The "I Can't Forgive the LibDems" soundbite

You sometimes hear "I can't forgive the LibDems for propping up the Tories".

This is odd, because thanks to the LibDems being part of the Government, the austerity cuts were LESS than the cuts Labour had promised. So are these people who "can't forgive" saying they can't forgive Labour either?!

Also, remember that the 1997-2010 Labour Government went along with the neo-liberal consensus that said the banks didn't need much regulation, and the result was the financial crisis. Labour then chose to bail out the banks. The crisis had dire, far-reaching consequences for the country's finances, consequences we're still living with.

Declaring "I can't forgive Labour" on the basis of this history would be utterly pointless. Labour's platform NOW is what counts. Same for the LibDems.

Now the coalition did many things I disagreed with, not least the bedroom tax. But then the coalition was 80% Tory, so what do you expect?!

The LibDem 20% didn't just ensure less austerity than the Tories and Labour. They also ensured the consequences of Labour's neo-liberalism didn't fall on the low paid: the 3 million lowest paid were taken out of income tax. And the next 26 million paid less tax. At the same time, by clamping down on tax avoidance and tax evasion, many tax breaks for the rich were abolished, which Labour had failed to do. Would a 100% Tory Government have done that?!

Or is this "can't forgive" thing simply about saying the Tories wouldn't have been in power without the LibDems? Because that's just not true.

A LibLab coalition wasn't numerically possible. So that would've meant a minority Tory Government. And a minority Tory Government would've quickly turned into a majority Tory Government after a second General Election (which Labour didn't have the money to fight).

So would the people who "can't forgive" have preferred a 100% Tory Government?! Because that's what it would've been. And then it's not only austerity that would've been worse. You only have to look at the many dreadful things a 100% Tory Government has done since 2015 to realise what those 57 LibDem MPs prevented thanks to being in the coalition.

And why does this "can't forgive" thing apply to the LibDems and not to Labour? On almost every important issue, the last Labour Government was on the side of the Tories:

• the illegal war in Iraq
• the pride in "light-touch regulation of the banks"
• the enthusiasm for indefinite detention without trial
• the doubling of income tax on the lowest paid
• the tax cuts for the rich
• the renewal of Trident
• the promotion of nuclear power
• the love of fracking
• sluggish action on climate change
• the introduction and escalation of upfront tuition fees
• the use of PFI...

Again, declaring "I can't forgive Labour" on the basis of that huge list would be utterly pointless. Labour's platform NOW is what counts. Same for the LibDems.

Finally, lots of good things happened as a consequence of the coalition, that you can never imagine a 100% Tory Government doing, such as:

• 2 million apprenticeships
• 200,000 new affordable homes
• the Green Investment Bank
• the Pupil Premium
• the restoration of the link between pensions and earnings
• proper regulation of the banks
• the ending of child detention in immigration cases
• shared parental leave
• same-sex marriage

So when you hear "I can't forgive the LibDems for propping up the Tories", please ask whether they have forgiven Labour.

After all, when the Tories intend to wreck the country with Brexit, isn't it time to put past hurts on one side for now and #UniteToRemain ?