Austerity - Uk

In the UK, where taxation is strict and efficient – as compared to other developed countries – people expect the government to use money collected via taxes on them in an efficient and productive way. Of the 49 million adult population in the UK, as of 2011-2012, 29.9 million are expected to be liable for income tax (). This, in effect, means that more than two-thirds of the total adult population pay income taxes. Hence, when the government decides to reduce it’s spending on the benefits and public services, a large part of the UK is likely to resent it. With austerity being a fragile policy to implement, reports are now suggesting that the finances available to the current government are below par and hence this ‘age of austerity’ could be in place till 2016 ().

In today’s world, climate change and poverty are two of the several global issues we face. However, we will primarily be focusing on the latter in this presentation. The Institute for Fiscal Studies, or the IFS, defines absolute poverty as earnings below 60% of the median income, adjusted for inflation. According to the IFS, some 600,000 more children will be affected by poverty by 2013, taking the UK total to 3.1 million children in absolute poverty (). That, included with the predicted 6.5 million adults in absolute poverty is a worrying figure, by any standards. The IFS has predicted 2013 to see the biggest drop for middle-income families since the 1970s – this was credited to the Oil crisis of 1973, the secondary banking crisis between 1973 and 1975 and the 1973-1974 stock market crash, amongst other factors. Hence, periods of austerity not only increase poverty levels, as mentioned above, but also increase the difference between the rich and the poor – resulting in a frustrated society, prone to acts of social disorder.

There is ample evidence to state that periods of austerity have caused unrest in the past, and will continue to do so in the future. Research has showed that ‘episodes of...