Labour leader says he is 'a unifier, not a divider' and accuses government of trying to exploit tragedy
Ed Miliband said on benefits the coalition was 'not just heartless, they are hopeless'. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PA
The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, has accused the government of "nasty, divisive" politics in linking the crimes of Mick Philpott to the debate about welfare, saying George Osborne and others are seeking to make partisan capital from the deaths of six children.
In his strongest words on the subject since the furore escalated last week, Miliband used the launch of his party's local election campaign to contrast his brand of "one nation" Labour with efforts by some Conservatives to present Philpott as an exemplar of benefit failings.
The chancellor has faced accusations of opportunism after saying it was right to question why Philpott, jailed for life last week for killing six of his 17 children in a house fire, should have been subsidised by benefits.
Asked about the welfare debate while addressing a crowd of Labour activists in Ipswich, Miliband said: "Do you try and unite the country, and bring it together, or do you exploit tragedy, like the Philpott tragedy? The right place for Mr Philpott is behind bars, but do you exploit the deaths of six children to try and make a political point about the welfare system, and at the same time say to people that this is somehow a common truth about people on benefits?"
There was, Miliband said, "a minority of people on benefits who should be working and aren't", something he promised Labour would address. "But what I'm not going to do is engage in nasty, divisive politics."
Previous generations of one nation Conservatives would be "turning in their graves" over Osborne's tactics, he said.
The comments will be directed in part at those in Labour worrying that the party should match the coalition's condemnatory line about benefit abuses, which appears to have significant popular support.
Osborne sparked the row during a visit to Derby when he said of Philpott's case: "I think there is a question for government and for society about the welfare state – and the taxpayers who pay for the welfare state – subsidising lifestyles like that, and I think that debate needs to be had."
The comments, defended at the weekend by Osborne and supported by David Cameron, were condemned by Osborne's Labour shadow, Ed Balls, as "nasty and divisive" and demeaning to his office.
In his strongest words on the subject since the furore escalated last week, Miliband used the launch of his party's local election campaign to contrast his brand of "one nation" Labour with efforts by some Conservatives to present Philpott as an exemplar of benefit failings.
The chancellor has faced accusations of opportunism after saying it was right to question why Philpott, jailed for life last week for killing six of his 17 children in a house fire, should have been subsidised by benefits.
Asked about the welfare debate while addressing a crowd of Labour activists in Ipswich, Miliband said: "Do you try and unite the country, and bring it together, or do you exploit tragedy, like the Philpott tragedy? The right place for Mr Philpott is behind bars, but do you exploit the deaths of six children to try and make a political point about the welfare system, and at the same time say to people that this is somehow a common truth about people on benefits?"
There was, Miliband said, "a minority of people on benefits who should be working and aren't", something he promised Labour would address. "But what I'm not going to do is engage in nasty, divisive politics."
Previous generations of one nation Conservatives would be "turning in their graves" over Osborne's tactics, he said.
The comments will be directed in part at those in Labour worrying that the party should match the coalition's condemnatory line about benefit abuses, which appears to have significant popular support.
Osborne sparked the row during a visit to Derby when he said of Philpott's case: "I think there is a question for government and for society about the welfare state – and the taxpayers who pay for the welfare state – subsidising lifestyles like that, and I think that debate needs to be had."
The comments, defended at the weekend by Osborne and supported by David Cameron, were condemned by Osborne's Labour shadow, Ed Balls, as "nasty and divisive" and demeaning to his office.
No comments:
Post a Comment