Across the political spectrum there is a consensus that the economy does not work for the majority of people. For many, there is a deep sense that the system is ‘rigged’ and not on their side, nor is it on the side of the natural environment. At the New Economics Foundation (NEF), we have been arguing this for more than 30 years. But it took a financial crisis a decade ago to expose the weaknesses of our current economic model, and 10 years of pain in its aftermath for politics and institutions to wake up.

To paraphrase Winston Churchill, we are now in “the period of consequences” of our broken economy. Its human and ecological failings are straining centuries-old political processes and a decaying post-war settlement – testing each to breaking point. This, in turn, is creating the politics of division and hate. We are at a dangerous turning point, but one that is also riven with opportunity. To turn away from danger and rewire economic systems so that they work for people and planet requires a Green New Deal: it must be a vehicle for this change, and must not only transform policy, but also politics and institutions.