Influence of affluence
From Dennis Outwin
Sir: You have suggested several reasons for the disappointing Conservative vote in the recent election (14 May). Here is another one. Far from suffering in the way your contributors suggest, I would say that the middle classes have never been better off. The signs are everywhere. Saga cruises and other expensive foreign holidays, low inflation, a stable currency, low unemployment, a continuous house-price boom, increasing inequality and reduced social mobility since 1997, record sales of champagne — these are not the indications of middle-class stringency. Any member of the middle class who is hard up today must be either ill or incompetent (or, to be fair, looking after sick relatives). The signs are, of course, that it will all end in tears, perhaps sooner than we think. If so, Blair will be hooted off the stage, followed closely by Brown. But that day has been expected for some years, and we are still waiting for it. Meanwhile the middle-class attitude seems to be ‘Let the Good Times Roll!’ Dennis Outwin Gorleston, Norfolk
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