The latest figures on earnings have been seized on by the government as evidence that the economy is working well again. On the same day, we saw figures showing ever-growing demand for food banks and that rates of pneumonia – a disease typically associated with deprivation – are up 50% in 10 years. Where does […]
Since the end of the First World War, Remembrance Day has been an occasion to commemorate the members of the Armed Forces who have lost their lives. Initially, it was those who died in World War I who were remembered, but now Remembrance Day encompasses World War II and subsequent conflicts. When we wear a […]
Those who oppose tackling mass impoverishment typically do so on the basis that: a) any attempt to do so will be counter-productive: the economic system is a finely balanced machine and any attempts to improve matters will only make them worse! b) the wealthy deserve their wealth and it would be immoral to ask them […]
This is an approximate transcript of my presentation at the Beyond Money Breakfast Briefing on 29th October, 2019. What I’m about to say is in essence extremely simple. We must act to change our economic system because: Firstly, the one we have now is not working – to the extent that on current trends, we […]
It is obvious that sound policies must be based on facts. As Greta Thunberg repeatedly points out, you cannot formulate policy on climate change unless you “listen to the scientists.” And a similar argument applies to other areas of policy. Unfortunately, it is equally obvious that far too often policy is not based on facts. […]
For the last week, Chile has been engulfed in protests. If some of the protests themselves have been violent, the response from the authorities has been far more so. As of today (24/10/2019) the death toll stands at at least 17. Chile is in crisis. And, hard though it seems to imagine, the UK could […]
The post-war contract was based on people; the market fundamentalist contract is based on markets. Most importantly it represents a radically different view of justice. During the Golden Age of Capitalism, the economy grew faster and most people got richer. For most of us, a new Golden Age would be very attractive. But for market […]
The post-war social contract was extremely good news for the vast bulk of the population, but it was not good news for wealthy market fundamentalists. The popularity of the post-war social contract meant that, in a democracy, it would be hard to get rid of it. And this set a fundamental challenge for the market […]
Here is Philip Hammond explaining that it may be just No-Deal with lipstick. And see his article below. And here is his article in The Times, spelling out the risks in slightly more detail.
This is a long post, and some of what it says may seem hard to believe. Do not dismiss it until you have read the UK Government Cabinet Paper cited at the end of the post. What do Market Fundamentalists really want? Philip Hammond is one of many former leading Tories who say that the […]
