This week the Shadow Education Secretary Tristram Hunt told the Independent Newspaper that the Labour Party must get over its fear of the ‘F’ word and start promoting family values. He said the party needs to ‘shed its leftist qualms’ about appearing to patronise when talking about family values.
In the past the Labour Party have left it to the Conservatives to pontificate about the values of the British family and is seen as very much a right wing view. In this parliament the coalition government have introduced to ‘Troubled Families Program’ that was introduced to tackle dysfunctional families. The Labour Party vowed that, if elected next May, they would keep the programme going.
Before Labour get on their high horse and start preaching about family values, perhaps the ought to take a look back over the few years and ask whether it is the families or the state that are troubled. There is always a reason why communities decline and develop problems with anti-social behavior and addiction and, more often than not, its cause by lack of employment and opportunity.
It has become one of Labours favorite occupations to try to emulate the conservatives on certain issues and look tuff on welfare and now family values. There is no need however but instead they are falling into the trappings of avoiding the real issues. Until they create real job, opportunities and access to education and training the issues of so-called ‘Problem Families’ will remain. Lets hope it falls to the next Labour governments to tackle this problem more effectively.