Escaping Austerity: How Abundance Can Save Progressive Governments

ABSTRACT The UK's current political stagnation stems from a lack of growth, which has forced the government into a zero‐sum "politics of austerity" and a lost tax revenue of £150 billion annually compared to US growth rates. To escape this, progressives must embrace an "abundance agenda" that prioritizes building homes, cheap energy, and modern infrastructure. This requires shifting the narrative from abstract GDP figures to tangible public benefits while aggressively distinguishing genuine innovation from corporate rent‐seeking. Furthermore, the government should adopt a "flexicurity" model to protect workers during the AI‐led industrial revolution, ensuring that technological disruption leads to shared prosperity rather than obsolescence. Ultimately, abundance is the only viable "Third Way" to fund radical state action and restore public faith in liberal democracy.