Is it any wonder disasters like Carillion keep happening when governments of all colours believe that intervention is the best solution to solving economic problems? Theresa May was correct when she said that the Conservatives will not commit to bailing out the construction firm. However, it was government interference that resulted in this mess.
Carillion has an impressive CV. After originating from Tarmac Corporation in 1999 and acquiring rivals Mowlem and Alfred McAlpine, the building company has expanded since. Prior to its liquidation, it employed 20,000 staff in the UK and its headquarters are located in Wolverhampton.
It helped construct Beetham Tower in Manchester, GCHQ, the London Olympics Media Centre, the Library of Birmingham and participated in many more impressive projects, with the exception of HS2. It is also responsible for school meals and cleaning at 900 British schools and maintenance contracts at numerous prisons.
"This is where the problem of government intervention lies"
But like many companies, the building firm stumbled upon hard times. A profit warning on 10th July 2017 revealed an £845 million impairment charge. Shares dropped by 70 per cent. There were further profit warnings in September and November. Yet this is where the problem of government intervention lies. If the Government allowed private contractors to bid for the projects Carillion managed, essentially allowing the free market to operate these schemes, this crisis would not be unfolding.
The free market always knows best and the freer the market, the freer the people.
Lord Adonis compared this situation to that of Lehman Brothers. He is right to identify that government intervention has failed yet again. The 2008 Recession was caused by a lack of competition in the banking sector, which is why Bush and Brown had to bail out large banks to prevent the economy from collapsing.
Their respective nations had become too dependent upon them. Equally, the banking market was strangled by regulation that prevented competition from flourishing, which caused companies like the Royal Bank of Scotland to become too big. Again, the freer the markets, the freer the people. Instead, taxpayers still own a large share in RBS.
Equally, the banking giant is at the mercy of the current Government.
The lessons of 2008 have not been applied to 2018. The 2008 Recession was not caused by free markets, it was caused by bad government policies. The same lesson applies to the events leading up to Carillion's collapse. If the Conservatives want to offer something distinctive to Jeremy Corbyn, they must become the party of free markets.