This economic chaos is a form of class war on the British public
The Truss government is waging an uncoordinated class war. The Truss tax cuts, the largest in 50 years, were designed to redistribute wealth from the poor to the rich.
Although the government has since scrapped its proposal to cut the 45% top rate of income tax paid by those earning more than £150,000, all other details of its “mini-budget” remain: there has been no increase in corporation tax, the cap on bankers’ bonuses has been axed and the government has launched a fresh attack on trade unions. These are ideological measures disguised under the banner of a discredited “trickle-down” growth strategy.
The same with the government’s “energy price guarantee”. This does not guarantee that nobody will pay more than £2,500 for their energy bills. Instead, it caps the price of a unit of gas and electricity. It subsidises the difference between wholesale prices and retail capped prices, compensating private energy companies for the difference and therefore guaranteeing their profits. The guarantee is estimated to cost up to £170bn over two years – an amount that will be covered from the general Treasury budget, rather than additional windfall taxes. Instead of benefiting households, the cap is designed to benefit companies, redistributing funds away from taxpayers and towards energy companies and their shareholders.
Yet the Truss government isn’t the only actor in this fight. The Bank of England has also pursued an assault on workers. In February this year, its governor, Andrew Bailey, made clear whose side the Bank was on when he asked workers to show “restraint” in calling for pay rises. He could have instead asked executives and shareholders to moderate their profit expectations, or the government to discipline businesses
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