Moving Britain forward under Labour

Moving Britain Forward

Under the Tories Britain suffered;

Boom and bust economies
Workers legally paid a pittance on just £1.20 an hour
Child poverty doubled
Chronic under investment in our schools and hospitals.
3 million unemployed

With Labour Britain has gotten better;

Crime is down
Record numbers of people in work
NHS waiting lists are at their lowest ever
School results are better than ever
Child Tax Credit increased
Free prescriptions and free eye tests for pensioners

May 2007 marked 10 years of Labour Government. It was also my tenth anniversary as an MP. I remember vividly that night in 1997 in the Winter Gardens when I was first elected and thankfully the highs have more than outweighed the lows in the years since. I am grateful to everyone who supported me back then and who re-elected me in the two elections since.

So exactly what have those ten years delivered? In all that has been said and written here are ten facts, one for each year, that you may have missed.

FACT: The UK economy has enjoyed the longest period of growth for 200 years with over 2.5 million more people now in work.

FACT: We’re spending £5 billion less on unemployment than we did in 1997. Unemployment in Thanet has been cut by more than half.

FACT: The proportion of eleven years olds reaching Key Stage 2 Level 5 in English has doubled and nearly doubled in Maths. There are now 7 times as many secondary schools where more than two thirds of pupils get 5 good GCSEs. Locally the Ramsgate School has been replaced with the magnificent Marlowe Academy and a new Ellington School is now complete.

FACT: Waiting times in the Health Service could be two years long in 1997 even for some serious operations. Most operations at the QEQM are now less than 13 weeks and soon our 18 week target will be achieved everywhere in the UK.

FACT: Crime is down 35 per cent.

FACT: There are now 14,000 more police officers, around 85,000 more nurses, over 35,000 more doctors, and 36,400 more teachers.

FACT: Investment in science has trebled, a vital investment that means companies like Pfizer can continue to build on their success.

FACT: There are now more rail passengers in a year than for 50 years and the Government has ordered 29 high speed trains and they will be running between Thanet and London from the end of 2009. Bus use has been increasing year on year for the first time in decades and pensioners and disabled people get free local bus travel.

FACT: 600,000 kids have been lifted out of poverty, the poorest fifth of families will be £4000/year better off by 2009 and the winter fuel allowance, pensioner credit and increases to the state pension have taken over 2million pensioners out of poverty.

FACT: The UK has increased aid to poor countries from £2.5 to £6.6 billion since 1997.

Even if we haven’t delivered everything you wanted in our ten years, that is still a list to be proud of and I could have made it a great deal longer!