A speech made by the then Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, to the 2009 Labour Party Conference has been making the rounds on social media.
With the country in dire straits after almost 13 years of Conservative rule, reminders of what the New Labour government achieved have been circulating.
In his speech, Brown listed off the accomplishments, which would have materially benefitted swathes of people across the country.
He said:
“If anyone says that to fight doesn’t get you anywhere, that politics can’t make a difference, that all parties are the same, then look what we’ve achieved together since 1997: the winter fuel allowance, the shortest waiting times in history, crime down by a third, the creation of Surestart, the Cancer Guarantee, record results in schools, more students than ever, the Disability Discrimination Act, devolution, civil partnerships, peace in Northern Ireland, the social chapter, half a million children out of poverty, maternity pay, paternity leave, child benefit at record levels, the minimum wage, the ban on cluster bombs, the cancelling of debt, the trebling of aid, the first ever Climate Change Act; that’s the Britain we’ve been building together, that’s the change we choose.”
Watch the speech below:
Related: HSBC shareholders bank bumper payouts as profits soar