...but there is now a cross party consensus that the housing market needs to be flooded with new homes, which will relieve the cost of rents, so that is an expense that is likely to subside over the long term....
WTF
I have not seen a single projection anyway that suggests we are likely to get a balanced supply of housing anywhere in the next 50 years. Where on earth do you get this stuff from, or is it just some sort of wishful thinking???
As for austerity being over-hyped...Stephanie Flaunders wrote a lengthy piece about this very issue circa 2010, before the last election. Basically she pointed out that the level of cuts needed to balance the books were so large they were simply not do-able - the public would never tolerate the public service levels left. That was fours ago and it was virtually word for word the same as the article by Daniel Finklewhatshisname in the Times on Tuesday. Osborne has been banging this drum incessantly over the past 12 months, although as a serving politician he necessarily sugar coats it.
Of course Labour could get in and start spending, but is that what we really want? Personally, if we are going to switch to the Greek model, I'd prefer to actually live there so i can at least enjoy the sunshine.