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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think Labour is not the party of the working people.

719 replies

pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 17:57

I voted for Labour as I believed their election pledge of being a party for the working people but genuinely I can’t think of one thing, since they’ve been in power, that they’ve done to help me (a single working mother on around £42k a year)! I get zero help from UC, these mystical breakfast clubs don’t exist, people aren’t employing people due to their ridiculous NI implications, they aren’t building affordable housing, energy prices are insanely high and all they talk about is grants (which won’t affect me as I live in a flat)! Genuinely I can’t think of one thing that they’ve done to help working people in the middle. Why are Labour sticking their heads in the sand? Why do they refuse to help the squeezed working class? They are stopping this economy from thriving - as
nobody can afford to spend anything extra (treats, holidays, meals out etc etc)!

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Original poster
pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:51

@IrregularMo0nid agree. Net zero and millibands ridiculous grants and policies which most can’t access!

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Original poster
pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:50

@PandoraSocksfor working people…. Greens - nope, Reform - would never vote for this horrendous party…. Depending on how Kemi keeps performing I think she speaks to me the most of any of the leaders (and yes I am expecting a tsunami of abuse for this opinion)! However, I think her party is the only party that actually want to get the economy moving - not pressing pause and screw over small business and working people!

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Pleasealexa · 24/03/2026 18:50

Pistachiocake · 24/03/2026 18:42

At one time it was, but in my lifetime, I would say it's more for professionals really. The old Labour voters wouldn't have been happy about their MPs having/renting multiple properties etc-they would see that as Tory.
And removing the grant from students, something that was meant to get people from poorer, working class backgrounds, into uni, would again have not been seen as a Labour thing-they would have thought it was Tories who would have removed that.

But the numbers of students dramatically increased which is why grants had to go.

What would you have preferred, less people attending uni or fewer students with grants for low income households? Genuine question as it isn't possible to subside vast amounts of students. Perhaps they should have looked to induce employers to offer funded degree apprenticeships to lower income students and capped salaries of VP at universities so costs were not as high

Agree with housing, creating professional landlords has distorted the housing market as well as allowing foreign investors to buy vast amounts of properties in the UK.

IrregularMo0n · 24/03/2026 18:49

PandoraSocks · 24/03/2026 18:46

Which party do you feel is going to be able to turn things around?

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None of them, it isn't possible to halt the decline.

Pineneedlesincarpet · 24/03/2026 18:49

IrregularMo0n · 24/03/2026 18:48

What is to blame? Genuine question

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Net zero (government policy).

IrregularMo0n · 24/03/2026 18:48

ValidPistachio · 24/03/2026 18:02

The government is not to blame for the high energy prices.

What is to blame? Genuine question

PandoraSocks · 24/03/2026 18:48

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

What's 3 for £100?

Pineneedlesincarpet · 24/03/2026 18:48

PandoraSocks · 24/03/2026 18:46

Which party do you feel is going to be able to turn things around?

Show quote history

That is the question of the decade. Its not going to be Labour though. 14 years to prep and they've blown it comprehensively.

hattie43 · 24/03/2026 18:47

Labour is the party of the benefits demographic. They’ve done nothing of consequence to help working people .

JuliettaCaeser · 24/03/2026 18:47

Agree - but the benefit claimants will vote for them because that’s who they protect and represent. What happens when everyone is on benefits?! Who will be paying?!

Pineneedlesincarpet · 24/03/2026 18:46

pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:43

@Nomdemareyep!!! And the irony is if we ever complain we’re guilt tripped into being horrible people. How many years until the next GE! 😭😭

The polls aren't exactly overwhelming for Labour...they got a very small amount of votes in the election and thats before people knew how hopeless they are. So the majority of voters don't support them. There are a vocal few still here on MN but they aren't representative. So I don't really pay much attention to people who call other people horrible for not supporting a very bad government.

PandoraSocks · 24/03/2026 18:46

pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:43

@Nomdemareyep!!! And the irony is if we ever complain we’re guilt tripped into being horrible people. How many years until the next GE! 😭😭

Which party do you feel is going to be able to turn things around?

