Britain joins "race to the bottom".

Leading London economists predict that more than 500,000 jobs "will be slashed in Britain over the next three years," reported the London Telegraph on May 5. According to projections by ABN Amro bank, the British economy "'is set for a dramatic decline' and will 'remain depressed for several years.'"

ABN Amro's analysis is based on the reasonable assumption that "heavily-indebted consumers will stop spending, triggering job losses on the high street [retail sector] and construction industry." The bank believes that consumer spending will "crumble" under the combined pressure of "the weak housing market, higher interest rates, and excessive debt." James Carrick, an economist for the Dutch bank, asserts that some 525,000 manufacturing, construction, and retail jobs are at risk, and that "another 100,000 could go if retailers choose to cut costs by slashing jobs rather than closing stores." All of this has a very familiar ring to those with a realistic assessment of recent developments in the U.S. economy.