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The noises the Tories made at their conference
in October were to assure voters that the past is behind them
and they are ready for government. They played on a recurring
theme - the people have caught on to Labour and they will
turf them out at the next election. It was predictable electioneering
stuff with each attack on a policy of the government accompanied
by the promise of something better, more efficient and fairer.
A number of speakers minced no words when they described the
Prime Minister and his Ministers as untruthful and dishonourable.
There was an echoing of the charges made constantly by William
Hague, the leader, on the government's broken promises and
poor performances especially on education, crime and policing,
drugs, the social services and hospitals, transport and the
treatment of pensioners. Much of what was said by the Tories
were responses to what hade been claimed and promised by Labour
at their conference the week before. We listened as critics
of both parties for we have suffered from the bad decisions
of both of them. The Tony Balir promises even when written
down proved to be valueless. And we continue to suffer from
the government's policy of placating republicans regardless
of the injustice and injury to the majority unionist population.
The unionist struggle against a selfish, unsympathetic government
goes on with the probability that unless there is a change
in direction the Blair dream of peaceful settlement, and the
Belfast Agreement, will become a nightmare. We are being ill-treated
by Labour. The treatment we received from the Tories when
in power is the cause of much of our misfortune, the fatally
wrong decisions of Heath, Thatcher, Major and their administrations.
They gave us the prorogation of Stormont; the Anglo-Irish
Agreement; and the Downing Street Declaration. A look at the
two political parties makes us the more conscious of our parious
state for we have no confidence in either of them for the
future. What of the future? It would appear that set-backs
and obstacles nothwithstanding Labour is unlikely to lose
the next election. The country is in a prosperous state and
Blair remains the more popular leader. Incidentally in his
review of "Servants of the People: The Inside Story of
New Labour" by Andrew Rawley (Sunday Times Books, 1 October
2000) Anthony Howard says, "Tony Blair emerges not as
a bold, glamourous Henry V - or even as a wicked, if determined
Richard III - but rather as a distinctively wimpish Henry
VI; Shying away from confrontation, wary of direct choices
and always having to summon up the courage to face down powerful
barons who are eager to bully him." A profile of the
man with which we might concur. But Hague's popularity rating
remains poor. The past in British politics has taught us that
a party destiny is often in the hands of its leader. The situation
we anticipate will demand a stronger, more determined, united
unionist opposition to the government's policy of appeasement
of terrorists whether in devolved government or in hiding.
Our unionist politicans must do together what they can not
do separately and together defeat our unscrupulous adversaries.
We are well aware of what division among unionists has cost
us. We look for other and better, more sensible and successful
attitudes, actions and responses soon.
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