All recessions change the political balance. But this one looks set to go further - and change the way we view the role of the state. This week's revelation from the Governor of the Bank of England of £60 billion of secret government support for HBOS and RBS will only add to the impression that this is a pivotal moment, not to mention the confirmation yesterday (as if there were any doubt) that we are still in recession; the longest and deepest ever.
Labour's most recent line of attack on our economic policy seeks to embed government intervention in the economy, and to foster the view that somehow an interventionist, expansionist state is key to driving economic growth.
That's a strange view, and it one with which I would certainly disagree. But in the current climate, it's one that I could see sticking.
With the banks having brought us so close to disaster, there is a natural and worrying backlash against the free market. If we do not make the case that actually an overblown state impedes economic growth rather than accelerates it, then we will end up with a re-run of the 1960s/1970s attitude to economic management. Now, as much as I might enjoy Life on Mars, or repeats of The Good Life, none of us seriously wants to return to the days of civil servants and Ministers - normally with zero private sector expertise between them - somehow 'backing winners' with taxpayers' cash.
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