Hain: Labour must spell out mission

My Account
Logout

Create an Evening Standard Account

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Welcome! Sign in here

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Forgot your password ?

Registration

* indicates fields that are mandatory

Email *

Password *

Confirm Password *

First name *

Surname *

Postcode *

Country *

Mobile phone number

Username *

Gender *

Year of birth *

When you sign up...

You will have access to all our online competitions, discounted offers and can post comments on our site.

You will also receive The Weekender newsletter sent every Thursday - it’s full of fantastic offers and ideas for the weekend. You can update your email preferences in your account page when you log in.

Other newsletters and emails

Homes & Property Newsletter - Yes I want to receive the weekly email with all the latest news on property in the capital

Occasionally we would also like to send you relevant emails detailing specific offers either from ourselves or carefully selected partners. If you would prefer not to receive these then please tick the appropriate boxes below. We will never pass on your details.

I do not want to receive additional offers and information from the Evening Standard

I do not want to receive additional offers and information sent by Evening Standard on behalf of carefully selected partners

Terms and Conditions

* I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of Evening Standard

Registration

Mail Sent for Registration Confirmation.

A confirmation email has been sent. Please activate your account by clicking on the activation link sent in your mail box.

Welsh Secretary Peter Hain will say that an "unequivocally right wing" Conservative government would return Britain to "the days of patients dying on trolleys stuck in hospital corridors".

But he will concede that the Government has done too little to spell out its "mission" and will urge Labour to "stand tall and proud" of its record and begin a fightback.

In a speech to launch a pamphlet written for the Progress thinktank, he will say: "Is it simply a choice between 'nice Labour cuts' and 'nasty Tory cuts'? Not at all. Labour's mission is more relevant than ever in the lean years that lie ahead, but it needs spelling out far more effectively than we have managed so far."

Record borrowing had been required to prevent a still-deeper recession, he will say.

"But, although this borrowing has cast a long shadow over the future of Britain's public finances, there is no justification for the savage cuts the Tories and Liberals demand. Labour's plans should reflect Party values in a period of tight budgetary pressure, values of solidarity in adversity."

Mr Hain will predict that the Conservatives' cuts plans would result in a "double dip" recession and send unemployment soaring - likening their plans to the post-"New Deal" America of 1936.

"Under frenetic pressure from Congress together with a media supported clamour to balance the budget - echoes of Britain today - Roosevelt lost his nerve and changed course in 1936. The result - unemployment soared again to nearly 20%. It would be similarly disastrous trying the shock therapy of big cuts in borrowing and public spending now," he will say.

Tory leader David Cameron has a Reaganite anti-Government outlook that would "see key public services closed down or outsourced wholesale to private providers", he will warn.

"Since 1997 Labour has rebuilt our social infrastructure and saved the NHS and is determined to protect the welfare state in future budgets. All this would be threatened by the Tories, taking Britain back to the days of patients dying on trolleys stuck in hospital corridors."