Neoliberalism and the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Enigma of Lockdown
Received: 25 Jan 2025 / Accepted: 27 Feb 2026 / Published: 10 May 2026
Abstract
When most states in Europe and elsewhere responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with the “lockdown” of much of economic and social life, this was heralded by many, particularly the political left, as the end of neoliberalism, an era in which market and efficiency imperatives predominated. This article argues that, on the contrary, lockdown itself shows the imprint of certain, less commonly apprehended yet equally “neoliberal” precepts, including authoritarianism, technocracy, a modicum of global governance, and an exalted sense of security. However, this is not to deny the importance of other factors in the making of this historically novel pandemic response measure, in particular, the “precautionary principle” in a context of great uncertainty.
Keywords: neoliberalism; COVID-19 pandemic; lockdown; authoritarianism; security; political left; intellectuals
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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution
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CITE
Joppke, C. Neoliberalism and the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Enigma of Lockdown. Controversial Ideas 2026, 6, 3.
Joppke C. Neoliberalism and the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Enigma of Lockdown. Controversial Ideas. 2026; 6(1):3.
Joppke, Christian. 2026. "Neoliberalism and the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Enigma of Lockdown." Controversial Ideas 6, no. 1: 3.
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