Today’s Mirror splashes on the OTT claim that “Tory cuts killed 30,000“, casually accusing the government of mass murder. The story is based on a report co-authored by Oxford geography professor Danny Dorling. What the Mirror doesn’t mention is that Dorling a big Corbyn cheerleader with ties to Jez. In a blog post last May, Dorling fawned over Corbyn, showering the Labour leader with a litany of praise:

“Corbyn appears prepared to listen to everyone’s point of view, however much he disagrees with much of what they do or say…

“(Corbyn) appears prepared to listen to a wide range of experts and opinion rather than giving the air that he was born to rule, is all-knowing himself, and will tell us what is best for us…

“If voters look him up on Wikipedia they will learn that “Corbyn was revealed to have submitted the smallest amount in expenses of any British MP. In 2010 he claimed the lowest sum of all 650 MPs.” He also over pays his taxes…

“Famously Jeremy Corbyn had to be persuaded to stand in the leadership election. His election may have ushered in a new era in British politics where parties no longer look so keenly on the candidates who so obviously want the job and who initially appear most electable…

“Jeremy Corbyn does not appear motived (sic) by money…

“Corbyn has shown that he can be critical of his own party and its past record, even of himself, when, in retrospect, his party or he himself was clearly misguided…

“Jeremy Corbyn can take on the zealots and bigots who use migration to stir up fear and hatred…

“What Corbyn really represents is a set of beliefs whose time has finally come.

Corbyn himself has even rewarded Dorling’s obvious affection with a supportive tweets:

John McDonnell meanwhile has said he spent the last summer reading Dorling’s book. Sure Dorling is a wholly impartial observer – you might think the Mirror would have mentioned all this in their report…

Scandal-hit Brazilian oil company Petrobras received £250 million from the UK taxpayer last year, extending its credit line to over £1.1 billion. While loans to companies buying British goods is fairly standard practice, the government decided to extend Petrobras’ line of credit after it became embroiled in a huge corruption and bribery scandal that led to the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff. What’s worse, the state-owned company has had a plummeting credit rating in recent months, with Moody’s giving them a rating of B3 and the Wall Street Journal calling them “the World’s most indebted oil company”. What could go wrong?

H/T Greenpeace Energy Desk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gozmPqV6xBo&feature=youtu.be

“We would oppose any post-Brexit austerity budget, just as we have opposed any austerity budget proposed by this government.” It ain’t gonna happen…

Back in October, Owen Jones wrote this for the Guardian:

“Labour have to make ‘austerity’ tangible,” Owen wrote. It’s a theme he has written about week in, week out. This year alone he has claimed:

• “a stunning victory for all anti-austerity forces… will help shift the balance of power in Europe”

• “it is not surprising our anti-austerity left movement is emerging within Labour”

• “the SNP are carving out the clear progressive message that should belong to Labour: anti-austerity”

• “Voters have defected en masse to a party… with a populist anti-austerity message”

So keen is Owen on “the anti-austerity message” that he helped set up and remains a key backer of the “People’s Assembly Against Austerity” campaign group. So imagine Guido’s surprise at reading Owen’s latest piece for the Guardian:

“Labour has to abandon anti-austerity – a term that has never really resonated with the public, despite the left’s best efforts – in favour of being pro something else… If Labour can answer these questions, it will be in a far better position: able to commit to higher wages, reduced spending on social security without throttling working families, rebalancing the economy, preparing the country for future shocks, and having a positive vision rather than simply being against Osborne’s failure… the real answer is not to gloat over his bungled mess, but to find a positive alternative that inspires the country. Over to you, Labour.”

Labour has to abandon anti-austerity? Reduce spending on welfare? Who are you and what have you done with the real Owen Jones?

ONS numbers out today show that public sector net borrowing was £9.4 billion in June,  so the government is overspending by a mere £2 billion-a-week. So much for austerity…

Treasury Questions – coming up this morning – will be a chance to ask the austerity Chancellor how he is doing on the deficit compared to other finance ministers:

Of the OECD’s industrialised nations only Japan currently has a worse deficit, financially chastened Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain are currently showing more fiscal discipline than the Chancellor. George’s illusion is permitted by the financial markets because of a combination of QE (money priniting) and the fact that Osborne talks a good book when it comes to austerity. Though the rhetoric can sometimes fail him when he’s questioned by the likes of Kay Burley. 

Building HS2 on £50 billion of borrowed money, renewing Trident on borrowed money, borrowing billions to subsidise EU competitors, borrowing billions that end up aiding third world dictator’s offshore bank accounts… It all mounts up…

Ahead of tomorrow’s Budget, Guido’s interactive chart shows just how well George Osborne did at cutting welfare spending during the last parliament:

The massively increased spending on pensions makes up most of the overall rise, though it is debatable whether old age ‘benefits’ should be included in the welfare budget.

That said, spending on sickness and disability benefits increased by some £7 billion.

The housing bill went up by almost £4 billion.

There was a small drop in the cost of unemployment benefits.

Overall, between 2010 and 2014, total spending on welfare increased by £28 billion.

Austerity? What austerity?