For decades, advocates of the privatisation of public services have boasted of the cost savings of doing so. Today, we are counting the cost
Neoliberalism is spreading coronavirus faster than any “reckless teenager” ever could. Privatised guards at quarantine hotels, private aged care centres that put profits ahead of staffing levels, and the fact that those in charge neglected to have their health professionals appropriately evaluate the risk of the Ruby Princess, are the major causes of Covid-19 transmissions and deaths in Australia.
Put simply, if Australia relied on a well-paid, well-trained and well-resourced public sector to protect us then there might have been no shutdown in Victoria, no restrictions on interstate travel and no forecast of double-digit unemployment. For decades, advocates of the outsourcing and privatisation of public services have boasted of the cost savings of doing so. Today, we are counting the cost. We will be counting it for years to come.
Continue reading...from The Guardian https://ift.tt/34gvE59
