92Rewind: A choice between 'choice' and 'alternatives'

This blog is coming to you as part of Open2.net's 92Rewind Twitter stream in the lead up to this year's General Election.

At this stage of the pre-election timeline, the Labour and Conservative parties unveiled their manifestos.

Labour: It's time to get Britain working again

From Neil Kinnock's foreward to the Labour 1992 manifesto:

Creative Commons Image Dushenka under CC-BY licence
Labour leader Neil Kinnock

The United Kingdom has been through 13 years in which unemployment has more than doubled, irreplaceable assets have been wasted, markets at home and abroad have been lost, manufacturing investment has fallen, poverty has increased, the crime rate has rocketed, and talents have been neglected.

Now our country faces clear alternatives.

A Conservative government would mean a repeat of the same, stale policies which brought economic insecurity, privatised and underfunded public services and increased social division. The Conservatives have no policies which would mean sustained recovery, higher health care or improved educational standards. The arrogance remains which brought us the poll tax, centralisation in Britain and isolation in Europe.

If they can't get it right in 13 years, they never will.

The Labour government will mean a fresh start for Britain. It will mean strong and continued emphasis on investment for economic strength. It will mean action to help families, fair taxation, incentives for enterprise and support for essential community services.

It will mean greater freedom, security and opportunity. It will mean change for the better.

It's time to make that change.

It's time for Labour.

Conservatives: The best future for Britain

From John Major's foreward to the Conservative 1992 manifesto:

John Major [Image: Steve Punter under CC-BY licence]

Who will give you the power to choose - to say for yourself what you want? And who will give you the personal prosperity that comes from low taxes - from your own savings, your own pension, your own home? Who will let you build up your own stake in Britain's success - and pass it on to your children?

Only Conservatives can truly claim to be the party of opportunity; choice; ownership and responsibility. Socialists like to keep people under the government's thumb. Conservatives want to give them independence. But we also want to put government at your service, giving you what you've paid for - good public services, responsible to you.

I do not believe the answer to every problem is simply for government to dig deeper in your pocket. I believe it often lies in changing the way government works; in making it respond to you. Government should look outwards. It should listen. It should put you in the know not keep you in the dark.

We have made quite a start, under the seal of the Citizen's Charter. People in schools, hospitals, public offices of all kinds are rising to the challenge. I knew they would. They just needed encouragement, incentive and a system that is outward-looking too.

It is all part of a revolution in quality in Britain. British goods are once more winning in the toughest markets abroad. There is new vigour in the businesses liberated from state ownership; better management and better industrial relations. These are the firm foundations of economic recovery.

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