Conservatives plan for "Bold Action"

Conservatives plan for “Bold Action”

With the election looming, one question is at the forefront of campaign politics: “what do the conservatives actually stand for?” well; this simple question can be boiled down to a simple answer… tough immigration policy and a defence overhaul; with a hint at a quadruple lock pension thrown into the mix. But what does this mean in reality? Well, here is the simple guide to the Tories policy going into the July election this year.

The controversial Rwanda bill has played political tennis; being sent back and forth from the commons to the Lords for around 24 months with the bill being passed in late April this year. This bill was introduced to combat irregular migration to the UK and to act as a deterrent for migrants as they would now face being sent to Rwanda while their asylum application is processed. Similarly, Italy has struck a deal to send some of its asylum seekers to Albania for their applications to be processed before coming into Italy; however, this is seen by many Europeans as a one-off deal due to Italy’s unique relationship with Albania. The UK’s deal with Rwanda would see asylum seekers on planes swiftly following the election if the conservatives where to win, with flights speculated at taking off before the end of July by some conservative MP’s. the bill has come under fire due to ethical concerns around the fact that initially, the courts could not say for certain that Rwanda was a safe country for migrants. This was one of the reasons why it took the Tories so long to pass the Rwanda bill. Supporters of the bill have said that deterring migrants with the prospect of being sent to Rwanda is a net positive for the UK as it will see a reduction in irregular migrants coming to the UK and will take pressure off the home office to process so many asylum applications. However, critics say that the bill is flawed on a humanitarian level since they feel that it is inhumane to send migrants to a third country for processing, as their safety cannot be guaranteed. Further criticism of the bill has pointed out the massive cost to the taxpayer with £240 million already paid to Rwanda, and the total payment being over £370 million over 5 years, according to the National Audit Office. A further £120 million would be sent to Rwanda if 300 migrants are sent to be processed with another £20000 being paid per asylum seeker.

Over the last decade the army has seen a decline in recruitment numbers and problems retaining members after their contracts expire. This has made the government concerned over national security. To combat this the Tories have promised to increase military spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030; bearing in mind the NATO target is 2%. Last year the government spent around 2.3% on the military so this increase to 2.5% is definitely in the realms of possibility if the government where to be elected again. The UK is the 8^th highest spender on defence relative to GDP with Poland spending the most at just under 4%. This would mean that if the UK reached its targeted spending it would overtake Latvia, who spends 2.4% of GDP on defence. Labour have argued that this would be a waste of taxpayer money as the UK already in line with NATO policy and points out that pressure on the NHS has not been eased and more focus should be put on combating the cost-of-living crisis.

National service for 18-year-olds is the most controversial policy the conservatives have campaigned on in the run up to the election. In practice, this would mean that 18-year-olds would be required to either serve 12 paid months in the military, or complete community service one weekend per month for a year. This policy was put forward to boost a national spirit and to make young people more invested in the UK. The details of the plan say that there are 30000 military training jobs available, and most people would not be in military training. Community service would not be paid and would involve working in places such as the emergency services. Although 18-year-olds would have a say in which kind of service they sign up to, they are required to complete one by law. Punishments for avoiding national service have not been disclosed, however James Cleverly, Home secretary has said that non-criminal sanctions would be put on people avoiding service. The main reaction from young people is mostly negative as they feel like they have no duty to serve the country as it has failed young people, particularly during the housing and cost of living crisis.

Another policy the conservatives have hinted at was a quadruple lock pension. The plan for quadruple lock is for the pension allowance to increase by: 2.5%, inflation, or earnings – whichever is highest. The quadruple lock part is that the conservatives have promised that pensioners would not have to pay income tax on their pension allowance. Labour have called this plan “credible.” The liberal democrats have said that: “People won't be fooled by yet another empty promise from Rishi Sunak after this record of failure.”

As it stands, the conservatives are currently polling at 21% compared to Labour’s 46%. Will these policies be enough to turn the tide of the election; or are things as dire of Sunak as they where for John Major in 1997?

Written by Ian Lorimer