She’s signed an open letter warning further cuts would “damage the foundations of the British economy” and calling for a new attitude towards borrowing for investment.That hint of a rise in capital spending and the talk of active government preparing to spend to entice private investment in. Did that reassure you or did you want to hear more?It’s definitely reassuring. And, you know, this is a new government. We shouldn’t just be there ready to criticise.
And it’s not just about helicopter money. This is in fact what should be done through these five missions, which Keir Starmer has set himself out on. The net zero one is absolutely essential. So are the ones on health and wellbeing or reducing the digital divide. There’s all sorts of challenges this country has which cannot be done on the back of a napkin. We really need proper public investment to crowd in the missing private sector investment.
We have all countries there, talking about the climate challenge, the health challenge and how all the sustainable development goals are related. That requires, first of all, a global strategy. But at the national level, none of these challenges, like be ready for the next health pandemic, means investing in our public services. And by the way, this country spent 2.5 billion on consultants. I just wrote a book about this, actually.