# FILE NAME: 00002010.soc
# TITLE: Is austerity a good economic policy for the UK? [c4757af0de3ef15d508f48d835bc8d53]
# DESCRIPTION: 
# DATA TYPE: soc
# MODIFICATION TYPE: original
# RELATES TO: 
# RELATED FILES: 
# PUBLICATION DATE: 2025-10-12
# MODIFICATION DATE: 2025-10-12
# NUMBER ALTERNATIVES: 4
# NUMBER VOTERS: 5
# NUMBER UNIQUE ORDERS: 4
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 1: Statement 1 - We believe that austerity is an economic policy which mainly affects the poorest in society. The answer of the politicians to “don’t spend more than you earn” is to cut spending on welfare, which just increases poverty. This will result in people spending less and thus slowing down the economy. There are far better ways to balance the budget than austerity, which we consider to be ineffective. Participant 5 ended the exercise by saying: I think it is interesting how we used our different perspectives to come to a consensus.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 2: Statement 2 - We think that austerity is not a good economic policy for the UK.  It is very easy for politicians to talk about cutting spending but the truth is that cuts only really affect the poorest in society.  Those at the top end of society - big companies, the wealthy, the politicians themselves - hardly feel any pain at all.  What makes it even worse is that poor people actually spend their money and provide the stimulus that businesses need to survive.  Cutting spending simply slows the economy down and causes more pain than is necessary.  There are better ways to balance the budget - for example through tax reforms that prevent large companies and wealthy individuals from avoiding tax.  What is more, austerity endangers our welfare state.  There are long-term problems for society when crucial public services such as the NHS are underfunded for a long period of time.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 3: Statement 3 - Austerity is not a good economic policy for the UK.  It is very easy for politicians to talk about cutting spending but the truth is that cuts only really affect the poorest in society.  Those at the top end of society - big companies, the wealthy, the politicians themselves - hardly feel any pain at all.  What makes it even worse is that poor people actually spend their money and provide the stimulus that businesses need to survive.  Cutting spending simply slows the economy down and causes more pain than is necessary.  There are better ways to balance the budget - for example through tax reforms that prevent large companies and wealthy individuals from avoiding tax.  There are also other ways of reducing spending that do not impact on the poor - such as reducing the cost of the welfare bill by reducing unemployment and creating more jobs.  This is also something that politicians talk about, but they never seem to get round to doing it.
# ALTERNATIVE NAME 4: Statement 4 - We think that austerity is not a good economic policy for the UK.  It is very easy for politicians to talk about cutting spending but the truth is that cuts only really affect the poorest in society.  Those at the top end of society - big companies, the wealthy, the politicians themselves - hardly feel any pain at all.  What makes it even worse is that poor people actually spend their money and provide the stimulus that businesses need to survive.  Cutting spending simply slows the economy down and causes more pain than is necessary.  There are better ways to balance the budget - for example through tax reforms that prevent large companies and wealthy individuals from avoiding tax.  It is also important to consider the long-term effects of austerity, such as the impact on the NHS which is one of our nation's most cherished institutions.  We feel that austerity has not helped the UK and will continue to cause more harm than good.
2: 4,2,3,1
1: 3,2,4,1
1: 4,3,1,2
1: 3,4,2,1