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And that Keith is why Labour do not deserve another spell in Government, they have failed their supporters badly.
Just to take one area, unemployment. By being much tougher on immigration it would have provided the opportunity to be more creative for the unemployed.
Jobs that are going to foreigners should be going to British workers first. No real steps have been taken in 13 or more years to redress this imbalance. So while foreign workers come here and send their money home, UK residents are drawing benefits. This is NOT the fault of the migrants, but of successive Governments that have allowed this practice to continue. I expected a Labour government to be very active and innovative in this whole area, but they have done nothing of note in their time.
While there are UK residents out of work and there are vacancies (and there are hundreds of thousands of vacancies today), the JobCentres should be empowered to force benefit seekers to go to work, where they can obviously.
It will not be a simple task to put this into effect, but it is possible to make a start, and Labour has failed us all miserably in this regard. It would be cheaper for the country to subsidise benefit seekers getting work for say 3 months, give them say 25% of their benefits as a subsidy. It would help them get started rather than paying them to sit at home.
For those that are genuinely unable to find work. add to the list of works available a programme of social needs of the community tasks they can do before getting thier benefits paid. Most unemployed folks would welcome the opportunity to do something useful rather than sit at home. For the hardcore, "won't work" types, tougher rules will need to apply.
I'm just rambling here, but already have probably suggested more creative solutions than I've heard from any government in my lifetime.
Yet, sadly, to date, none of the main parties appear keen to address this complex but vital issue. UK residents working will generate tax revenues, reduce benefit costs, and lower immigration. Why has Labour ignored this challenge to do something for the non-working people of this country, whatever class you put them in?