seems determined to exploit our armed forces for party political advantage.

P.S. As I write this, military top brass have made their feelings clear about Mr Brown's failure to equip our troops. You can read about it HERE.

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Gordon Brown Stole Christmas - so the song goes!!!

There is a great Christmas song doing the rounds on YouTube. It can be seen here on Iain Dale´s website.

Green belt future set to be election battleground

Apologies for the lack of postings this week, but I have been moving house. They say it is one of the most stressful things that have ever happened, and it certainly is!

I was interested to read reports in the Daily Telegraph newspapers over the past couple of days about Government plans to build over the green belt.

Sadly, the reports have confirmed my worst fears. Gordon Brown intends to ram through building on our green belt areas, with little consultation.

My main objection to the Government housebuilding plans has been precisely this. Housing targets have been set from the centre. House building (when and where) has been set from the centre. There has been no genuine consultation involving local people and no guarantees of infrastructure funding.

For further information see THIS weblink.

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

The Sun Shines despite the BBC

It has been an eventful few days with the Labour conference in full swing. But the week began quite controversially.

I have to say that I was dismayed by the interview with Andrew Marr and the Prime Minister on the Sunday Breakfast Programme. As regular readers will know, I am no fan of the Labour Party or Gordon Brown. But I thought the BBC questioning of the Prime Minister's medical issues - regarding whether or not he was taking tablets for depression - was intrusive, rude and irrelevant to the issues of the day. Of course the media should ensure that politicians face tough questioning, but this should be based on policies, not on personal matters. Andrew Marr's question should not have happened and he should apologise to Mr Brown.

Having said all the above, I was also disappointed that the Labour Party seems to have turned to their core vote and are basing their attacks on Conservatives on class war, rather than debating policies. Gordon Brown's speech was a shame as it was a missed opportunity for him to set out what he and his party believes.

Harriet Harman's attack on the Sun for deciding to vote Conservative, was misguided and a gift to David Cameron. Not only will her remarks - and those reported of Peter Mandelson - antagonise the newspaper still further, but they also insult the millions of people who read The Sun ever day. Moreover, for a major Union Leader (Unite's Tony Woodley), to tear up the newspaper in front of applauding conference delegates, was crass leftist populism at its worst - it was almost Goebbels like in its imagery. Replayed on Television, the imagery will do more to win over floating voters to the Conservative cause, than any thing the Sun could ever write. If there is one thing that most voters don't like, it is when party's retreat to their core vote and become extreme.

All in all, this is a very bad conference for Labour and another terrible week for Gordon Brown. This should have been a time when the Labour party regrouped and gathered forces in time for the forthcoming election. Instead, they have turned in on themselves, continued plotting against Gordon Brown, without having the courage to actually remove him, and have retreated to their core vote. The end of New Labour was never more certain.

P.S. If you want to read a dossier on Labour's policy failures, click on the Sun page HERE.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Remember the Government's mortgage scheme?

This was the one which was to help hard-pressed families avoid re-possession of their home. It was announced with great fanfare by Gordon Brown some weeks ago. Well, as you will see from the weblink below, just six families have benefited in the whole country!

This is yet another example of the Government making policy on the hoof and just trying to get favourable newspaper headlines, without doing anything of substance.

It explains why their unpopularity has reached record levels. Meanwhile, record re-possessions continue and unemployment rises above 2.1 million.

You can read the weblink article about this in The Guardian, HERE.

How the Labour Party has collapsed

I just read a remarkable article on the Internet. It shows just how deep Labour's decline has become. You can see it HERE.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

After the European Elections

In my last posting, I mentioned the good results the Conservatives had in the elections for Essex County Council. This was repeated in the European Elections, with Conservatives coming top in Harlow and across the Eastern Region in general. Nevertheless, looking at the European results again in the cold light of day, it was clear that there was a big swing against the established parties, in favour of some of the smaller fringe parties. I am not surprised that this has ocurred given the expenses scandal in Parliament, and the anger felt by everyone to some of the abuse of taxpayer's money by some of our more greedy MPs.

The good thing about democracy, and particularly mid-term elections, is that it allows everyone to register a protest and say "enough is enough".I wish, though, the BNP had not had had such a good showing - including winning two Euro-Parliamentary seats in the North of England from Labour. The BNP stand for the politics of hatred and division and must be confronted head-on. The Government's failure to develop a coherent immigration policy, its appeasement of extremist Islamism and its populist rhetoric (remember when Gordon Brown said "British jobs for British workers" - now a BNP election slogan), explains some of the rise in BNP vote.