Tinychihuahua · 24/03/2026 18:44

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

Original poster
pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:43

@Nomdemareyep!!! And the irony is if we ever complain we’re guilt tripped into being horrible people. How many years until the next GE! 😭😭

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Pistachiocake · 24/03/2026 18:42

At one time it was, but in my lifetime, I would say it's more for professionals really. The old Labour voters wouldn't have been happy about their MPs having/renting multiple properties etc-they would see that as Tory.
And removing the grant from students, something that was meant to get people from poorer, working class backgrounds, into uni, would again have not been seen as a Labour thing-they would have thought it was Tories who would have removed that.

Pineneedlesincarpet · 24/03/2026 18:41

scalt · 24/03/2026 18:23

The question is not radical enough. It should be “AIBU that no politicians ever represent working people”?

Many politicians are in a bubble of wealth by the time they reach parliament; as such, they soon forget what things are like for people earning average or less. Granted, Tory and Reform politicians are far more likely to be rolling in money than Labour politicians. But take Tony Blair: he claimed to represent working people, and put on a show of doing so, but most of his attention was on the Blair Rich Project.

TBF Labour was specifically established to represent working people. How far they have come off track.

Nomdemare · 24/03/2026 18:40

sadly, they’ve become the party of the underclass on benefits. Squeezed middle classes be damned!

Pleasealexa · 24/03/2026 18:40

pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:10

@dinbinwe are also the 6th richest country in the world! Where is the money going?

By GDP but not per capita...so a large population (which is increasing) that isn't driving GDP growth. More people -!same size pie means less for everyone.

The UK owes so much money and now have to pay more interest...similar to a bank raising interest rates on someone with a poor credit rating.

The recent employment changes just burdened employers hence unemployment.

Benefits will have to be cut (including triple lock) employment has to be increased and legislation reduced to stimulate growth. Starmer has no authority in his party to implement changes, hence the u turns. Rayner would be a disaster.

Not sure we have a leader who can set the right course because the standard of MP is very low. They are career politicians who adopt whatever policy is likely to keep them in their seats.

It's extremely depressing. We are all heading for tougher times but it would be better to have sharp, painful policies for a few years rather than the awful slow decline that is the current tractetory.

MidnightMeltdown · 24/03/2026 18:39

ValidPistachio · 24/03/2026 18:02

The government is not to blame for the high energy prices.

No, but how much do you want to bet that they’ll be taxing working people more to pay for the energy bills of people on benefits? So we’ll end up having to pay their energy bills, as well as our own.

Pineneedlesincarpet · 24/03/2026 18:38

ValidPistachio · 24/03/2026 18:02

The government is not to blame for the high energy prices.

Of course it is. We had the highest energy prices in the developed world before the Iran war. Because of net zero. Which is government policy.

MidnightMeltdown · 24/03/2026 18:37

RhaenysRocks · 24/03/2026 18:01

Because they cant work out who 'ordinary working people are'. A lot of people seem to think anyone who earns more than nmw is rich and has broad shoulders and should bear their 'fair share' , disregarding the sharp decline in what a previous 'good salary' can achieve.

This. They are not the party of the working class, they are a the party of people on benefits who contribute fuck all

Sunshineandoranges · 24/03/2026 18:33

I feel truly disappointed in this government. They seem to have no idea about politics or business. It doesnt work to keep saying the other lot were crap. It is working people who are being treated badly and especially those who run small businesses. Young working families are overtaxed and given less back for their taxes.

Original poster
pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:33

@JehovasFitnessthey are not being rolled out. The amount is very limited and under funded. If you’re going to bang on about tjem
as much as Starmer does I’d expect them to be in 90% of the schools by now. They’re not!

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Original poster
pinkpalmleaves · 24/03/2026 18:32

@AlmostThereMaybeueah, I feeel foolish! Tory party let me down massively (luckily most of the plebs have jumped ship to Reform), I would nevef
vote Refom, I despise Zack Polanski and the Greens - I guess I’ll go back to Lib Dems!

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JehovasFitness · 24/03/2026 18:31

I am underwhelmed by this government but I’d challenge some assertions.

Breakfast clubs are being rolled out.

The “free” childcare is useful (I am aware the previous government had a part to play in this and it isn’t really 30 free hours).

The workers rights bill?

Warm homes plan?

I think this is overtly simplistic and clearly Labour’s electoral coalition is now liberal people in urban centres and people in their traditional industrial heartlands who are socially conservative. They’re trying to please two very different groups with two hands tied behind their backs because of the fiscal situation.