It is unquestionable that the British economy as it stands is largely the product of the Thatcher years and that New Labor is a tacit admission of their basic soundness.
You have, however, understated [or, rather, not stated at all] three important structural advantages to the British economy during these years. First, and most important, Britain became a net exporter of oil an natural gas during a period when the flow of profit to exporters from importers has increased immensely.
Second, the steady integration of Britain into the EEC has given it access to a broader economic base on very friendly terms.
Third, the political climate of Britain became much more accepting of the “collateral damage” of Thatcherism in the form of the return of a stratum of genuine poverty and homelessness in UK society.
We here also have the third advantage. For the basic American assumption is that all poverty is a moral failure on the part of the impoverished and not a structural consequence of a relatively deregulated market.
But we have not had the advantage of being an energy exporter during this same period. Nor have our “diminished trade barriers” been negotiated on terms very favorable to us.
Consequently, there are definite limits to what the Thatcher example can be for us.
