The conventional left-wing approach to correcting inequality has been the realloca-tion of resources from rich to poor. This is problematic in various ways. First, at a time of Budget scarcity, the resources to achieve real social change are inadequate. Second, there isn't much public consent for a system in which the state confiscates money from some people to give it to their neighbours, regardless of how needy they are. Third, it deals with the symptoms, not the causes. Redistribution alone cannot counteract the forces that drive inequality in a liberalised market economy. The "predistribution" approach puts the emphasis on changing the structures that make it hard for people without privileged backgrounds to get ahead. That could take the form of universal childcare, so more women can take jobs. It means recognising the central role that a housing shortage plays in holding back many people's life chances. This, say the Milibandites, is about much more than spending priorities. It requires what Stewart Wood has called "a supply-side revolution from the left". It is a counter-part to the Conservative assertion that em-ployee protection stifles enterprise and must be stripped away for the good of economic efficiency. The predistributative reply is that productivity is boosted when staff feel se-cure, rewarded and well trained and have a stake in the company.
New Statesman, 22 Nov 2013
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