Emeritus Prof Christopher MayMar 18

Zack Polanski (Green Party of England & Wales) argues that GDP should be downgraded as a measure of political economic success; he is 'much more interested in growing people’s mental health, growing our public services, growing cohesion of our communities'....

While possibly a quixotic aim given the continuing centrality of GDP measure to political discourse, it *does* play to people's distrust of GDP as a plausible measure of their own economic experience(s).

#economics #politics
h/t FT

Show threadPeter Brown
@ChrisMayLA6 Nicola Sturgeon did the same but she was not praised in the press for doing so.
Very few people want to vote for somebody who might make them poorer. Even if they do make them feel better about being poor!
Mar 19 at 6:15amWeb
Show threadEmeritus Prof Christopher MayMar 19

@peterbrown

Of course the issue is whether a stagnating GDP necessarily means people get poorer? The dominance of GDP makes such a Q.seem non-sensical but rather is the heart of the problem...

Show threadPeter BrownMar 19
@ChrisMayLA6 a reducing GDP with better distribution of wealth will not make most people poorer. But politically it’s a very hard sell.
Show threadKevin RussellMar 19

@peterbrown @ChrisMayLA6

Raise GDP. Build schools and hospitals we need. Build wind farms, solar fields, desalination plants, cafes and skate parks. Build bicycles and music venues, housing omgosh let's build dome housing, let's spoil some views.

Let's spoil a LOT of views.

Show threadPeter BrownMar 19

@ChrisMayLA6 it’s not whether people get poorer or not. It’s whether the tabloid press will believe it.

Because if they don’t believe it, they will crucify the party that promotes it

Show threadEmeritus Prof Christopher MayMar 19

@peterbrown

But, of course, the right wing press' interest in the population's economic wellbeing is entirely contingent - when they like the party in power, the talk up general prosperity, when they feel themselves in 'opposition' then they talk it down....