The dead cat bounce

People really are gullible. The Times has just broke the story that Labour have pulled back five points on the Tories, according to the latest Populus poll.

Brown is seen “by voters as best able to handle the recession.” Presumably they have been taken in by Brown’s self-casting as a new FDR, as a saviour of the global economy. He is not.

Labour’s proposals of tax cuts are likely to be followed by other political parties. They are a good idea; giving people back some of their hard-earned cash might encourage them to spend more or it.

But – and this is key – with Britian already carrying the greatest debt percentage of any developed country, neither the Conservatives or the Liberal Democrats propose to cut tax by increasing Government borrowing. Sound like a good idea?

Brown is playing the ‘I was there when we got into this mess, so I’ll be here to get us out’ card. It is a rather limp bluff. Brown has no experience of power during a recession, just experience of deregulating the Bank of England and, by extension, facilitating wild lending and unsustainable growth.

People will eventually see through Brown, sinister smile or not. While not the sole contributor to our financial woes, he was certainly implicit in the “age of recklessness”.

Shadow Chancellor George Osbourne, in today’s Financial Times, argues that were we increase public debt for short term tax relief, “Britain’s international credibility will be further imperiled, future generations will be burdened with even more debt and a recovery would be threatened by the prospect of large tax rises. We would be sowing the seeds of the next crisis.“

The argument of incumbency or precedent should not be an acceptable one. If it held any sway, Barack Obama would still be an unknown Illinois senator. Alistair Darling would still be in charge of our roads. And, to misquote Mr Cameron, “Gordon Brown would be Prime Minister forever.” Shiver.