Same old Tories – Same Old Stories.

Same old Tories: Same old Stories (1):Watch out for a Tory rise in VAT, if they win the election. Despite energetic protestations before the 1979 election, Mrs Thatcher raised VAT from 8 to 15 per cent as soon as she took power.

It was later revealed the Tories had laid their plans at least a year earlier.

At the same time they cut the top rate of income tax from 83 to 60 per cent, thus neatly transferring more of the national tax burden from the very richest to the poor and low paid. Widespread celebrations followed in The City and other centres of conspicuous greed.

Expect champagne sales to rise in Sainsbury's, Marks and Spencer and elsewhere, if the Tories win this time round. Although the Labour Party has turned its back on those it used to represent and offers itself as 'the party of the middle classes', those with real wealth know which political side their bread is buttered and they also know that the Tories always look after their chums first.

Their number, of course, includes the 23 captains of industry who took the opportunity to bash Labour over proposed National Insurance increases. They include:

• JCB's Sir Anthony Bamford (personal fortune estimated at £1,950 million in 2008); 
  
• Kingfisher boss Ian Cheshire, who will pocket £16 million over four years, if he turns B&Q around; 
  
• Sainsbury's Chief Executive Justin King, who took home £5 million in pay and bonuses in 2008/2009; 
  
• Marks and Spencer supremo Sir Stuart Rose, whose annual salary will go down from £1.6 million on 31 July to £875,000 when he steps down from his Chief Executive post to become the company chairman.
  

Same old Tories: Same old Stories (2): Chris Grayling, Tory Shadow Home Secretary,attracted a barrage of flak from the LGBT community and others over his B&B views. It's not an isolated incident from the party with a proud tradition of homophobia who brought us clause 28 and has happily forged close links with extreme right-wing homophobic and racist parties in the European Parliament. 

We should all thank Mr Grayling for reminding us about what he and his party really represent. Cameron and friends try desperately to convince us that this is a new-look Tory Party and make all the right noises in the right places about the right issues. But we all know the truth: it's the Same old Tories – Same Old Stories.