A country that likes to think of itself as a model of phlegmatic common sense and good-humoured stability has become an international laughing stock: three prime ministers in as many months, four chancellors of the exchequer and a carousel of resigning ministers, some of them repeat offenders. \u201cThe programme of the Conservative Party,\u201d declared Benjamin Disraeli in 1872, \u201cis to maintain the constitution of the country.\u201d The latest bunch of party leaders have broken their own laws, sidelined official watchdogs, disrespected Parliament and dishonoured treaties.<\/p>\n
Not just a party, or a government, but Britain itself can seem to be kaput. England\u2019s union with Scotland, cemented not long after Belton House was built, is fraying. Real incomes have flatlined since the crash of 2008, with more years of stagnation to come as the economy limps behind those of most other rich countries. The reckless tax-slashing mini-budget in September threatened to deliver the coup de gr\u00e2ce. The pound tanked, markets applied a \u201cmoron premium\u201d to British sovereign debt and the Bank of England stepped in to save the government from itself.<\/p>\n
Today the economy is entering recession, inflation is rampant and pay strikes are disrupting railways, schools and even hospitals. The National Health Service (nhs), the country\u2019s most cherished institution, is buckling. Millions of people are waiting for treatment in hospitals. Ambulances are perilously scarce.<\/p>\n
In Grantham, a town of neat red-brick terraced houses, half-timbered pubs and 45,000 residents, the malaise shows up in a penumbra of hardship. Amid staff shortages in the nhs\u2014and an uproar\u2014the local emergency-care service has been cut back. Immured in stacks of nappies and cornflakes at the food bank he runs, Brian Hanbury says demand is up by 50% on last year, and is set to rocket as heating bills bite. Rachel Duffey of PayPlan, a debt-solutions firm that is one of the biggest local employers, predicts that need for help with debts is \u201cabout to explode\u201d nationwide, as people already feeling the pinch come to the end of fixed-rate mortgage deals. As for the mini-budget: \u201cIt was a shambles,\u201d laments Jonathan Cammack, steward of Grantham Conservative Club.<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n A country that likes to think of itself as a model of common sense and good-humoured stability has become an international laughing stock https:\/\/t.co\/QoontZxrB6<\/a><\/p>\n — The Economist (@TheEconomist) December 13, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n