But it was not just expenses or immigration issues that people were voting about: the broken economy, rising crime, failing public services, and disenchantment with Gordon Brown were all motivating factors. For my part, as Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Harlow, it is my job to persuade the voting public, that the only way to get rid of Gordon Brown and the Labour Government is by voting Conservative. The local and European results were an important step in acheiving that goal.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

The election results - the aftermath

Apologies for not posting yesterday, I was just so knackered from the election shenanigans on Thursday, and didn't get home until 03:00am on Friday morning after a long day's campaigning!

It was a good result for the Conservatives across the country, and especially in Harlow Constituency. We won four seats, taking three from Labour and increasing our majority substantially in the Harlow South East Division, which has been held by Cllr. Eddie Johnson since 2005. In Nazeing & North Weald Division, Cllr Anthony Jackson, got 60% of the vote, with Labour coming fourth. My congratulations go out to Eddie and Anthony, and also Cllr. Guy Mitchinson, Cllr Lee Dangerfield (Harlow West), and Cllr. Mike Garnet (Harlow North).

Despite the excellent result, It was grim to see the BNP poll so many votes. Behind their sharp suits (which were on display at the Count), they exude an air of menace, and I felt a distinct chill, when a BNP activist walked past me in the Latton Bush Centre (where the election count took place). The BNP remind me a little bit of the dementors in Harry Potter. I know that we can no longer treat that party with kid gloves. They have to be confronted head on. We cannot allow the Labour Government's mishandling of the immigration system in this country, to be exploited by the BNP, for their own - (and, what I believe to be) evil - ends. The Conservative policy on immigration is for a proper border police and a quota system, which if explained rationally and sensibly, will be supported by the vast majority of the electorate.

As for the Labour Party, not only were they wiped out politically in Harlow - where only a few years ago, they held every County Seat - and controlled Harlow Council for over fifty years -they now just have one Councillor in Essex. Around Britain, they were similarly rejected by the voters, and now control no County Council. For Labour this was an epic defeat, and could signal their decline into the third party of British politics (being overtaken by the Liberal Democrats). We will find out more when the results for the European Parliament Elections are unveiled on Sunday evening.

Although voters were rightly angered about the expenses scandal, as I have argued before, they are more outraged by Gordon Brown's wrecking of the economy. High debt, high taxes and high unemployment now stalk us like the plague, and every individual and family fears for their economic well-being. Instead of getting to grips with the problem, Government Ministers are squabbling, resigning in hissy fits and refusing to put the country's interests over their own naked self interest. For Caroline Flint, the now ex-Minister of Europe to resign - complaining about Gordon Brown's attitude to women (because she wasn't given a Cabinet post), when twenty four hours earlier, she was on Television, lauding the Prime Minister as the best thingsince sliced bread, gives a perfect illustration as to how morally bankrupt, Labour have become. The fact that the Government won't hold an election, despite overwhelming public clamour is another example. I have no doubt that when an election eventually does come, the public will show their disapproval.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Vote for change today. Vote Conservative

The biggest tragedy about all the feuding within the Labour Party is that the Government are failing to get to grips with the economic catastrophe facing the nation. High debt, high taxes, high unemployment are the three disasters of our times, yet Labour MPs are only concerned with plotting against Gordon Brown. The resignation of four Ministers in over recent days, shows that Labour is putting its own needs before those of the country. We now have a paralysed government, unable to act. No wonder there is such a growing clamour for a General Election.

Please vote today to get rid of Gordon Brown. Its time to show the Labour Government that its time for a General Election. Your vote has never been more important.

You have two votes tomorrow - for the European Parliament and for Essex County Council.

Voting Conservative will give you a chance to tell Mr Brown that you want lower taxes, a lower debt economy, a Referendum on the European Constitution and a value for money County Council. Above all, you will be saying to Gordon Brown, enough is enough.

Please remember, a vote for any other party keeps Mr Brown in Downing Street.

P.S. You might like to see THIS and THIS.

