Tim wrote about an excellent article on the bravest decision of David Cameron and George Osborne earlier today. My reading of the Channel 4 poll Tim has just reported on is that it amounts to a clear vindication of the Conservative leadership's collective courage in making that decision.
It's clear from the detail of the poll that the British people in the key marginals agree with the Conservative position. When asked about the stimulus measures adopted by Labour, 29% think they won't make any difference and a further 35% say the difference made is not justified by the cost. In my reading, a clear majority think Labour have simply got it wrong. There is a fairly even split on how well the Government has handled the whole crisis in general - although 29% say that ministers are behaving like "headless chickens" taking panic measures!
Yet most interestingly of all, there is broad agreement that there will there have to be public spending cuts or higher taxes to pay back Labour's public borrowing. 40% think these will have to be big, while 32% think there will have to be some cuts or tax increases. In the current economic situation, I doubt many are keen on tax rises - seems to me people think tough decisions on public spending are getting pretty inevitable.
The leadership took a lot of heat in the Autumn during the Brown bounce. They set out their stall pretty clearly. They waited on events. And so far their strength of resolve is being rewarded. It's tough to stand firm in the face of the storm. They did it. I think that pretty much answers some of the sceptics out there who wonder whether they are ready and tough enough to take the tiller when it comes to turning Britain around in office. They are ready and they are tough enough. And chances are they will need to be, so thank goodness for that.
