So, the 'Daily Telegraph' is rejoicing in bringing down a senior member of the Labour Party! Angela Rayner, the Deputy Leader of that party (though that title is more honorary than meaningful) made a mistake which has cost her dear. Buying a house or a flat, it is not clear, in Hove, on the south coast, she made use of legal arrangements to avoid £40,000 tax on her home.
Now MPs have certain rights and benefits when buying homes but dodging tax is not one of them. However, there are multi ways in which tax can be legally avoided, just ask Nigel Farage as he makes use of them all. It is one of the reasons the people's trust in politicians is low, the ability to legally take MPs and Lords benefits, sometimes worth a great deal, while cutting back benefits and payments to the general population.
Angela hails from Manchester, a 'working class' town in the north of England. The history is one of heavy industrial manufacturing, weaving and Victorian 'back to back' housing that soon deteriorated into slums. The years since the war have seen great changes and today tall glass buildings, many of absurd yet fashionable shape, tower over the city and Manchester has become of of the great cities of the north of England.
Angela has bought her house in Manchester, and this one in Hove far away, she claimed, was to benefit her disabled son in the future. Hmmm. Whatever, there is no reason she should not buy another house if she has the cash, Jeremy Hunt had several flats earning him vast amounts which he forgot he had, Farage has dodged tax by dodgy dealings on his four houses, that is four in England, and other Tories and many politicians have made use of several homes for income, so why not Angela?
However, the 'Daily Telegraph' has noted something was amiss. The tax dodge went beyond what was expected of a minister, and a witch-hunt ensued. Ignoring the dubious owners of the main stream press, the paper harassed Angela until she fell. As deputy leader and as the only truly 'working class' member of the cabinet she allowed Labour to keep up the pretence it cared for the workers. Now she has gone their middle class, better educated, and far from working class cabinet will look even further away from the man in the streets looking at Farage's Reform Party.
There is the problem, in England the 'working class' have been told the lie that asylum seekers have it easy, get 5 star hotels, they don't, the use of the gym, they don't, good money each wee, £48 at most, and houses when they ask for one, they don't. However, the lie is believed, facts do not trump emotion, and many are ready to wave flags and yell at hotels because they believe the lie and now have a crowd to belong to. We all need a tribe to belong to, some where that gives us a reason for living and enables us to feel wanted.
For 14 years the Conservative Party opposed this very thing. By seeking to benefit the already rich, by massively increasing the cost of living, gas, electric, water and supermarkets, by pointing at 'migrants,' they avoided being held to account. Their corruption, £37 billion on Test and Trace alone, has not been returned, the PPE scandal has not found anyone guilty of crime, as yet, and borrowed money has disappeared from view, yet the Conservative paper, leads a witch-hunt on Angela?
Angela was no hero to the workers. She, with a disabled son voted to lower disabled money, indeed voted as the government ordered and at no time publicly opposed their grasping desires. She happily took financial gifts from Lord Ali, and maybe others, and while gaining a good position, a good salary, and a good future, could possibly have even led this feeble Labour Party one day. Now she will spend time in the background, forever tarnished with tax dodging.
A week is a long time in politics.
Now, can someone do similar with Trump?
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