Britain’s Department for Work and Pensions data show that an additional 900,000 people dropped below the poverty line in 2010, the Cameron government’s first year in power. Earlier this year, Oxfam reported that over 500,000 people in the U.K. now rely on emergency food donations. The message: the austerity doctrine in Britain, and beyond, is not working for society.

“The shocking reality is that hundreds of thousands of people in the U.K. are turning to food aid. Cuts to social safety nets have gone too far, leading to destitution, hardship and hunger on a large scale. It is unacceptable that this is happening in the seventh-wealthiest nation on the planet.” Oxfam’s chief Mark Goldring told the Financial Times in April.

The U.K. government has framed unemployed people as lazy “shirkers,” to justify the measures that will target them. But this narrative neglects their figures and how austerity has worsened the job market. Children in poverty are twice as likely to come from families that have work, according to the Department of Work and Pensions. Today workers are more frequently employed on a precarious basis without fixed hour contracts.

Austerity measures are making the recession far worse for the majority. Workers’ salaries have dropped at unprecedented rates, which are far worse than in previous economic crashes explains Claire Crawford from the Institute of Fiscal Studies, in reference to results published last month.

These conditions have led many to rely on payday loans. The Independent released figures showing 1 million households relied on these “legal loan sharks” last month. Their report explained how 38% of the people using these loans, with interest rates up to 5000%, took them to buy their food and other basic needs.

The severity of cuts – with deeper pain in the pipeline – has led commentators to suggest the government is defying the social contract. This is the state’s obligation to the people that legitimizes its power. Official UK and World Health Organization statistics show that over 7,000 died in the winter of 2011-12 as they could not afford to heat their homes. The government has awarded the private company ATOS the contract to assess whether disabled people are entitled to state support. Within one year, 10,600 people died going through fit-to-work panels. ATOS often only uses 15 minutes to make assessments on peoples’ disabilities. “The tests are unfair and unethical,” Dr Wood told the BBC. He was a medical professional employed to undertake assessments. The private company directed him to change reports and skew them against the clamant; he left the company due to its unethical practices.

Austerity is Not Working

In autumn 2012 the IMF published European countries austerity rates in comparison to their GDP fluctuation over the previous four years. This data showed a correlation: the higher the austerity the larger the drops in GDP. Greece was the worst case, with 15% austerity causing an 18% drop in national output.

On an international level, austerity’s impact on unemployment is clear. A recent report from the British union PCS contrasted countries that applied austerity against those who continued spending in 2011. Japan and the U.S. avoided austerity measures and their unemployment fell. On the other hand, austerity in the Euro-zone and Britain increased unemployment; again Greece suffered the worst impacts.

The Austerity Doctrine is Based on Flawed Idea

Two economic papers underpinned European policymakers’ decision to follow austerity. Economists Reinhart and Rogoff stated how dangerous it was for countries to run up debts above 90% of GDP. This benchmark became the raison d’être for austerity. But in April, it was revealed to be based on miscalculations: now one of the most famous mistakes in economics and probably the most influential.

Italian economists Alesina and Ardagana provided the other supporting pillar for austerity. In April 2010 they presented European Finance Ministers their idea that austerity had a proven record of success. Since then writers such as Mark Blyth have shown how their research is based on anomalies and misrepresentations. One such example the Italians put forward was Ireland, which grew and pursued austerity in the 80s. But this can be explained as Britain its main economic trading partner was in an economic boom.

Austerity is Working for the 1%

Whilst austerity is causing harsh suffering for the majority, the story for the super-rich is the opposite. Stock markets in Europe and America have returned to pre-crisis highs. The average U.K. CEO’s pay in 2012 increased over 10%. These results come from a survey by the consultancy firm MM&K. The highest 1% of earners has increased their share of British earnings from 7% in the mid 1990s to 10%, according to analysis by the Resolution Foundation. This think tanks work is backed up again by the OECD who warns the U.K. to reverse its austerity measures particularly to tackle inequality. The High Pay Centre is an organization that focuses on the steep rises in executive pay. It places the super-riches’ prosperity into a historical context. The U.K. has returned to levels of income inequality not seen since the 1930s.

The Government is Working for the 1%

Austerity is having a devastating effect on the majority and its theoretical justification has been diminished. But Britain’s Chancellor George Osborne is steadfast: he wants social spending cuts and austerity to last well into the next decade. This backs up the critics’ claims that the government has an ideological drive to attack social provisions. Their commitment to the dogma suggests that they will continue austerity as far as they can, cutting away the social welfare gains made throughout the Twentieth Century. This includes social housing, universal healthcare and welfare. Further support for the argument that the government is working for the 1% is shown by new tax legislation alongside enabling corporations to use tax havens. In April, the tax for those earning over £150,000 was cut from 50% to 45%.

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