Ed Balls has shown he has balls. He wall make an excellent chancellor. Not easy for him but he had to say what he ahd to say. I agree with so much the TUC is about but the tories want a strike -a general strike would be better still -so they can blame them for ill the ills of the country. Not a good idea o walk into this trap.

Here’s one of the architects of Britain’s economic demise, telling the public sector trade unions how to repair the damaged his own economically discredited government inflicted on the nation. Ed Balls, refused even to accept that high spending and high borrowing had driven Britain to near economic disaster recently calling on George Osborne to spend even more in order to avert recession i.e. [keep digging] A year on, Balls has lost the argument even he now agrees with the urgent need for drastic cuts in public spending. The only remaining matter of dispute between Government and opposition is the relatively minor detail of timing – i.e. how quickly the cuts should be made.

When is the Labour leadership going to admit the presence of the elephant in the room? Thirty years of neoliberalism have so messed up the economic and political landscape across the whole country, that change - major change is going to be the only practical order of the day. The simple question is this ; What kind of country do you wish to see - more of the same, or a beacon of hope for ordinary people? They cannot grasp this simple fact. Are they part of the vested interests that hold us back? I am beginning to think so. Remember the fact that the policy of austerity is in place to protect the status quo and persuade ordinary people that there is little for them to expect for the better - ever.

Labour... we're the Tories, but we care about the pain we inflict!

Maybe a bit too harsh, but as a long term Labour voter i feel myself succumbing to the same indifference the rest of my family has to the party, we've all been disappointed a few too many times now.

Labour... we're the Tories, but we care about the pain we inflict!

Maybe a bit too harsh, but as a long term Labour voter i feel myself succumbing to the same indifference the rest of my family has to the party, we've all been disappointed a few too many times now.

I long to hear the words that , if elected in 2015---to say when is too big an assumption from Balls---a vigorous Labour Government would simplify the taxation system. The plethora of tax by a thousand bites is currently the inheritance we suffer from the Blair/Brown days. Stop focusing on Income tax, look at VAT, NI, and the distortions that causes from business VAT reclaim. Reform & simplify needs to be the policy. Low tax means higher yield; the transition from tax and spend (oops, I mean "invest") would invigorate the economy.

Balls is the best Chancellor we haven't had. Question is whether he can rise to the challenge of radical tax category abolition wholesale, and replace with an Income tax and Corporation tax that gets paid.

Wouldn't letting the rail franchises lapse back into public hands as they fall due for renewal cost nothing and likely save money in the long run?

I wish he was a deficit denier. Its a lie created to justify huge spending cuts. If politicians insist on paying off the deficit within the next 5 minutes then do it by taxing the wealthy.

I wish he was a deficit denier. Its a lie created to justify huge spending cuts. If politicians insist on paying off the deficit within the next 5 minutes then do it by taxing the wealthy.