“Little changes do not transform frameworks that are fundamentally unfair. The last few decades have enabled a record shift of money and power to a very few, but the remedy for inequality is what it has always been: collective action through the organised movement of working people. The trade union movement is the equalising, opposite force against the greed of the wealthy and privileged. This is the reason why the wealthy and privileged are so relentless in their campaign to crush unionism.” InequalityNeoliberalismCollective ActionUnion Movement Book:On Fairness Source: On Fairness
“The greater, darker, unforeseen consequences of privatisation are its corrupting effect on social fairness and opportunity more broadly. Corporations that acquire state assets depend on the election of governments with policies that will feed their business, rather than diminish it. It is in the interest of corporations that are paid to supply sub-contracted services to government projects, for example, to lobby hard against political parties mooting a return to better-paid, more secure, direct employment models. ... A powerful incentive to corruption, hard and soft, exists in the dynamics of these economic and political relationships. Big corporations have a direct interest in politics and the political system; their political donations reward those who promise them favourable conditions, and neither the community benefit nor the national interest comes into it.” Social JusticeNeoliberalismPolitical CorruptionPolitical InfluencePublic ServicesPolitical InterferencePolitical DonationsPrivatisation Of Public Assets Book:On Fairness Source: On Fairness
“Privatisation of government-owned enterprises is crucial to the project [neoliberalism]. One of the appealing features of tax cuts for neoliberal governments is that reduced revenue provides them with an excuse to sell state assets to meet the sudden budget shortfalls. The sale of state assets creates more lucrative business opportunities for the corporations that can afford to buy such things as power stations, water treatment plants, telecommunications providers, government banks and airlines. It's something of a windfall for a business to acquire an asset that will always deliver a return so long as citizens still need things like water or power supplied to their homes, a bus to catch from one place to another, or a telephone connection. And - unlike a state-owned asset - a private corporation never has to adjust its services due to democratic prompting from the electorate. Why do power prices keep going up across Australia? Because most of the power supply is now owned and operated by private corporations. They're free to price gouge on the supply of an essential service, because they can't be voted out of office. p.58-9” NeoliberalismPrivatisationPublic AssetsPower Prices Book:On Fairness Source: On Fairness
“Privatisation of government-owned enterprises is crucial to the project [neoliberalism]. One of the appealing features of tax cuts for neoliberal governments is that reduced revenue provides them with an excuse to sell state assets to meet the sudden budget shortfalls. The sale of state assets creates more lucrative business opportunities for the corporations that can afford to buy such things as power stations, water treatment plants, telecommunications providers, government banks and airlines. It's something of a windfall for a business to acquire an asset that will always deliver a return so long as citizens still need things like water or power supplied to their homes, a bus to catch from one place to another, or a telephone connection. And - unlike a state-owned asset - a private corporation never has to adjust its services due to democratic prompting from the electorate. Why do power prices keep going up across Australia? Because most of the power supply is now owned and operated by private corporations. They're free to price gouge on the supply of an essential service, because they can't be voted out of office.” NeoliberalismUtilitiesPrivatisationPublic AssetsCorporatisation Book:On Fairness Source: On Fairness
“Neoliberalism is not just about tax cuts. It relies on a suite of mechanisms to manifest its 'free market' of optimum conditions for business.” BusinessFree MarketTax CutsNeoliberalism Book:On Fairness Source: On Fairness
“There's now a worldwide industry of companies that offer rewards to political actors - politicians, lobbyist, think-tanks, activists - who show greater loyalty to maximising corporate profits than they do to principles of equality, let alone the public good. It's parasitic capitalism, and it's the economic model that the opponents of fairness prefer.” CapitalismEqualityFairnessNeoliberalismPolitical Influence Book:On Fairness Source: On Fairness