Domicile: The Mirror wades in

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The Daily Mirror is a paper that rarely gets a look in here. But its waded into the domicile issue today in style, saying:

Holding out their Gucci wallets, hassling for 30 grand to buy another crate of champagne or find a bed in the Ritz, the undeserving rich have triggered a battle for Labour's soul. Surrender to the ultra-wealthy freeloaders and Gordon Brown's government will lose all sense of fairness, abandoning social justice by capitulating to business bullies who deserve the middle finger.

They add:

These fat cats see it as a point of principle that loot is untaxed. Thankfully a growing number of Britons, Middle England as well as traditional Labour voters, regard the filthy rich coughing up as a point of principle.

And calls their bluff, saying:

They're some of the same loudmouths who cried wolf over the minimum wage, declaring it would cost 2m jobs when 2m extra jobs have been created.

And unlike so much of the press that has dutifully reproduced the false arguments of STEP and others they get to a point of principle:

This tussle is more than an argument about raising cash for public services, however important that is. The fight is over the integrity of Brown's government, the destiny of a Premier who promised social justice as well as economic efficiency.

Labour swiftly ran up the white flag over capital gains and inheritance taxes under pressure from the wealthy. At the same time the goal of halving child poverty by 2010 looks as if it will be missed, with the historic vision of abolishing child poverty by 2020 fading fast.

Brown's dream remains a fairer Britain. He'll depart No10 disappointed if he leaves a more unequal country than the one he inherited. So to surrender now to a tiny elite while millions of parents struggle to bring up kids on the breadline would question the very purpose of a Labour government.

I wouldn't use the Mirror's language, but I applaud the sentiment. It's spot on.


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