Only the rich benefit from Tory policy

The recent revelations about the Tories’ latest fundraising activity could genuinely have come straight from a political satire or even a sketch show.

Picture the scene.  Hundreds of obscenely wealthy Tories throwing cash around like there’s no tomorrow, spending outrageous sums on ridiculous auction lots.

Imagine one snooty Tory splashing out £110,000 so he and his pals can shoot 500 pheasants, or another paying twice that sum for a week’s holiday at a 24-guest mansion in Majorca.

The sketch would climax with another millionaire splashing out more than £200,000 on a bronze bust of that dubious heroine to all Tories – Margaret Thatcher.

I can well imagine settling down on my sofa to watch such entertainment on a Sunday night, or perhaps as an ironic sketch highlighting the differences between rich and poor on Comic Relief.

The incredible truth is that the picture I have painted is not a fiction, but a genuine description of David Cameron’s recent fundraising ball.

This is a political party that tries to make capital out of Labour’s funding links to the trade unions.

Yet here it was, drawing cash from its wealthiest donors who stumped up £15,000 per table even to be at the event, even before the auction began.

Who are you more like?  Someone who is part of a trade union, or the sort of person who can afford to spend six figure sums on whatever folly takes their fancy on a whim, or perhaps to impress their pals.

And that, in a nutshell, is the difference between the Labour Party and the Conservative Party.

One is representative of the worker, and one is representative of the elite super-rich.

It is reflected in everything our respective parties stand for.  Labour is about sharing the wealth and ensuring that everyone is treated fairly and equitably, regardless of their situation.  The Tories are about ensuring that the wealth of the richest is protected, at the expense of the poor.

That’s why my party makes pledges to do things like abolish the bedroom tax, whereas the Tories introduce tax cuts for millionaires.

David Cameron’s quote in the official brochure for the plush fundraiser says it all: “As the clock ticks down to polling day, we all need to dig deep to ensure that we stick to our plan.”

A personal message to millionaires, and a sinister reference to “our” plan.

What is this plan you share with the super-rich, Mr Cameron?  To make them richer still while you continue your austerity measures and slash public spending?

It absolutely defies belief, and is truly sickening.  In a few words, the Prime Minister has summarised everything I despise about Tory ideology, and about the exclusive club who benefit from their policies.

The truth is that there are very few people who really benefit from a Conservative Britain.

I have a theory that the secret to their success is by convincing those better paid ‘ordinary’ people – not the millionaires or super-rich but the so-called middle earners – that they are beneficiaries of Tory policies.

They are not.

The truth is that, unless you’re the sort of person who can afford to spend lavish amounts of cash on stupid auction prizes like those I’ve described, you don’t come close to benefiting from Tory policy.

While the champagne-quaffing millionaires may chuck their money about without a care in the world, it troubles me to contemplate the state our country will be in if this goes on for five more years.

Chris Williamson is the MP for Derby North