Is Gordon Brown in the pockets of the unions?
It is no secret that Gordon Brown's tenure as prime minister has seen many highs and lows, with the man himself going through a very low point at the moment, but there are growing fears that the UK government will need to depend more and more on the trade unions. We have seen strike action increase during 2009 and many believe that 2010 could be a year of more activity on the industrial action front. So is Gordon Brown in the pockets of the unions?
Under Tony Blair the Labour Party ditched many of the old principles which had attracted so many traditional voters to the party. It attempted to change the minds and the mindset of Middle England and in many ways Tony Blair was victorious. However, under Gordon Brown we have seen taxes increase in the UK which has hit those in the "middle England" bracket harder than many, leading to a collapse in Labour support from these particular members of the population.
As a consequence, both financially and from a voting point of view, the UK government is now dependent upon the trade union movement to at least put up a decent challenge in the next election. Stand by for more industrial action during 2010 even if the Labour Party is re-elected!
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