Friday 7 May 2010

With Labour out: the Labour years, redux

OK, we know now that Labour have suffered a heavy defeat. So what has been the result of their untrammelled 13 years in power. Let's start with Inflation:

CPI since 1997 +25%
RPI Inflation since 1997 +40%

Compared to previous Governments, that is actually not too bad at all, not great on RPI, but OK for 13 years out of the last 100.

FTSE 4647 May 1997
FTSE 5380 May 2007

This is not so good, this is a mere 18% up over the 13 years. Major managed 115% in five years and Thatcher over 300%.

Worse, since Gordon Brown became Prime Minister teh FTSE is down -18%

When you add in the effects of inflation then the FTSE performance is woeful, even taking into account the payment of dividends, which takes on about 4% per annum, does not cover RPI inflation.

Labour has not been good for the markets that is for sure.

Now onto the Public sector, two figures say it all. When Labour took over the % of spend of GDP on the Public Sector was 38%...now it is 52%!
The National debt, built up and paid down over 400 hundred years, was 42% of GDP and falling in 1997, it fell down 30% in 2001 as Labour followed Tory policies. Now though it is over 60% and is set to increase at over 10% a year for the next 4 years at least.

Horrific. Worst Peacetime Government ever, easily.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

FTSE 4647 May 1997
FTSE 5380 May 2007

little bit unfair here, cant blame lab for the dotcom bubble, and im sure mohammed atta wasnt a fabian!

Laban said...

I think you'd still have to hand that award to the Baldwin/Chamberlain administrations.

I often think of the parallels between Baldwin and Blair. Brilliant electoral politicians, strategic disasters (although Baldwin was sounder on the economy - the more you look at the history the better the economic performance of 30s Britain seems)

Budgie said...

CU, yours was a quick overview of shares and inflation. You cannot judge Labour on these points alone. Everywhere you look, whatever the major policy area, Labour has made a mess of it. Dishonesty, malevolence, corruption, sleaze and incompetence have been rife. Wealth, civil liberties, pensions, manufacturing, armed forces, bank regulation, boom and bust, you name it Labour has hit it.

CityUnslicker said...

Budgie don't disagree, but this was a shares and debt view as you say.