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Political Values
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I believe in a participatory democracy in which decision-making and ownership is decentralised, and in which each individual citizen is empowered.
I am a 'libertarian socialist' committed to social justice, equal opportunities and personal liberty. The task of our Labour Government is an enabling one, not an enforcing one. Our mission is to disperse rather than to concentrate power. We believe in a pluralist democracy: hence, devolution of power to Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, London - and, in future, the English regions.
I want to see a much more equal society in which there is opportunity for all, regardless of background, race or sex, hence Labour's commitment to tackling poverty through policies such as the national minimum wage, big rises in pensions and child benefit, and lifting the burden of tax on the low-paid. Hence also our commitment to full employment and to rewarding work with decent standards and benefit reforms that remove obstacles to coming off welfare and into jobs.
I also believe in a society based upon the principles of mutual co-operation and mutual aid, not one reliant on personal greed in which affluent elites grow still more powerful and rich, whilst the weakest go to the wall, hence our socialist commitment to spreading wealth and ownership more evenly and our belief in high quality public services which we must all be prepared to fund through fair taxation. And also our policies for combating world poverty through record levels of international development assistance and providing debt relief for the poorest countries.
Our socialist vision is of a Britain that stands for justice, freedom and morality both at home and abroad
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