UK Austerity
Ten years after austerity measures were put in place in the UK, the government has finally reported a small budget surplus. The huge debts incurred after bailing out banks during the 2008 global financial crisis led to an emergency budget which massively reduced government spending. But homelessness, child poverty and reliance on food banks have increased. In this episode of The Breakdown By HuffPost, we explore if austerity measures were a temporary and necessary financial tool to bring the country back from the edge of bankruptcy, or a new mindset of how the government funds social spending like housing, welfare and schooling. If the employment rate is at a 44-year low, why are people doing so badly under austerity Britain?
“We know that many councils’ finances are stretched. But, life costs more if you are disabled."
“Between 2010 and 2020, councils will have lost almost 60p out of every £1 the government had provided for services."
Ending child poverty is not just desirable, it is entirely achievable – but only if politicians like Theresa May deliver on their promises
'This is a digital exclusion double whammy' says Tom Watson MP
Ending the benefits freeze and the five-week wait to start Universal Credit would put money back into the pockets of those who have lost the most from austerity
Mass job cuts at councils have gone largely unnoticed by the public over the last decade.
From refuges to street lights, the impact of austerity hits women harder, researchers found.
As austerity bites hard, women, who earn less, own less and do more unpaid care, are disproportionately impacted – especially BAME women and those with disabilities
Knife crime has risen in the last year, both across the country and dramatically so in London. Police cuts, austerity, reductions in stop-and-frisk, increased gang activity and even drill music have been pointed to as possible reasons for the rise. Theresa May has said cuts to police has not influenced knife crime, as MET Police Chief Cressida Dick said it’s obvious that police cuts and increase in violent crimes are linked.