The UK is facing a crisis of democracy. What we see is a well-rehearsed pantomime, where we are given the illusion of choice, without any ability to impact real change. We shuffle to the ballot box every few years, believing we’re making meaningful choices, while the real power lies not with us but with an “omni-party”—a seamless alliance of political elites, lobbyists, and corporate interests bound together by one ruthless ideology: neoliberalism. This isn’t a conspiracy, but rather the result of decades of political and economic shifts that have eroded public power in favour of private interests.

For decades, the Conservatives and Labour have danced around each other, performing opposition but delivering the same underlying policies: the veneration of markets, the destruction of public services, and the entrenchment of inequality. It is important to acknowledge that there are dissenting voices within both parties, and not all politicians adhere to the same neoliberal principles. Figures like Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell within Labour have long challenged the party’s embrace of certain market-oriented policies. Similarly, some Conservative MPs have expressed concerns about the social impact of austerity. However, these voices have often been marginalized within their respective parties, highlighting the dominance of the neoliberal consensus. The result of this consensus? A country where the rich get richer, the planet burns, and millions languish in poverty while politicians blame us for their failings. According to the Equality Trust, the richest 10% of households in the UK hold 43% of all wealth, while the poorest 50% hold just 9%. This stark inequality is a direct result of policies that have favored the wealthy over the past several decades.

Career Politicians: Servants of Capital

The professionalization of politics has delivered a ruling class utterly detached from reality. Today’s politicians graduate seamlessly from elite universities to Westminster think tanks, skipping any meaningful engagement with the lives of ordinary people. Their loyalty isn’t to the public but to the interests of those who bankroll their careers: corporations, donors, and lobbyists. A 2019 report by Transparency International UK found that over half of the members of the House of Lords had financial links to companies or industries relevant to their parliamentary work.

These careerists lack vision because their job isn’t to lead but to manage. They manage expectations, manage public outrage, and—most importantly—manage the system so that it continues to benefit the wealthy at the expense of everyone else. They masquerade as servants of the people while delivering policies designed by and for capital.

Lobbyists and Think Tanks: The Shadow Government

Behind every major policy decision lies the invisible hand of lobbyists and think tanks. These entities are the true architects of Britain’s neoliberal order. Corporate lobbyists flood Westminster, ensuring that tax loopholes remain wide open, environmental regulations stay toothless, and the privatization of public assets accelerates. The TaxPayers’ Alliance, a right-wing think tank, has consistently advocated for lower taxes and smaller government, often producing reports that are cited by politicians who favor these policies. For example, their 2019 report “The Case Against Raising Taxes” was widely circulated among Conservative MPs. While they claim to represent the interests of taxpayers, their funding sources often remain opaque, raising questions about whose interests they truly serve.

Think tanks, often funded by shadowy billionaires, serve as the intellectual wing of this agenda. They churn out reports and soundbites that sanitize exploitative policies, framing them as necessary, efficient, or inevitable. Their narratives dominate the media, shaping public opinion and suffocating dissent.

Neoliberalism’s Gaslighting Playbook

The neoliberal order sustains itself through a constant stream of gaslighting. When wages stagnate and rents soar, they tell us it’s because we’re not working hard enough. When public services collapse, we’re told to blame immigrants or bureaucrats—anyone but the system that gutted them in the first place.

Austerity, that most brutal form of gaslighting, is sold as fiscal responsibility. But let’s be clear: it’s a political choice. Austerity enriches the few while forcing the rest of us to pick up the tab through shuttered libraries, overcrowded hospitals, and underfunded schools. The decision to cut funding for social care, for instance, has had devastating consequences for the elderly and disabled, while simultaneously increasing the burden on unpaid carers, predominantly women. Since 2010, local authority budgets have been cut by an estimated 26%, leading to significant reductions in public services across the board.

Right-Wing Media: Neoliberalism’s Megaphone

The media landscape is dominated by billionaires who have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. From Rupert Murdoch’s tabloids to the supposedly “neutral” BBC, our media tirelessly amplifies neoliberal talking points. The Media Reform Coalition found that just three companies control 83% of the UK national newspaper market, and five companies control 81% of local newspaper titles. This concentration of ownership allows a small number of individuals to exert significant influence over public discourse. The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism has also documented a right-wing bias in much of the UK press, particularly during election campaigns.

The narrative is always the same: markets are efficient, unions are greedy, and any challenge to the system is a descent into chaos. They’ve perfected the art of distraction, weaponizing culture wars to divide us while the real looting happens in boardrooms. Some argue that the media is simply reflecting mainstream public opinion. However, the reality is more complex. The media, particularly with its concentrated ownership, plays a significant role in shaping public opinion, often promoting narratives that favor the interests of its owners and their allies.

The Path Forward: From Despair to Action

This is not a time for despair; it’s a time for radical action. The omni-party may seem untouchable, but its strength lies in our apathy. If we mobilize, organize, and fight, we can dismantle the neoliberal order and build a Britain that works for everyone, not just the wealthy elite.

1. Reclaim the Narrative: We need independent media that challenges corporate propaganda and amplifies voices demanding justice, equality, and sustainability. Supporting and promoting organizations like Novara Media, Declassified UK, and OpenDemocracy can help counter the dominant narratives. We also need specific policies to address media ownership concentration, such as stricter antitrust regulations and measures to promote media plurality, such as a publicly funded media fund.
2. Build Solidarity: Unions, grassroots movements, and community organizations are our strongest weapons against exploitation. Join them. Support them. Lead them. The recent resurgence of trade union activity in the UK, with successful campaigns by unions like Unite and the RMT, demonstrates the power of collective action.
3. Demand Political Education: A politically educated populace is neoliberalism’s worst nightmare. Let’s push for curricula that teach critical thinking, systemic analysis, and the history of working-class struggle.
4. Elect Radical Leaders: The omni-party won’t fix itself. We must elect leaders who are unafraid to challenge capital, dismantle corporate power, and prioritize the public good. This involves supporting candidates who reject the neoliberal consensus and advocate for systemic change.
5. Promote Economic Alternatives: We can support and advocate for alternative economic models, such as worker cooperatives, which give employees ownership and control over their workplaces, and public banking initiatives, which aim to provide financial services that prioritize public benefit over private profit.
6. Reform the Political System: Advocate for specific reforms to the political system, such as electoral reform (e.g., proportional representation), greater transparency in lobbying, such as mandatory registration of all lobbying activity and more detailed disclosure of lobbying contacts and spending and increased citizen participation through mechanisms like citizens’ assemblies. The use of citizens’ assemblies in Ireland to debate complex issues like abortion and climate change provides a model for how this could be implemented in the UK.

Historical Context
It’s worth noting that the term “neoliberalism” itself has evolved over time, and has roots in both classical liberal economic theory and 20th-century economic thought. Thinkers like Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman were influential in its resurgence in the latter half of the 20th century. The implementation of neoliberal policies in the UK accelerated under Margaret Thatcher’s government in the 1980s, with policies like privatization, deregulation, and trade union reforms. The New Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, while implementing some progressive social policies, also adopted certain aspects of neoliberalism, particularly in their approach to public service reform and their embrace of market-based solutions. This historical context helps to explain how neoliberal ideas became so deeply embedded in the political and economic fabric of the UK.