We should be looking at investment in infrastructure, rebuilding public services and public housing etc. Starmer has abandoned his commitment to investment in green projects, which seemed to be the only spending plans. So it seems like we are left with a continuation of the tory austerity which has been such a dismal failure. The only way to fix the mess is to grow the economy, but there is nothing from Starmer, he doesn't seem to have any kind of plan beyond not frightening the horses.
I asked the question because its a genuine one, and I'm not convinced there is an answer. And I'm certain that the real answer is not one that anyone wants to hear.
"Growing the economy" sounds like a brilliant plan. But how do you do it?
You could pump vast amounts of public money into public works, as you say, hoping that the money that goes into it permeates down into citizens pockets, but is this likely and will it create some sort of sustainable change to the economy, or will it merely be a short-term flush at great expense?
Because these things are not without vast risk. We saw Truss's micro budget, and the devastating effect of a small unfunded tax cut. All these huge infrastructure and public spending plans would be unfunded because the tax revenues are not there. Ultimately, the investment has to come externally and not from government and the truth is the UK does not seem very attractive to foreign money, with a 30% drop since the peak of 2016-18.
This is not 1997. The underlying economic conditions are vastly different.
