Councils are the victims not the cause of their poor finances
National government blames local mismanagement, but the problems in local authorities stem from years of underinvestment.
ByAusterity
Austerity is a set of Conservative political-economic policies that cut government spending and increase taxes. These polices aim to reducing government budget deficits and the role of the welfare state. In the UK, austerity has been implemented from 2010 to 2019 under the Coalition and Conservative governments, and again in 2021 to the present. Here you can find all of our latest news, analysis and comment about austerity.
The first thing Labour should do with power? Give it away
We need to rewire our politics to create the fairer society Labour was formed to strive for.
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In austerity Britain, councils have sold off billions in public assets
We are still paying the price for cuts to public services – we must boost power locally to redress this.
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Ed Davey: “Voters are not blaming Brexit”
The Lib Dem leader on where his party now stands on Europe and whether he regrets backing austerity.
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The Policy Ask with Michael Marmot: “Listen to advice from older people, but feel free to ignore it”
The professor of health inequalities on telling the truth, knowing the numbers, and staying close to the evidence.
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The school concrete crisis should terrify the Tories
Public discussion is now focused on the Conservatives’ biggest weakness: the cost of austerity.
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Austerity is about to return to Europe
The political fallout from the reimposition of the EU’s fiscal rules will be toxic.
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Broke Britannia
Britain is trapped in a cycle of inflation and economic pain. What will it take to break it?
By The illusion of prosperity is over
Politicians can no longer count on low inflation to mask the structural flaws of the British economy.
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The curious case of Jacob Rees-Mogg’s disappearing bus route
The loss of 42 bus services in the West Country is a symptom of the austerity that the Tory MP…
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Austerity on trial
At the Covid-19 inquiry, David Cameron and George Osborne were unrepentant over their spending cuts.
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Long austerity: councillors reveal how much they still cut services
Exclusive polling for the New Statesman reveals which local budgets are being slashed.
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Austerity regret – the new Tory gambit
Current and former Conservative cabinet ministers have started admitting that their past spending cuts went too far.
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Is this the end of the Met Police?
An investigation has found it to be “institutionally racist, sexist and homophobic”, and raises the possibility of abolition.
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How Happy Valley reveals the reality of austerity
Since 2014, Sally Wainwright’s complex police drama has laid bare the hope and terror of living in the north of…
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The truth behind the worst NHS crisis
Most of the carnage unfolding is the result of political decisions, not Covid-19.
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Labour must be radical on public service reform
Rethinking public services can rebuild trust in the state – and rebalance our economy.
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“What Rishi Sunak is doing is lunacy”: the City’s favourite strategist on the economy’s hidden dangers
Albert Edwards warns that the government’s austerity has set the economy on a path to collapse.
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Labour needs a radical alternative to Jeremy Hunt’s wages of misery
As ever more workers take strike action to defend their living standards, Labour must be on their side.
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The Autumn Statement was an elegy from a Conservative Party in mourning
While Labour is setting the terms of the next election, the Tories are unable to move on from the legacy…
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