But the economist Joseph Stiglitz argued that the government’s plan was “a gamble with almost no potential upside” and would lead to lower growth, lower demand, lower tax revenues, a deterioration of skills among the unemployed and finally, an even higher national debt.Why can I be so sure? Well, because as people much smarter than me have pointed out, austerity measure have NEVER actually improved the economy.
“We cannot afford austerity now,” he wrote in The Guardian. “Austerity converts downturns into recessions, recessions into depressions. The confidence fairy that the austerity advocates claim will appear almost never does, partly because the downturns mean that deficit reductions are always smaller than was hoped.”
Britain has been bracing for the cuts for months, after Mr. Osborne announced in June the details of the so-called spending review, but Wednesday’s announcemenet was the first time the government set out its plans, department by department.
Mr. Osborne said that 490,000 public sector jobs would be lost over the next four years, some to attrition. At the same time, payments to the long-term unemployed who fail to seek jobs would be cut, he said, saving $11 billion a year. Additionally, he said, a new 12-month limit would be imposed on long-term jobless benefits, and that measures would be taken to curb benefit fraud.
Ever.
In the history of time.
Well, if Britain tries it and it fails, perhaps someone over here will take notice?
ReplyDeleteNah... probably not. Sigh.
The fact that no one learns from any of this stuff is probably the most depressing element.
ReplyDelete