It means the vicious circle tightens and darkens. A subdued economy leads to a subdued, restless, perhaps cantankerous electorate. A subdued economy makes the trade-offs and choices over public spending more difficult. And the wars – as well as Iran there is Ukraine – led Lord Robertson to lash out at the chancellor, accusing “non military experts in the Treasury”, as he put it, of “vandalism”.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce8ll6pyvdzo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss