'I'd give Labour 4/10. It should be nearer 8' - thoughts of a disgruntled West Midlands pensioner

Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves should be cautious about making false pledges, I wrote last year about the scrapping of the Winter Fuel Payment for all but the most needy older people.

I broadly welcomed the move, as Starmer stated, “those with the broadest shoulders should bear the heavier burden.”

Since then we have seen a u-turn of sorts as the Chancellor realised it had become a political millstone around her neck.

But there has been more controversy, with cuts to disability payments, the retention of the two-child cap.

The first months of Labour in power has seen a series of missteps and poor - no, disastrous – communication. To say I am disappointed less than a year into this new government would be an understatement.

When Starmer stood on the steps of Downing Street last July it felt like a turning point. After 14 years of Tory rule that saw the wealthy thrive while public services crumbled, here was a Labour government finally ready to rebalance Britain’s horrible inequalities - apparently

The decision to scrap the Winter Fuel Payment for all but the poorest pensioners could have been the opening act of a bold redistribution agenda. Instead, it’s been followed by a string of punitive measures - cuts to disability benefits, the morally indefensible retention of the two-child cap, and a series of tone-deaf communications blunders that suggest a government all at sea.

“All in It Together” is a meaningless and mendacious slogan weaponised by the Conservatives in 2010 to justify austerity, even as bankers kept their bonuses and corporate profits soared. Labour had a chance to put that in the rear view mirror. This week’s spending review to “renew Britain”, while welcome, still does not tackle the problem of real wealth redistribution and looks cowardly.

Yes, abolishing non-dom status and ending VAT exemptions for private schools were laudable - but these are drops in an ocean. The recent inheritance tax “reform” is a case in point. By cutting rates for agricultural landowners, Labour has ensured wealthy farm owning dynasties will pay half what ordinary families do on estates of equivalent value.

Meanwhile, disabled people face a double blow of stricter PIP eligibility and a freeze on Universal Credit health payments for existing claimants.This isn’t just Robin Hood in reverse - it’s a government that seems afraid to confront the real levers of inequality. It is more like Dick Turpin telling the poorest: ‘Stand and deliver.’Capital gains remain taxed at half the rate of income and the super rich still exploit loopholes. And with Rachel Reeves ruling out wealth taxes or meaningful income tax rises, Labour’s mantra of “fairness” starts to sound hollow.

When it comes to so-far timid measures at providing a fair policy towards the more wealthy, the right-wing press screams “betrayal,” but there was little concern for the years of austerity.

With the economic madness of Liz Truss’s kamikaze budget initially welcomed by the same people. Yes there have been problems with Covid and the Ukraine war, but we are not alone in facing those problems and others have dealt with it better.

There are Labour’s early wins - rail nationalisation, workers’ rights, school breakfast clubs, trade deals with the EU and India and the mitigation of Trumps tariff madness. But these are being buried under a avalanche of self-inflicted controversies. Their PR machine failed miserably. Not so much a Rolls Royce operation, more a rusty old tractor.

The messaging on disability cuts was botched, with Reeves awkwardly defending them as “tough choices” while refusing, so far, to touch wealth taxes.

Meanwhile, Reform’s populist noise - uncosted promises on immigration and tax cuts seems to have spooked Starmer’s team into a blind panic. Chasing short-term headlines on immigration and other populist nonsense, rather than shaping a positive vision.With a 170-seat majority and four years to govern, Labour has no excuses. It reconsidered its stance on the winter payment and may look at disability benefits, and the two-child cap. This is a positive development, but there is still a significant financial gap that needs to be addressed.

While growth will ultimately generate income for the country, it won't occur overnight. I’m not an economic expert, but the government could implement strategies such as a one percent levy on assets exceeding £10 million, which I am told, could potentially raise £70 billion annually.

Alternatively, Starmer could make a bold move by increasing income tax for the wealthiest ten percent of earners. It doesn't seem unreasonable to expect those earning over £80,000 a year to contribute a little more.

The Tories left a burning building. Labour wasn’t elected to stand by and fan the flames. It’s time for radical, fairer solutions for a fairer society.Verdict so far? 4/10. It should have been eight at least. The gap between promise and delivery is widening.