A poor child in the U.K.
Credit: www.gcgi.info

Austerity pushes people to the edge.

“This government will not cut [the] deficit in a way that hurts those we most need to help, that divides the country, or that undermines the spirit and ethos of our public services” —David Cameron, in a speech in June 2010.

“If austerity were tested like a medication in a clinical trial, it would have been stopped long ago, given its deadly side effects…. One need not be an economic ideologue – we certainly aren’t – to recognize that the price of austerity can be calculated in human lives.” —David Stuckler and physician Sanjay Basu, authors of “The body economic: Why austerity kills,” 2013.

The mental strain unleashed by cuts:

Helpline caller number 1: ‘David’ is getting more anxious and more agitated the more calls he makes to the suicide helpline. He has mental health problems. He tells the volunteer manning the phone that he is finding it difficult to cope. He is terrified. His benefits ‘situation’ is […]