Racism and Austerity

Racism has been endemic in the Tory Party since the 19th century and the party has openly enacted austerity since 2010. The book explores the multifaceted nature of UK racism and the concept of austerity and their disastrous effects which divide and rule the working class and keep people poor so the rich can get richer. The hostile environment was introduced by Theresa May and intensified during the governments of Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak, with Priti Patel and Suella Braverman playing key roles. The ‘age of austerity’ was unleashed during David Cameron’s premiership and escalated under that of Sunak. The author argues that hostility and austerity are interrelated concepts, and both need abandoning immediately. The 14-plus years of Tory rule ended in 2024 and was followed by far-right riots and the Tories electing a new leader, Kemi Badenoch, way to the right of Sunak. Cole advocates a form of socialism that is fully inclusive, that distributes wealth fairly and puts the people, not a capitalist elite, in control, a socialism that is antiracist and fully inclusive for all, a socialism that deals with climate change emergency and halts planetary destruction. It is his contention that only socialism has the potential to liberate the working class and to end poverty, deprivation and despair for good. Given the fourth industrial revolution and the growth of artificial intelligence, this is now more feasible than ever before in the history of the planet. A pre-condition is the removal of the profit motive as the major impetus for change and development.