George Eaton (journalist)

George Eaton is a British writer and journalist. He is the political editor of the New Statesman, a position he has held since June 2014.[1]

Eaton studied History and Politics at the University of Warwick between 2005 and 2008, and has previously worked for PoliticsHome.[2] He was brought in to the New Statesman by Jason Cowley as a staff writer and later edited the magazine's political blog The Staggers.[3] Eaton has featured in debating panels on various news stations such as BBC News, Sky News and RT, discussing issues including health tourism and Scottish independence. In February 2015, he sat on a panel hosted by the PR company Fishburn at the Royal Society of Arts on the 2015 UK general election.[4]

He is currently writing a biography of the mayor of London Sadiq Khan entitled Sadiq: The Making of a Mayor and London's Rebirth, forthcoming from Biteback Publishing.[5]

Political views

Eaton is optimistic about Labour's chances of forming a government since the 2017 general election. Eaton wrote, " To achieve a majority of one (326), Labour now needs a modest swing of 3.57 per cent. (...) A hung parliament came as a surprise to most in Labour (including Corbyn allies) but at the next election the party can sets its sights higher. A potential majority coalition of socialists, liberal Remainers and conservative interventionists is emerging."[6]

Eaton wrote that Britain has endured austerity, that British people are tired of austerity and discontent over austerity was a factor in the Conservatives losing their overall majority. For example Eaton wrote, "Departmental budgets have been cut by an average of more than 20 per cent since 2010 (the Department for Communities and Local Government by more than 50 per cent) and more than £20bn of welfare cuts have been imposed (child benefit, for instance, is worth less than it was 17 years ago). (...) Nor is the end in sight. Over the next five years, day-to-day departmental spending is set to fall by 5.7 per cent per capita (though the election result may force a revision). Public spending as a share of GDP will tumble from 40 per cent to 37.9 per cent, well below the EU average and close to the US's 36 per cent. As Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has correctly noted, such cuts are "unprecedented" in recent history." Eaton also wrote, "There was no imperative for the UK to pursue austerity at the pace it did, or to split the balance so unequally between cuts and tax rises."[7]

Eaton is pessimistic about brexit and argues the Economy of the United Kingdom has weakened since the vote to leave the European Union. Eaton wrote, "The long-promised economic rebalancing, meanwhile, is further away than ever. Industrial production and manufacturing declined by 0.4 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively, with only services (up 0.5 per cent) making up for the shortfall. But with real wage growth negative (falling by 0.7 per cent in the three months to May 2017), and household saving at a record low, there is limited potential for consumers to continue to power growth. The pound's sharp depreciation since the Brexit vote has cut wages (by increasing inflation) without producing a corresponding rise in exports. To the UK's existing defects - low productivity, low investment and low pay - new ones have been added: politicial uncertainty and economic instability. As the clock runs down on its departure date, Britain is drifting towards Brexit in ever-worse shape."[8]

Eaton is also pessimistic about the NHS and social care. Eaton wrote, "As Corbyn noted, 2018 may be the toughest year the NHS has ever endured. Though health leaders warned they needed £4bn simply to "stand still", the government offered just £1.8bn. May boasted of record NHS funding but an ageing population, higher drugs costs and chronic conditions mean a modest increase is insufficient. Last month, [November 2017] Corbyn observed, 50,000 people were left waiting on trolleys and 12,000 in the back of ambulances "because there was no room at the A&E". And the social care crisis, largely ignored by the Conservatives since their ill-fated "dementia tax", is only growing (the subject was not even mentioned in the recent Budget).[9]

References

  1. ↑ Cowley, Jason, ed. (1 October 2015). "Sunset views and new dawns at the New Statesman Labour conference party". New Statesman. London: Progressive Digital. ISSN 1364-7431. OCLC 4588945. Archived from the original on 24 January 2016. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  2. ↑ "PM faces five 'nightmare scenarios'". Leeds: Leeds Trinity University. 28 February 2013. Archived from the original on 13 March 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  3. ↑ Burrell, Ian (29 November 2015). "The Media Column: Why the left-wing New Statesman is stubbornly resisting the lure of Corbynmania". The Independent. London: Independent Print Limited. ISSN 0951-9467. OCLC 185201487. Archived from the original on 3 December 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  4. ↑ Keirle, Matthew (20 February 2015). "Fishburn's guide to the general election: Planning for Uncertainty". PRWeek. London. Archived from the original on 28 February 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  5. ↑ "Biteback Publishing to publish Sadiq: The Making Of A Mayor And London's Rebirth By George Eaton". Biteback. 14 June 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  6. ↑ Why a Labour majority at the next election has become far easier Archived 10 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine. New Statesman
  7. ↑ The UK has endured “real austerity” Archived 4 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine. New Statesman
  8. ↑ The Brexit slowdown is real Archived 26 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ PMQs review: Theresa May celebrates survival - but the NHS crisis could haunt her Archived 21 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine. New Statesman


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