P.P.S - Harlow Constituency Conservative Candidates for Essex County are as follows:

Cllr. Lee Dangerfield - Harlow West

Guy Mitchinson - Harlow West

Cllr. Mike Garnett - Harlow North

Cllr. Eddie Johnson - Harlow South East

Cllr. Anthony Jackson - North Weald & Nazeing

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Now Gordon Brown causes a collapse in housing sales in Harlow and Epping

I have found figures which show a collapse in housing sales across the Harlow and Epping Forest districts. This comes as new Government red tape will push up the cost of moving home in the middle of a recession.

Parliamentary Questions have revealed that across the country the number of housing sales in 2008 halved compared to 2006 levels. The latest national figures so far for 2009 show even sharper falls have happened this year. In Harlow there were 924 housing sales in 2008, compared to 1,929 in 2006 a fall of 52 per cent. In the neighbouring Epping Forest district - which includes the Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon and Sheering which forms part of the Harlow parliamentary constituency.

There were 1,410 housing sales in 2008 compared to 3,230 in 2006 - a fall of 56 per cent.Yet new Whitehall rules will make it even harder for home buyers and sellers. The Governments Land Registry is hiking fees in July to register a new home or to buy an official property search.

Ironically, the Land Registry are blaming the recession for forcing them to put up prices as housing transactions have fallen so much, cutting their income. The increases in the costs of official searches will in turn increase the cost of the already expensive Home Information Packs (HIPs). This comes as new HIP rules came into effect in April which will further hinder sellers from putting their homes onto the market.

That is why, I am glad that Conservatives are calling on Government Ministers to use their emergency powers to suspend HIPs immediately, and then abolish them. They are also calling for the stamp duty threshold for first-time buyers to be raised to 250,000, taking nine out of ten first-time buyers out of stamp duty altogether, giving an important boost to housing market.

The new figures expose how Gordon Browns recession has sent the Harlow and Epping Forest housing market into freefall. It is incredibly short-sighted for Labour Ministers to increase red tape on the housing market in the middle of a recession and make it even worse. We need action to revive the market, by reducing moving costs for home owners and giving extra help to help first-time buyers get onto the housing ladder.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Gordon Brown's sleight of hand

One of many reasons why this Government is so unpopular is Gordon Brown's sleight of hand. You know what I mean - the nifty little tricks that imply that the Government is helping someone or something -when in reality they are doing the precise opposite.

I was reminded of this with the recent Budget. For months now, I have been working with Harlow Bingo Club in a campaign to remove VAT from Bingo participation fees. The Bingo Club is a community Institution, has 42,000 members in Harlow, and is used by young and old alike. This VAT tax was crucifying the Bingo industry, leading to the closures of clubs up and down the country.

So, it was good news that, after much lobbying, including a local petition, Chancellor Alistair Darling, announced in the Budget, a removal of the VAT for Bingo - or so we thought. In a classic case of Gordon Brown trickery, the Treasury have instead increased Bingo duty, from 15% to 22%. The net effect of this means that Bingo will have to pay millions of pounds more to the Taxman, than they were doing under the old unfair VAT system. This is because Bingo duty affects revenue from all games of duty, whereas the reduction in VAT benefits less than one-third of revenue from Bingo. What is even worse, is that this change has been imposed without prior indication of consultation and was brought in under the cover of removing the discredited VAT tax.

The impact of this new tax rate could have dire consequences for clubs like Harlow and will impact on the thousands and thousands who enjoy the game, not forgetting the many who are employed by Bingo Clubs.

I have said it before and I say it again here, I am not a gambler, have no love for Casinos and the like, but fundamentally believe that Bingo Clubs like the one in Harlow, are wonderful places, in the heart of the community. Loved by staff and customers alike, they provide an important social amenity, which should not be discounted. What Gordon Brown has done, is more than a sly-trick - its unforgivable.

By Rob Halfon ~ Working hard for Harlow, Hastingwood, Nazeing, Roydon & Sheering. http//roberthalfon.blogspot.com

Cutting taxes for Savers

I mentioned in my blog posting last night that when Shadow Cabinet Minister Theresa Villiers MP, visits Harlow this morning, she will also be making a major announcement on Savings on behalf of David Cameron and the Conservative Shadow Cabinet. If you click on the weblink below, it will give you further details:

Conservative Press Release on Savings

This is good news. It seems so wrong that those who saved all their lives are now seeing their investment vanishing - because of Gordon Brown's mismanagement of the economy and drowning the country in debt.