Abstract
The financial crisis undoubtedly represented a moment of upheaval in the UK economy. However, the elite-level ideational response it produced was not novel, but rather drew upon extant traditions of thought, most obviously those associated with the notion of austerity. As such, the crisis has been defined in accordance with the perspectives and interests of some groups rather than others, drawing upon certain values and assumptions about economic life that pertain irrespective of the proximity of crisis. In short, austerity promises ‘radical continuity’ in economic statecraft. Yet we should not assume that the hegemony of this position will persist indefinitely; austerity is an idea for exceptional times, and it remains unclear whether acquiescence to its prescriptions will continue in more ‘normal’ political and economic circumstances.
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References
Blyth, M. (2002). Great transformations: Economic ideas and institutional change in the twentieth century. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Blyth, M. (2013). Austerity: The history of a dangerous idea. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hay, C. (2002). Political analysis. Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan.
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Berry, C. (2016). Conclusion. In: Austerity Politics and UK Economic Policy. Building a Sustainable Political Economy: SPERI Research & Policy. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59010-7_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59010-7_7
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Print ISBN: 978-1-137-59009-1
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