"I have to say, Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Ministers are like fraudsters in the fairy tale, telling gullible Liberal Democrat MPs about the beautiful progressive clothes that the emperor is wearing, if only they are clever enough and loyal enough to see them. And desperately, we have Liberal Democrats clinging to shreds of invisible cloth, reaching deep into their Liberal and Conservative history to pretend that they can be progressive now. They are claiming that Keynes might have backed the Budget. They are calling on Beveridge for support, kidding themselves that they can call on their history and that they are following in the footsteps of great liberal Conservatives like Winston Churchill, who supported the minimum wage, but the truth is that the emperor has no clothes. The truth is that if you look at the detail, the Budget is nastier than any brought in by Margaret Thatcher. Instead of Churchill, Keynes or the founders of the welfare state, the Liberal Democrats have signed up, with the Right Honourable Member for Chingford and his Chancellor, to cut support for the poor. It is perhaps apt that in this week of World Cup disappointments, it was actually a footballer who got it right. In 2002, after England were defeated in the World Cup by Brazil, Gareth Southgate reflected ruefully on England's performance and said: "We were expecting Winston Churchill and instead got Iain Duncan Smith." That is the reality for the Liberal Democrats now. With all their high hopes, they have betrayed the poor and the vulnerable, whom they stood up to defend. [The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Steve Webb) rose] I will give way to the hon. Gentleman because I know he has a history of supporting people on low incomes and I do not know why he is betraying it now."
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Members of the Parliament of the United KingdomActivists from ScotlandLGBT rights activistsEconomists from ScotlandHome Secretaries (UK)
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During a budget response debate cited from Hansard (28 July 2010). Link to the video.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Yvette_Cooper
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Yvette Cooper
Yvette Cooper (born 20 March 1969) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Home Secretary since July 2024. In 2008, she was appointed as Chief Secretary to the Treasury and later served as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (2009–2010). A former Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee (2016–2021), Cooper was appointed as Shadow Home Secretary in 2021, having previously served in the same role from 2011 to 2015. Cooper was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Norma
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