Video
Jeremy Corbyn says he has been proven ‘absolutely right’ on public spending
Jeremy Corbyn is interviewed by the BBC ahead of his last week as Labour leader. Photograph: BBC. - Credit: Archant
Outgoing Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has said the government's response to the coronavirus proves he was 'absolutely right' about his approach to public spending in the party's manifesto at the general election.
Corbyn said that he had been denounced in the election as someone 'that wanted to spend more money than we could possibly afford' to fix society
But he said the fact the Tories were now spending vast sums in response to the coronavirus crisis highlighted '10 years of austerity, of underfunding the National Health Service and underfunding our benefit system'.
Speaking to the BBC, the Islington North MP said the Tory government have finally woken up to the issue as a result of the national emergency.
'They've now suddenly realised that they have to spend money to invest in the state, as we have always said as a party, and they have come around to a lot of that position.'
You may also want to watch:
He continued: 'I did everything I possibly could to win both elections and to say to the people of this country, the only way our society can come together is if we're prepared to invest.
'I was denounced as somebody that wanted to spend more money than we could possibly afford, in order to right the social wrongs of this country.
Most Read
- 1 These are the 322 Tory MPs who voted against extending free school meals to children
- 2 German MEP tells Boris Johnson he 'owes' Britons a Brexit deal as she urged a return to EU trade talks
- 3 Betty Boothroyd delivers scathing assessment of Boris Johnson's government
- 4 Fool's gold? Nigel Farage wants you to invest your trust in his financial advice service
- 5 The deep roots of Dominic Cummings' personal antipathy to the BBC
- 6 Tory MP who voted against her own party to support free school meals motion quits government in protest
- 7 'Shameful' Tory minister defends government memo attacking Marcus Rashford's free school meals call
- 8 Who's on the BBC's Question Time tonight?
- 9 Tory minister branded 'disgraceful' after dismissing child hunger in Britain as something that has 'been going on for years'
- 10 Boris Johnson 'plans to resign' in six months because he can't live on £150k salary
'I didn't think that it would take only three months for me to be proved absolutely right by the amount of money that government is now prepared to put in - and parliament has just voted through - to deal with the coronavirus crisis.
'So this is a change in our politics, which the coronavirus crisis has actually meant in every country in the world.
'There's suddenly a realisation that we're only as healthy as the safety of our neighbour.'
Corbyn added that the coronavirus epidemic will change the political landscape forever.
'I think our society and our politics will never be the same again, because we have suddenly realised as a society and a community, we need everybody - and everybody has a contribution to make.'
Become a Supporter
The New European is proud of its journalism and we hope you are proud of it too. We believe our voice is important - both in representing the pro-EU perspective and also to help rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.
