1/. In 2012, @trussliz jointly co-authored #BritanniaUnchained with Priti Patel, Dominic Raab, Kwasi Kwarteng & Chris Skidmore
I read it so you don’t have to!
The most famous passage in the book is where it accuses British workers of being “among the worst idlers in the world”
I read it so you don’t have to!
The most famous passage in the book is where it accuses British workers of being “among the worst idlers in the world”
2/. #BritanniaUnchained is a very badly written, weakly argued libertarian blueprint for unrestrained deregulation & rampant free-marketism
In 2019, amid the detritus in @BorisJohnson's car, journalists spotted a copy & the authors have made up the spine of Johnson’s Cabinets.
In 2019, amid the detritus in @BorisJohnson's car, journalists spotted a copy & the authors have made up the spine of Johnson’s Cabinets.
3/. “It’s more fun to be a pirate than join the navy”
Perhaps one of the scariest passages is in Chapter 5, ‘Buccaneers”
“Clearly, law & order, intellectual property rights exist for a reason....but”
It is reminiscent of this “ask forgiveness not permission” from Peter Thiel👇
Perhaps one of the scariest passages is in Chapter 5, ‘Buccaneers”
“Clearly, law & order, intellectual property rights exist for a reason....but”
It is reminiscent of this “ask forgiveness not permission” from Peter Thiel👇
https://twitter.com/StefSimanowitz/status/1471808962651697152
4/. “We must stop bailing out the reckless, avoiding all risk and rewarding laziness”
Truss claims that the book has been “mischaracterised”
It hasn’t
In his review, @patrickwintour says it shows “such an un-nuanced Darwinian attitude, a charge sometimes laid against Truss”
Truss claims that the book has been “mischaracterised”
It hasn’t
In his review, @patrickwintour says it shows “such an un-nuanced Darwinian attitude, a charge sometimes laid against Truss”
https://twitter.com/stefsimanowitz/status/1560210563346509824
5/. Part of the blame for the work shy attitude of Brits is put at the door of reality TV & “an increasingly pervasive celebrity culture”
But, the authors of the book argue, “pockets of work ethic still exist among industrious taxi drivers or the culture of the City of London”
But, the authors of the book argue, “pockets of work ethic still exist among industrious taxi drivers or the culture of the City of London”
6/. “We say it's all Europe that's causing all these problems, it's all, it's migrants that's causing these problems but actually, what needs to happen is...a bit more graft”
In 2018, Liz Truss said again that British workers lacked "skill & application"
In 2018, Liz Truss said again that British workers lacked "skill & application"
7/. “Many of Britain’s problems lie in the sphere of cultural values”
The book also contains the seeds of what has now become known as the culture war
For people growing up in the internet age, “hang-ups over issues like Empire...can seem like little more than ancient history”
The book also contains the seeds of what has now become known as the culture war
For people growing up in the internet age, “hang-ups over issues like Empire...can seem like little more than ancient history”
https://twitter.com/stefsimanowitz/status/1299760251592495105
8/. Writing in 2020, Suna Erdem is scathing about the authors “simplistic good-versus-evil attitudes”
Yet rather than being mere juvenilia, she notes that “the spirit of Britannia Unchained has shifted from niche to mainstream”
Deregulation Unchained👇
theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news-th…
Yet rather than being mere juvenilia, she notes that “the spirit of Britannia Unchained has shifted from niche to mainstream”
Deregulation Unchained👇
theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news-th…
https://twitter.com/stefsimanowitz/status/1471796744455397379
9/. A popular but deeply flawed analogy when discussing economic policy is to compare the national economy to a household budget
Economists say that the analogy is misleading & false
The @FT says it is “just plain wrong”
Yet the book, co-authored by our new Chancellor, says:👇
Economists say that the analogy is misleading & false
The @FT says it is “just plain wrong”
Yet the book, co-authored by our new Chancellor, says:👇
10/. A full evisceration of the economic ideas that underpin #BritanniaUnchained will come later
In the meantime, this passage sends chills down the spine
Which “vested interests” need to be taken on?
Does “propel us into the super league” echo the “Superman”#GreenwichSpeech?
In the meantime, this passage sends chills down the spine
Which “vested interests” need to be taken on?
Does “propel us into the super league” echo the “Superman”#GreenwichSpeech?
https://twitter.com/StefSimanowitz/status/1356875898381869056
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
