Post-truth politics

A week used to be considered a long time in politics, now a day is an eternity.

Rishi Sunak made his keynote speech to his party conference in Manchester only yesterday and yet, come the dawn, it seems we are in another era. This wasn't rowing back on pledges this was jumping in a speed boat and disappearing up the Manchester Ship Canal leaving truth, integrity, decency in his wake. Two of his major promises are already unravelling and more are sure to follow.

Re-commencing the HS2:link from Euston to Old Oak Common and restoring the Leamside railway line in County Durham were greeted with enthusiastic applause - not as enthusiastic as his dog whistle anti-woke comments about "people believing they can be any sex they want" (he meant gender, of course) - but I guess in his position you take what you can get. Anyway, these have barely stood the test of twenty-four hours. Not so much soundbite politics as speed of sound politics. 

It now appears that the government is only "committed to looking into" Leamside and the Euston link will only happen with private funding. (The 6billion quid of government funding for the Euston project is still being withdrawn, however, to fund regional projects.) In other words, public money is going to be used for pre-election sweeteners in a desperate attempt to buy votes in Red Wall seats. 

Oh, and by the way, Euston HS2 station - if it is ever delivered at all - will only consist of six platforms rather than the planned eleven. In most stations the trains leave the platforms but, in topsy-turvy Sunak land, the HS2 platforms will leave the trains it seems. 

Okay, so now the route has been curtailed we may well need fewer platforms to get to Birmingham (always supposing we wanted to get there in the first place) but so much for future-proofing. You may be sure these won't be the last cutbacks to be made. After a sustained programme of government cheeseparing the country will be well and truly Sunak-ered.

So much, too, for the conference slogan 'Long-term decisions for a brighter future'. What a sick joke!

The joke, though, is clearly on us.

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