Lord Falconer's recent assessment of the government has been met with criticism from Labour voters who say it fails to acknowledge the depth of feeling on current issues. In a letter responding to the Labour peer's comments, Sue Borges of Stowmarket, Suffolk, described his advice as “same-again” and “tired”.
Borges noted that after the last general election, Keir Starmer promised hope and that the “broadest shoulders” would help turn around the country after 14 years of Conservative rule. However, she argued that axing disabled people's benefits and removing heating allowances from pensioners did not fit that definition, calling them “large fuck-ups” in just a few weeks.
She also criticised the government's pro-Israel, pro-US foreign policy agenda, particularly as a “terrible genocide unfolds in Gaza”, describing it as “deeply unpalatable”. Borges said the public feel “duped and insulted” by what she termed a “blue” Labour government with an “unashamedly authoritarian assault on democracy”.
While welcoming the 10-year NHS plan, Borges argued that the failure to tax the super-rich and environmentally catastrophic planning reforms outweighed any positive steps. She urged the government to show less “tone-deafness” and failure to read the room, and more consultation and humanity.
