No, Blair will not bring down the pillars of the left, Britain’s vaunted public-health and education systems. But the “investment” he does plan–a.k.a. spending–may be tilted toward the private sector. A recent report by the Institute for Public Policy Research, whose work tends to be a good guide to Blair policy, hints that under Blair II, much of the money spent by the National Health Service on personal social services will end up in the hands of the private sector. Even more so than during Blair I. Indeed, there have already been signs of the opportunities of privatization: new contracts being negotiated with GPs, who have threatened the system with increased industrial action; consultants warning of a mass defection to the private sector.
None of which pleases Labour’s staunchest supporters. Unions and professional associations, with big memberships in public services, have already begun beating the war drums against anything that smacks of privatization. Already, the leadership of Unison–Britain’s biggest trade union, representing 1.5 million public-sector workers–plans to call on delegates at its annual conference June 17 to back a strategy of militancy, possibly including strikes. Other unions, such as the Manufacturing, Science and Finance union, have been equally outspoken against New Labour’s private leanings.
For those who found the election campaign a tad dull, PERI recommends not changing channels quite yet. Blair is determined “to save the left from old-fashioned, 20th-century leftists,” says Denis MacShane, a Labour member of Parliament. But to do so, he will have to burst a lot of bubbles–possibly even his own.
