Will the daily spin deliver for poor people?
Trains, planes and automobiles, daily spin and hourly promises… What is it all about? Well according to the British political leaders – Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg, it’s their way of winning the 2010 UK General Election.
The prospective soon-to-be Prime Ministers began their campaigns by attempting to appeal to three types of electors:
- Labour (Gordon Brown) – the simple supermarket workers who eat in staff canteens,
- Conservative (David Cameron) the generic indefinable class that are neither rich nor poor, black nor white, but all embracing committed individuals who obey the law and pay taxes,
- And Liberal Democrat (Nick Clegg), the underdogs for whom it’s about convincing the prevaricators
For many of the world’s poorest the UK’s general election is about which of the three parties will best deliver on aid, debt relief and making the global economy work for them. As the world’s fourth largest aid donor international development is far from an insignificant election issue.
On Sunday April 18th all three leaders will take part in a live debate where they will have the opportunity to present their respective positions on global poverty. All have pledged to legally bind the government’s commitment to aid.
Whether the spin becomes reality remains to be seen…
Comments
Just months after we experienced unusually cold temperatures all around the globe many are bringing our climate change back into question, especially now that we are experiencing record highs around the world. Those on either side of the argument can change our climate information to reveal whatever point they are trying to make, but many fail to realize that climate and environment are not the same and do sometimes have an effect on the other but other times don’t. If individuals can reduce damaging our environment now they should rather than taking out payday cash advances to fix it after it is worse.
International development is so very far down the election agenda that it scarcely even registers in traditional media coverage. In a debate dominated by the recession, with parties variously messaging: we’ll look after you, cut waste, and they’re not telling you it’s doomsday; spending money on people in a faraway country doesn’t sit easily in anyone’s story.
Forgetting the poor while arguing about the deficit is not just an election pursuit, it raises the worrying question of how international development will fare following the economic downturn. Although Progressio’s aim is economic and environmental sustainability in the countries where it works, it must be dependent on continuing economic growth for it’s future.
Whether there’s a Conservative win or no overall majority on 6 May, it’s likely the three main parties will continue their argument about how to restore economic growth.
Some might say that’s old hat. Sustainability: economic as well as environmental – on a grand scale – is a far better idea. The really interesting question is what that would look like. And would it be painful getting there?
Clare Jeffery
Progressio contributor