All In This Together? : Identity, Politics, and the Church in Austerity Britain

Who are we, in Britain today? There was never any doubt about Britishness during the first Age of Austerity, immediately after the Second World War. ‘Of course we’re British’, would have been the response, ‘we’ve just won the war, haven’t we?’ Yet today, in the second Age of Austerity, being British, like some other traditionally held identities, is not as prominent nor as confident an identity as it used to be. The collapse of traditional identities, and the creation by those in power of new labels such as ‘skivers’, ‘shirkers’ and ‘hard-working families’ has created a divisive narrative with devastating personal impact, giving the lie to the Conservative Party’s campaign slogan ‘We’re all in this together’. Peter Herriot believes the tide is starting to turn. New and complex identities are being developed, and, as cuts to services start to affect almost everyone, different institutions such as the Church, advocacy organisations and academia are collaborating to challenge the dominant narrative.