New Labour against Newer Labour ; Blair v Bell

Posted on May 28, 2026 by henry tapper
Bell

 

I don’t spend much time on twitter any more and what I spend I follow people that I know who have influence. I have particularly respected two politicians in the last thirty years who support Labour. The first is Tony Blair , the second Torsten Bell and it this seems unfair on many others, it’s because they have had a way of projecting themselves which I understand. They are not the same and this week’s seen Blair speak out against what he sees and Bell stands for (new and newer labour if you like). What is here is Torsten Bell explaining how the Labour Government he’s a part of is not what Blair and those with him want.

The link is to the article but I find Bell’s series of tweets that followed.

 

The call for reinvestment in our infrastructure is what we have heard since Torsten Bell took over as Pensions Minister.

I have said consistently since he arrived as our Pension Minister that we have in Torsten Bell an articulate and thoughtful man who can go on to do much more than he has done in pensions.

We are lucky to have him at the moment and will miss him when he moves on. But he has left the fulfillment of what was originally put in place by Webb and was progressed by Opperman. Private and public pensions have progressed, but private pensions in particular.

In the context of what we’ve seen as him in a Minister, his wider political position revert back to his statement he made in 2024, his book “Great Britain- How We Get Our Future Back”.

If this blog sounds a hagiography, it is not. He can be arrogant and short with people. He is not tolerant of weakness. But I think he is worthy of being considered one of the best pension ministers we have had and that after less than two years in parliament.

Torsten Bell’s battle with Tony Blair hi-lites their likeness and their contrast.

About henry tapper

Founder of the Pension PlayPen,, partner of Stella, father of Olly . I am the Pension Plowman
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4 Responses to New Labour against Newer Labour ; Blair v Bell

  1. dearieme says:
    May 28, 2026 at 7.32

    Is he the sort of chap who says that HMG should confiscate part of our pension funds and invest the loot in the likes of HS2?

    Reply
  2. henry tapper says:
    May 28, 2026 at 7.32

    I suppose these things are down to a business case and choice; I think Thames Water seemed a good idea 15 years ago, you could have bought into Deep Mind before it went to the USA. There will be good and bad investments in the private markets – I hope that we see good decision making

    Reply
  3. C H says:
    May 28, 2026 at 7.32

    “This One Simple Trick Will Fix the UK”

    The UK’s problems nearly all stem from one thing: lack of economic growth. Fix that, and nearly everything else can improve. While Labour talked a good growth game prior to the 2024 general election, their subsequent actions have been consistently anti-growth, leading directly to the current stagnation. See Labour-supporting Stephen Bush’s comments in yesterday’s FT:
    https://archive.ph/20260527084500/https://www.ft.com/content/ba7e91fc-01bc-4052-a1a0-1263feabe1c0

    I’m unimpressed with Torsten Bell’s tweet suggesting a VAT increase would usher in higher borrowing rates. While higher VAT would lead to a one-off increase in the price level, higher taxes represent a tightening of fiscal policy, eroding consumer purchasing power and removing demand from the economy, making them medium- to longer-term *disinflationary*.

    Consequently, with the labour market now weakening rendering a wage-price spiral unlikely, the BoE would almost certainly ‘look through’ any short-term price shock, keeping Bank Rate steady. Meanwhile, the gilts market would immediately price in the longer-term disinflationary impact of subdued consumer demand, resulting in lower borrowing rates for both government and the private sector.

    Incidentally, while today’s Labour Party may not be fans of Blair, a UK political leader and party putting forward a centrist, pro-growth, fiscally-sound policy platform would probably enjoy a landslide General Election win. Not by default, as with Starmer’s victory, which was driven by a desire to kick out the incumbents, but rather through a true mandate from centrist support. Instead, we’re offered increasingly madcap anti-growth policy mixes from both Left and Right, with economic stagnation the best we can hope for.

    Reply
    • Outsider-looking-in says:
      May 28, 2026 at 7.32

      VAT disproportionately affects those on low incomes. There would be wider social consequences than the purely economic.

      Reply

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