Left-Turn Ahead in the UK Economy: The Johnson Factor

Abstract

The paper identifies the key features and specific nature of the economic strategy adopted by Boris Johnson’s conservative government. The record growth of the public sector net borrowing in the post-war era is viewed as the main risk factor to the strategy implementation. The author concludes that liberal market economy in the UK has been gradually morphing into a coordinated market economy. The paradigm shift expresses itself in the deviation from economic neoliberalism to the idea of ‘one-nation conservatism’ adapted to modern trends. In practice, this means reinforcement of the redistributive and regulatory functions of the state, as well as transition from the consumption-led to export-led growth model.