Starmer will NEVER crack down on the scroungers - they're his voters - Kelvin MacKenzie

That would enrage the great man who would want something more serious to be offered to our 12million readers. So, after literally years of abuse, I changed tack and started reading out the page two lead story of The Standard, London’s afternoon paper.

That story would inevitably be the government of the day claiming they were going to crack down on people who were cheating the welfare system. The story would have the required effect and cheered Murdoch up no end.

He would say; ‘’That’s what’s wrong your country, full of bludgers.’’ Being a medal-wearing toady, I would always agree. That’s how I lasted 12 years.

In the decades since I gave up editing the Sun two things have happened. 1) Sales of the paper have collapsed. Naturally. 2) The welfare bill has gone off the charts with it now being £285billion, thanks to a load of people claiming long-term sick.

They do so as being ‘’disabled’’ pays twice the money that being jobless pays. And hold on to your hats, the forecast is that bill will rise to £360billion by the 2030. We don’t have that kind of money.

As with most things Starmer is talking cobblers. He will not reduce the benefits bill but knows that although it will anger the delegates in the hall (they love the jobless) it will please decent folk who go to work every day but see their neighbour not doing a stroke on taxpayers’ money. It was simply politics.

Starmer’s speech was a disaster for the country. To make his narrative work he had to first invent the £22million black hole and that meant he had to fill it- with your money. And he was quite clear that taxes will be going up dramatically and since the skint (all of them Labour voters) haven’t got any money, it’s Tory and Reform voters who will have to pay.

He talks as though he has answers to the reality that we are a workshy nation which has been living above our means for decades now.

The other reality is that Starmer knows, from the reaction, to stopping the winter fuel allowance for pensioners, that the country does not want the pain and if they receive it they will take out on him at the earliest opportunity.

That means he has five years to wreak the whirlwind. I agree with Iain Duncan Smith that Starmer is much more Harold Wilson than Tony Blair. If you or your family have made anything of yourself (or gone bust trying) expect the next few years to be very tough.

But while your struggling, that family down the road are living pretty well on your money. Sickening isn’t it but Starmer won’t solve it. I hope a Jenrick-Farage combo might.