On the prospects of a return to Keynes: taking Keynes's political philosophy seriously

This article addresses the prospects of a ‟return to Keynes” in terms of Keynes's own philosophy. It shows that Keynes's moral and political philosophy provide little guide to how Keynesian economics might now be achieved. Keynes's gradualist reformism, derived from both Burke and Moore, leaves a gulf between his economic agenda and the means of its implementation, which is widened in attempts to transpose his proposals onto the global political economy of the 21st century. Keynes's faith in elite intuition and enlightened rule are never securely established and are undermined by his own insights into uncertainty. However, the priority of the short-run and Keynes's depictions of organic unity suggest potential if underdeveloped avenues for alternative social choices and policy re-direction.