Labour have spent the past few days taking the Tories to task over taxpayer waste – painting over their own profligacy – and one attack line in particular required particular artistic licence. Yesterday, Labour Press tweeted out a criticism of the government spending £3,393 on 13 photographs. That works out to £261 per picture for the Government Art Collection (GAC).
📸 Which minister's department spent £3,393 of public cash buying 13 fine art photographs from The Tate Gallery?
— Labour Press (@labourpress) February 13, 2023
Why didn’t they use the 14,700 alternatives in the Government Art Collection? We can tell you the 1st answer, the 2nd remains a mystery
➡️ https://t.co/ujdIr20IWR ⬅️ pic.twitter.com/tS2x9VSVMM
Labour could have done with expanding their focus, as targeting such waste has left their own record overexposed. In 2008 the GAC spent a stunning £88,125 on American Tan XX by Gary Hume – it hung from May-September 2008 on the wall of Gordon Brown’s office. By Guido’s calculation’s that’s over 300 times more expensive / wasteful than the purchases they are criticising. Surely Damian McBride, the former SpAd turned PAd whom is said to be behind this week’s line of attack on government procurement, will surely remember seeing this picture hanging on the wall behind Gordon as he suffered another raging tantrum from the then Chancellor?
