Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back – with Torsten Bell MP

Monday 4 November 2024, 12:00 to 13:00, Zoom

What does the future hold for Britain, and how can we reclaim our prosperity?

In his latest book, Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back, economist and politician Torsten Bell offers his vision for revitalising the UK's economy and society.

A former Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation and now Labour MP for Swansea West, Bell dissects the economic stagnation that has gripped Britain for over a decade, exploring how this prolonged period of low growth has impacted various segments of society – and what we can do about it.

At this event in our Fair Society series with the Policy Institute at King’s College London, we discussed Bell’s book and his ideas for how to raise living standards and create a more equal country.

Speakers

Torsten Bell, Member of Parliament for Swansea West, former Director of the Resolution Foundation
Zoë Billingham, Director, IPPR North
Bobby Duffy, Director, the Policy Institute at King’s College London (chair)
David Hope, Senior Lecturer in Political Economy, King’s College London
Gaby Hinsliff, Columnist at the Guardian

EVENT SUMMARY

At our recent Fair Society event in partnership with the Policy Institute at King's College London, MP Torsten Bell joined Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff, political economist David Hope and Professor Bobby Duffy to discuss Torsten’s new book "Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back" and his vision for revitalising Britain's economy.

The discussion painted a stark picture of Britain's current challenges while offering pragmatic solutions for recovery. Torsten argues that Britain's problems stem not from culture wars but from a toxic combination of 1980s-level inequality paired with 2010s economic stagnation. The UK has settled into a troubling pattern where lower-income households are approximately 27% poorer than their counterparts in Germany and France, while higher-income households remain competitive with peer economies.

The panel identified several key challenges facing modern Britain. Younger generations struggle with less secure pensions, lower wages, and increasingly unattainable housing prospects. Meanwhile, older generations grapple with deteriorating public services. This widespread decline has damaged public faith in political institutions and progress itself.

However, Torsten’s approach is neither utopian nor defeatist. Instead, he advocates for "radical incrementalism" – practical, achievable reforms that could meaningfully improve people's lives. The book outlines several key areas for investment and reform:

Future-focused investment: Britain has become a low-investment country and needs to prioritise long-term projects, including the transition to net zero, which Torsten frames as an "invest to save" initiative.
Quality employment: Automation isn't the primary threat to jobs - the real challenge is in addressing the growing divide between high-earners with workplace flexibility and security, and lower-earners without these benefits.
Housing reform: The UK faces a severe housing space shortage, with less residential space per person than New York City. This requires both the building of more homes and reforms to existing housing policies.
Tax and benefits reform: The current system needs modernisation, including reviewing inheritance tax exemptions and considering wider reforms to support public services.

The panel identified several reasons for optimism. There's now broad recognition of these challenges across the political spectrum, with both "boosters" and "denialists" largely off the stage. Britain maintains strengths in producing services the world wants to buy, and there's significant catch-up potential after years of underperformance. The success of policies like the minimum wage demonstrates that targeted interventions can make a real difference.

However, implementing these changes faces significant hurdles. As Gaby noted, governments often lose their nerve when confronting long-term challenges, preferring to focus on short-term priorities with more immediate political payoffs. David raised questions about funding, pointing out that while progressive taxation and wealth taxes are important, they alone may not generate sufficient revenue for needed investments.

Brexit's impact was discussed, with Torsten acknowledging that it has reduced GDP by approximately 4% and made trade more difficult. However, he emphasised that Brexit isn't the primary cause of Britain's productivity challenges, noting that the productivity gap with other countries is closer to 18% and predates the 2016 referendum.

The panel emphasised that these aren't abstract policy discussions but issues affecting people's daily lives. The combination of stagnant wages, housing insecurity, and deteriorating public services has created widespread insecurity that extends far beyond the poorest 10% of the population. Torsten argued that addressing these challenges could be framed as a patriotic agenda, building on beloved institutions like the BBC and NHS.

Looking ahead, the panel identified several key requirements for success:

Maintaining popular support for incremental but sustained improvements
Demonstrating visible progress in public services, even if complete transformation takes time
Building local support for housing development while ensuring community input
Developing better ways to communicate how abstract policy changes connect to people's daily experiences (although the issues are much less abstract to many people than they used to be, given the increasing impact of inequality, poverty and stagnating wages and living standards on people’s lives)

Torsten concluded by emphasising that this agenda isn't about technocratic tweaks but about the basics of social democracy: decent homes, good jobs, and reliable public services. He argued that true patriotism involves facing these challenges honestly and working to overcome them, rather than seeking scapegoats or promising quick fixes.

The message was clear: Britain's economic challenges are serious but not insurmountable. Success will require sustained commitment to long-term solutions, honest engagement with trade-offs, and the political courage to maintain course even when faced with short-term pressures. As Torsten noted, the test isn't achieving perfection but demonstrating that things are starting to get better rather than worse – and maintaining that momentum over time.