37 coalition climbdowns, u-turns and row backs

StevieJ

Some going after only two and a half years

Margaret Thatcher once made a virtue of her refusal to climb down when she said "the lady's not for turning", but as her successors in the Coalition announce their latest volte-face, here is the full list of government u-turns:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9617519/37-coalition-climbdowns-u-turns-and-row-backs.html

Gracchus_Babeuf

And your point is?

Generali

I thought the last election was going to be a good one to lose but as the whole European mess chunters on it looks like the next one will be an even better one to lose.

This Government is starting to have The Whiff about it that the Tories got after Black/White Wednesday, NuLabour got when the GFC hit and Old Labour got with the Winter of Discontent.

Once you've got The Whiff there's no way back.

chewmylegoff

there is nothing actually wrong with changing your policies, and indeed it is always going to be a feature of coalition government that you make a proposal but the final "product" turns out to be a watered down version of the original (which i wouldn't actually call a u-turn).

the problem is not that the coalition has u-turned in a number of areas, but the shambolic way in which it has done so in some cases.

take, for instance, the policy to rent out or sell off bits of the countryside. the govt proposed it, took stock, and then the minister came to the dispatch box and says "it turns out this policy was wrong, and we are dropping it". that is a fairly reasonable approach to government i think. it would be worse if the government just ploughed through (say for example this government had attempted to scrap the 10p tax rate, or raise pensions by 76p - labour just rammed those through in the face of total ire, this government would have rolled over which is not necessarily a bad thing. what about if it had tried to introduce a poll tax...?).

pastygate, on the other hand...

dunstonh

What gets me most about this Govt is the inability to get Labour's failings across whilst at the same time falling over themselves in silly little things.

A good example if the George Osborne train story. As anyone who has used trains knows, if you have a standard ticket, you can get an upgrade on the train. Sometimes it can be as low as £10. Sometimes a lot more. You sit in first class and pay when the conductor arrives. There is no story there. However, MPs claiming first class travel when they shouldnt (bar the exception) is a story. The fact that Labour dominated the abuse seems to be ignored. Stories in the media that did cover it still managed to paint Osborne with his paid for upgrade out of his own pocket as being worse than First class being paid for with MPs expenses.

This Govt needs much better PR and needs to stop faffing around. Proposals for consideration and consultation need to stop being put forward as policy. Changes due to consultation are very common. That is the case under any Govt. Changing your mind because of consultation is not a bad thing. However, changing a policy after consultation has taken place and is in an advanced stage is not good (unless there were fundamental flaws).

StevieJ

dunstonh wrote: »

This Govt needs much better PR

I thought that was DC's area of expertise :eek: no hope for running the country then

grizzly1911

chewmylegoff wrote: »

the problem is not that the coalition has u-turned in a number of areas, but the shambolic way in which it has done so in some cases.



pastygate, on the other hand...

That is the problem. I am all for people taking stock and admitting that they have made a mistake if the action was taken with good intentions or as a result of misinformation. What annoys me is that many of the policies were just crass to start with.

it almost as though they have a "bran tub" full of suggestions, from all and sundry and they simply pull the next idea out the tub without giving any real thought.

callum9999

I love this country... If the coalition do something you don't agree with they get chastised (quite rightly). If they then recognise you are right and reverse that, they get chastised again.

People keep getting in a strop over "U-turns" - are you saying you want the government to take a stab at something, then if they realise they are wrong just carry on regardless?

CLAPTON

callum9999 wrote: »

I love this country... If the coalition do something you don't agree with they get chastised (quite rightly). If they then recognise you are right and reverse that, they get chastised again.

People keep getting in a strop over "U-turns" - are you saying you want the government to take a stab at something, then if they realise they are wrong just carry on regardless?

an alternative approach is

-think things through before making major announcements

-maybe discuss with cabinet partners too so you have support from them

-if however, your policies are right then have the courage to stick to them

Sapphire

Hopefully the badger cull has been stopped for good, and a vaccine for cattle will now be developed and used, instead of precious wildlife being destroyed. This country should also be setting an example to others.

The vile current minister along with DEFRA make me want to be physically sick – and DEFRA have a very poor track record when it comes to protection of wildlife.

Even my MP (a Conservative) doesn't agree with the cull (I have told him the Tories will lose my vote if the cull goes ahead).

grizzly1911

Sapphire wrote: »

Even my MP (a Conservative) doesn't agree with the cull (I have told him the Tories will lose my vote if the cull goes ahead).

I accept your view but have you ever been involved with farming in Kingston On Thames.

Why hasn't a vaccine been made after the years this link has been made?

If it stops the Governement having to pay out each time a cow/bull gets infected and preserves farming in this country then culling badgers where there is a problem has to be an option.