17th May 2020 / 15th May 2020 by martynhurt
The Government’s response to Covid-19 has largely prioritised public health and wellbeing over economic growth. That’s the right thing to do. Not only now, but as we move beyond the pandemic.But Covid-19 has exposed fundamental failings of the current economic model. Many of the most important workers are paid the least; millions of UK citizens […]
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16th May 2020 / 16th May 2020 by martynhurt
The obstacles faced by those wanting to use the government’s small business loan scheme has laid bare just how badly our current banking system fails us all. Banks were so slow to process loans that the governor of the Bank of England was forced to tell them to that they must “put their backs into” it. These […]
15th May 2020 / 13th May 2020 by martynhurt
In the long list of inequalities this virus has exposed, few are so stark as access to outdoor space. This can be seen at home, where wealth can buy you a substantial garden, while millions are locked down in cramped homes with no outdoor space. But leave your front door and the situation goes from […]
14th May 2020 / 13th May 2020 by martynhurt
Lockdown has meant most of us spending much more time than usual close to home. We are noticing how cars dominate, and how pavements are often not wide enough to maintain social distancing. Less traffic has cut air pollution and reduced injuries and deaths from collisions, while a growing body of research shows that death […]
13th May 2020 / 13th May 2020 by martynhurt
The principle behind a basic income is simple but transformative: at its root, the idea that everyone has value. That’s why Caroline Lucas has long campaigned for it, and was one of over 100 MPs who wrote to the Chancellor to urge him to introduce a Recovery Universal Basic Income in response to the coronavirus […]
12th May 2020 / 8th May 2020 by martynhurt
Over the last 40 years, a series of political choices have encouraged us to treat our homes as little more than financial assets. That’s exacerbated inequality between those who own a home and those who don’t and left the fundamental right to a roof over our head in the hands of a dysfunctional market, with […]
11th May 2020 / 11th May 2020 by martynhurt
Leaky homes, more than 10% of households living in fuel poverty and people having to choose between staying warm or putting food on the table. That is the true picture of household energy use in the UK, and it isn’t good enough. Working from home, or being laid off, has cut overall energy use but […]
10th May 2020 / 8th May 2020 by martynhurt
Our current food system is riddled with risks, inequalities and fragilities. Some of these are being exposed and exacerbated by the current pandemic. Farmers have been forced to pour milk down the drain or plough crops back into the field, whilst supermarket profits have soared yet an estimated 3 million Britons have gone hungry. Our health […]
9th May 2020 / 8th May 2020 by martynhurt
The £60 million in bonuses paid out to the family of Easyjet’s founder just weeks before the company secured a £600 million loan from the Treasury, while Richard Branson lobbies for government support from his Caribbean island, tells you everything you need to know about bailouts: the public take the risk, while the private sector […]
8th May 2020 / 8th May 2020 by martynhurt
Nine priorities for government action to ensure short- term responses to the coronavirus crisis create resilient green foundations for a better future The Coronavirus crisis has changed everything. It has reminded us who and what really matters in our lives. It has laid bare the profound weaknesses of an economy which has systematically eroded our […]
