Times of crises are all too often capitalised on by the right as an opportunity to bulldoze through an agenda of privatisation, deregulation and austerity, with corrosive implications for our economy and social fabric. Far from taking back control, the Tories’ Brexit dream is one in which Britain leads a race to the bottom, and the wheels are already in motion.
Amid the panic of a crisis, austerity is depicted as an apolitical necessity. Privatisation is sold as an efficient fix to cumbersome state ownership, while deregulation is accelerated and corporate taxes are slashed under the ‘sensible’, ‘pragmatic’ guise of capturing investment. The desired result is a dramatic reimagining of society, and the deepening of financialisation.
The UK turbo-charged this project after the last financial crash: the public ploughed £137 billion into the banks, publicly owned assets like Royal Mail and the Green Investment Bank were privatised, and tax cuts were handed to the rich as the rest were given austerity.
