English Explanatory Dictionary

bleeding stump

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A deliberate disruptive or high-profile reduction in a public service, intended to demonstrate the impact of funding cuts and motivate opposition.

Word forms

bleeding stump bleeding stumps

Etymology

Coined by Christopher Hood and Maurice Wright in 1981 in Big Government in Hard Times. The implication is that the public service is deliberately cutting off its own hand to make a dramatic point.

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