enough. The failure to ensure an adequate supply of affordable housing. And often
the failure to prevent gross profiteering.
Ed Miliband has referenced Attlee's post-war government in outlining his 'One
Nation' vision: "I do believe in that spirit, that spirit of one nation. One nation: a
country where everyone has a stake. One nation: a country where prosperity is fairly
shared". So what would a One Nation vision of social security look like?
Social security was from its creation founded upon the rock of full employment.
Labour needs to outline a modern strategy of full employment. The real gain from
reducing unemployment is not the paltry gains from fewer payments of £71 per week
in jobseeker's allowance (just £56 per week for under-25s). The gains are in those
people working, paying tax and contributing national insurance.
Before ‘One Nation’ became Labour’s new prefix, Ed floated the idea of
‘predistribution’ – a term with less resonance than a feminist at a UKIP conference.
However, in the field of social security, ‘predistribution’ is the key. So how do we
predistribute?
Firstly, we have to ensure that work pays enough for people to live on. Tax credits are
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