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| Osborne suffers a blast from Balls – with only Vince Cable to defend him | Osborne suffers a blast from Balls – with only Vince Cable to defend him |
| (14 days later) | |
| As if he didn't have enough to worry about after tepid Tory verdicts on his fourth budget, George Osborne had to put up with a spitting-distance rant from Ed Balls on Thursday. It was one that included the painful claim that the Treasury has accidentally created a sort of reverse bedroom tax for the second home crowd, instantly dubbed the "spare home subsidy". Balls was as happy as a pig in mud, at least to begin with. | As if he didn't have enough to worry about after tepid Tory verdicts on his fourth budget, George Osborne had to put up with a spitting-distance rant from Ed Balls on Thursday. It was one that included the painful claim that the Treasury has accidentally created a sort of reverse bedroom tax for the second home crowd, instantly dubbed the "spare home subsidy". Balls was as happy as a pig in mud, at least to begin with. |
| It was worse for the chancellor. He had to sit through his Labour shadow's tirade on day two of the budget debate without being able to retaliate, because he spoke on Wednesday. Instead of the case for the defence being mounted by one of the Treasury team's Tory pit bulls, parliamentary protocol dictated that the counter-speech be made by gentle Vince Cable, the notorious closet Keynesian. | It was worse for the chancellor. He had to sit through his Labour shadow's tirade on day two of the budget debate without being able to retaliate, because he spoke on Wednesday. Instead of the case for the defence being mounted by one of the Treasury team's Tory pit bulls, parliamentary protocol dictated that the counter-speech be made by gentle Vince Cable, the notorious closet Keynesian. |
| This was like Brutus being defended by Mark Antony (we know what happened to him), Good Queen Bess helping Mary Queen of Scots with her headache ("off with it"), or Gordon Brown supporting Tony Blair to the hilt (both blades) whenever he was in trouble. Cable had been on manoeuvres for a more expansionary budget for weeks, but mostly in dark corners like the TV news channels and the New Statesman. | This was like Brutus being defended by Mark Antony (we know what happened to him), Good Queen Bess helping Mary Queen of Scots with her headache ("off with it"), or Gordon Brown supporting Tony Blair to the hilt (both blades) whenever he was in trouble. Cable had been on manoeuvres for a more expansionary budget for weeks, but mostly in dark corners like the TV news channels and the New Statesman. |
| Balls's and Cable's names had been linked publicly to a love that dare not speak its name: demand management of the economy, as advocated by Lord Keynes! It had been outlawed in Margaret Thatcher's day, teachers forbidden to proselytise for public spending during lessons. How could Vince, former Keynesian advisor to the late John Smith, be loyal to his intellectual roots and to Boy George, the coalition cellmate at his side? | Balls's and Cable's names had been linked publicly to a love that dare not speak its name: demand management of the economy, as advocated by Lord Keynes! It had been outlawed in Margaret Thatcher's day, teachers forbidden to proselytise for public spending during lessons. How could Vince, former Keynesian advisor to the late John Smith, be loyal to his intellectual roots and to Boy George, the coalition cellmate at his side? |
| Not for the first time, Dr Vince played his most irritating secret weapon: he was honest. Whenever a Labour MP rose to taunt him about his pre-election warnings against self-defeating austerity or the dismal state of public finances three years into coalition, he would say: "Yes, it is disappointing, but we are doing all we can to restore manufacturing and other supply-side reforms neglected by Labour." | Not for the first time, Dr Vince played his most irritating secret weapon: he was honest. Whenever a Labour MP rose to taunt him about his pre-election warnings against self-defeating austerity or the dismal state of public finances three years into coalition, he would say: "Yes, it is disappointing, but we are doing all we can to restore manufacturing and other supply-side reforms neglected by Labour." |
| He is a harder target to whack than Osborne because everyone knows Vince was wearing an itchy hair T-shirt throughout the Banks-Brown-Balls credit boom – even trainee MPs on Labour's front bench whose mums have told them about it. So this was Supply-Side Vince on display. But what about Demand-Side Vince, who used to warn against squeezing the economy too fast or far? | He is a harder target to whack than Osborne because everyone knows Vince was wearing an itchy hair T-shirt throughout the Banks-Brown-Balls credit boom – even trainee MPs on Labour's front bench whose mums have told them about it. So this was Supply-Side Vince on display. But what about Demand-Side Vince, who used to warn against squeezing the economy too fast or far? |
| Well-briefed to restore prestige lost in December's pre-budget stumble, Balls tore noisily into Osborne's debt spiral and Vince's apostasy. Did he have the courage to repent? "Long, contorted and fudge essays in the New Statesman just will not do," Balls thundered as he denounced a "Groundhog Day budget" – as bad as the last one. Prissy Tory challenges ("all very amusing, but …") were swatted aside, along with any attempt to make Britain's economic glass look half full. It was more than empty, it was smashed. Under the coalition, Britain had become the new North Korea, with smaller allowances of grass and no charismatic leadership. | Well-briefed to restore prestige lost in December's pre-budget stumble, Balls tore noisily into Osborne's debt spiral and Vince's apostasy. Did he have the courage to repent? "Long, contorted and fudge essays in the New Statesman just will not do," Balls thundered as he denounced a "Groundhog Day budget" – as bad as the last one. Prissy Tory challenges ("all very amusing, but …") were swatted aside, along with any attempt to make Britain's economic glass look half full. It was more than empty, it was smashed. Under the coalition, Britain had become the new North Korea, with smaller allowances of grass and no charismatic leadership. |
| Does the budget offer the rich a second home subsidy? "Yes or no, yes or no, yes or no?" roared Balls. Ministers weren't quite sure and sat like dummies. It was a great moment. But Cable, a veteran of Ballsian abuse before 2010, was biding his time. The shadow chancellor has form; he's like Basil Fawlty saying "Don't mention the war," Vince observed mildly. He wants to discuss the economic crash, but not the financial crash that preceded it because his government allowed it to happen. | Does the budget offer the rich a second home subsidy? "Yes or no, yes or no, yes or no?" roared Balls. Ministers weren't quite sure and sat like dummies. It was a great moment. But Cable, a veteran of Ballsian abuse before 2010, was biding his time. The shadow chancellor has form; he's like Basil Fawlty saying "Don't mention the war," Vince observed mildly. He wants to discuss the economic crash, but not the financial crash that preceded it because his government allowed it to happen. |
| Vince bored away about exports to China (100% up), industrial investment, apprenticeships – all neglected by Labour. Yes, things were difficult, but they were worse everywhere and Labour's Plan B – all seven Plans B – would make things worse. Extra borrowing? Well, yes, the coalition had done some: "As someone brought up in the Keynesian tradition I think it rather creditable that the chancellor has responded to a slowdown in the economy by allowing countercyclical stabilisers to apply." | Vince bored away about exports to China (100% up), industrial investment, apprenticeships – all neglected by Labour. Yes, things were difficult, but they were worse everywhere and Labour's Plan B – all seven Plans B – would make things worse. Extra borrowing? Well, yes, the coalition had done some: "As someone brought up in the Keynesian tradition I think it rather creditable that the chancellor has responded to a slowdown in the economy by allowing countercyclical stabilisers to apply." |
| It may not be Plan B, but it is certainly not 2010's Plan A. Has anyone told George? | It may not be Plan B, but it is certainly not 2010's Plan A. Has anyone told George? |
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