Quote Originally Posted by JamesWales View Post
We haven't had austerity for 13 years. The last few years have seen massive increases in public spending.
It is true that public spending has increased in recent years. Partly Johnson's social liberalism and populism trumping (!) the fiscal conservatism of all Tory Chancellors and breaking with the Cameron/Osbourne/May orthodoxy. Mainly using the government cheque book to cushion the worst effects of Covid. To a lesser extent increasing NHS funding as the government's flagship budget - even if those increases never kept up with rising demand.

But austerity is still alive and kicking (or dead and decaying) across large parts of the public sector where there has been no reversal of the Cameron/Osbourne cuts from 2010 onwards. For most public services there have been 13 uninterrupted years of cuts, more cuts, complete removal of services, privatisation, and widespread introduction of new charges for things that were previously publicly funded. Cuts to the bone; into the bone; and then amputation!