Thoughts from London

Public love for labour lost
The worst thing that could happen to a government in democratic politics is to lose the confidence of the people. Political history records numerous instances of governments that earnestly believed in their invincibility only to be trounced at the polls because they misread the public mood. Few politicians appear to pay heed to these lessons of history.

The recent defeats of the ruling parties at the general elections in Sri Lanka and India underscore the belief that pleasing the few and neglecting the many is not the political prescription that generates widespread public confidence and trust.

So is it in the United Kingdom too. In the last week or more, Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labour Party government has learnt that bloated self- confidence or bull-headed obduracy is no substitute for dealing with the legitimate concerns and interests of the people that put them in power.

At two elections held here within days of each other, the ruling party suffered so disastrously that earlier rumblings inside Labour for a change in leadership appeared to go up by several decibels.

True, it has not reached the kind of cacophony within the party that would call for Blair to quit even before the general election due in the next 11 months, though several Labourites including former ministers such as Clare Short have resumed the cry.

The local government elections followed by the European Parliamentary polls produced the kind of results that showed clearly that the public's love for Labour is lost and that the ruling party would suffer irreparable damage unless it seriously rethinks its current policies.

Labour got a mere 26% share of the poll in the local government elections while in the European elections it dropped a further three percentage points, the lowest in the past 100 years.

Naturally different reasons prompted this devastating public response to Labour government policies in the two elections. Still the message is quite clear. The voters are fed up with the government for ignoring the voice of the people. The danger signal is there for those who would want to reflect on the drift of the Blair government in the past few years.

But Blair like his dear friend across the Atlantic, President George W. Bush, does not wish to listen. So awash are they with the importance of their place in history and self-righteousness that they, like the heroic Nelson, turn a blind eye to rising public anger and dissatisfaction.

The drift away from Labour was not simply "Iraq, Iraq, Iraq" as one Labour parliamentarian put it. Yes, it is true that the vast majority of British people believe they were dragged into a war on a wrong prospectus and highly dubious legal grounds. That is becoming increasingly clear despite attempts by the Lord Hutton Commission to wave red herrings in the face of public scepticism.

Iraq was undoubtedly an unpopular war, particularly so because of Blair's unending - some might say obsequious - support for President Bush who also took America to war because he always wanted to finish what his father did not - teach Saddam Hussein the ultimate lesson - oust him from power.

It is also true that Labour lost the vast majority of the Muslims who generally vote Labour. Yet an opinion poll conducted at the time of the local elections belies that Iraq was a principal or main cause for the desertion from Labour. Respondents were asked what matters to them most about what the government does. In order of priority their concerns were improving public services (46%), governing competently (39%), reducing crime (32%), telling the truth (31%), issues involving Europe (11%) while getting Iraq right was at the bottom of the pile with a mere 5%.

While all these concerns might be relevant largely to the UK, some have a universal application. Surely competent governance and being told the truth by politicians are what people everywhere not only seek but also expect from their elected leaders.

When people begin to doubt their political leaders and the veracity of their utterances then we are already heading into dangerous ground. Increasing doubts in the ability of governments and its leaders to provide good governance which, of course, covers a panoply of subjects, leads to the erosion of confidence in the political class.

Add to that the growing belief that politicians cannot be trusted to tell the truth and we find an explosive mix that could find expression in different ways.

This is Blair's problem. His regular refrain "trust me" is wearing very, very thin. Why? Because on a number of issues he had not only gone back on manifesto promises but also acted in direct opposition to the express view of the people.

There was a time when European parliamentary elections were not taken seriously. But this time they were because at the heart of the problem is whether Britain should move closer to an enlarged Europe and sign up to the proposed European constitution – as Labour generally wants – or stay in Europe but renegotiate terms on several issues as the Tories seek, or dump Europe as the resurgent UK Independence Party (Ukip) demands. People have clearly voted for the two parties that want less or nothing to do with Europe, adding a new complexion to British politics.

The British voter has served notice on the traditional parties that he has lost faith in them. There is surely a lesson here for our own parties and their leaders. Voter fatigue and distrust will erode their popular support unless they provide good governance and speak the truth. Cynics will say that is too much to expect from our political class. Let the politicians prove the cynics wrong- if they have the will and the ability.

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