Stand by for chaos if the Tories get in

By James Valentine

Imagine it’s May 7th, and the Tories have won. Will it be a glad new day, or something else? I think for many it will be a confusing and worrying time.

For parents: One question will be, who’s starting a so-called “free school” in your area? Depending on the age of your children, it may be worth doing some advance planning. Can you put their names down in advance? Is it worth trying to set one up yourself?

Possible early doubts – Will the schools be up to scratch anyway? Without an Ofsted report, how will you know? The Tories advocate that the schools – which can now, in a last minute switch of policy, be profit-making – will be cheap and cheerful, and they suggest renting spare space in office blocks for this purpose.

This is not how you remember school – is it really what you want for your children? Some parents who previously couldn’t or wouldn’t put themselves forward as parent governors may feel some regret; it’s a much easier way of exerting parent power than this free schools malarkey.

For pensioners and seniors: If you’ve got the cash, consider buying the one-off £8,000 insurance premium so that your residential care home fees are covered. It’s unbeatable value for money. If you haven’t got the cash, keep worrying about the possible onset of dementia – you’re on your own.

Possible early doubts – is it actually an insurance scheme or a down payment? Can you wait until you’re diagnosed before producing the money? Expect the growth of dubious secondary insurance schemes that will prey on poor pensioners who can’t afford the premium. Wonder about the social justice of this so-called “choice” that discriminates against the poor.

For employers: If you’re in a business that needs to employ any non-EU skilled workers, get your in applications now. If you leave it too late, you could fall foul of the new immigration cap. At the margin, there will always be the need for extra skilled/professional workers in specialised areas (it works both ways for skilled British staff who are needed by overseas companies). The Tories’ command-economy scheme will inevitably set the cap too high, in which case it’s meaningless, or too low, in which case industry will suffer.

Possible early doubts – why did you vote Tory? Business would have been better off under Labour. For example, the Tories will scrap R&D tax credits that help many companies, cut Train to Gain and abolish the business-led RDAs which have been critical in supporting regional economies.

Will people get the message in time? All the warnings are there in the Conservatives’ manifesto, but danger is that the fancy packaging hides the unpleasant reality beneath.