A radical leader

Bill de Blasio, the Mayor of New York and the international speaker at Labour’s annual conference is a rare breed in American politics. He is the successful radical Democrat who ended 20 years of Republican domination of New York politics and he did it by a landslide, securing 73 per cent of the vote.

De Blasio did it on an agenda of tackling inequality in the city, of taxing richer New Yorkers to improve pre-school nursery provision primary schools, creating affordable housing and freezing rents.

Contracts for public services will come with a living wage clause, with companies having to set out how they will provide their workers with health care.

Tackling the city’s homeless problem is also a priority for de Blasio who took office in February of this year. He wants to give them a better chance to secure employment and housing, a helping hand off the mean streets.

“In so many ways” de Blasio told his supporters, “New York has become a tale of two cities. Nearly 400,000 millionaires call New York home, while nearly half of our neighbours live at or near the poverty line.”

America’s right wing commentators went into meltdown. De Blasio was a socialist, they wailed, or even a communist. He had his honeymoon in Cuba. He does not just talk to unions, he likes them.

He wanted to challenge the police stop and frisk laws, their equivalent of stop and search. As in Britain, the result was the same with young black and Asian men being the main targets.

Opponents said increasing taxes on those earning more than $500,000 to improve education just wasn’t fair.

But de Blasio remained strong on the point.  He said, “Raising taxes on the rich makes our commitment to our kids more than just words. It makes that commitment real. It makes that commitment fair.”

De Blasio is looking at ways of increasing, and possibly extending “sin taxes.” These are taxes on booze and tobacco – possibly extending them to sugary drinks – to help pay for better health care.

Not only are these products deadly at worse, unhealthy at best, but they place a greater burden on society which picks up the aftermath of the illness and deaths they cause.

Labour has picked up on increasing tax on tobacco companies with the expected backlash from the big baccy giants.

De Blasio’s fight is the urgent need to develop and execute strategies and policies to tackle inequality and declining standards of living – and that’s why he addressed Labour’s annual party conference.

Labour leader Ed Miliband, said, “I have been impressed by the work he has done since taking office in January for everyday New Yorkers so they can begin to share in, as well as create, a successful future for their great city.

“We both recognise we face a generational challenge to ensure that hard work is properly rewarded, that young people get a fair shot in life, and that the cost of living crisis for working families is tackled.

“It is an international challenge for progressive leaders in the United Kingdom, in the United States, and across the developed world. The Mayor’s speech certainly was one of the highlights of our week in Manchester.”