Considering the fact that Liz Truss is no longer an MP, having lost her seat to Labour on 4th July, and is currently at the Republican Convention in Milwaukee, she has had a lot to say about today’s King’s Speech.
She tweeted her list of concerns about Labour’s programme. One was of a certain niche interest. Truss criticised Stalinist housing targets. However one understands Stalinism house building was not at its core. Truss seems to have confused Stalinism with Stakhanov. He was a model Ukrainian worker (when Ukraine was part of the USSR) who exceeded production targets. His labours were used to encourage others. He was not of course building houses but the point was to promote economic growth (something Truss along with most others is keen on)
Stakhanovism and Stalinism can be seen as related but in reality Stakhanovism, in essence encouraging productivity, is not a unique characteristic of the old USSR.
Truss who came from a left-wing family background, may well have picked up the terminology from her parents. When at Oxford she is reported to have had a brief engagement with heterodox Trotskyism before departing for the LibDems. Clearly as with much else her understanding of left terminology is superficial
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