PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release:
AT LAST, A POPULAR BUDGET FOR RACHEL REEVES
A Popular Budget to Fund a Social and Green New Deal
Proposals from the Green New Deal Group
By Larry Elliott, Ann Pettifor and Colin Hines
November 2025
What’s the Plan Rachel?
Not many Budgets linger long in the memory and most are quickly forgotten. This one definitely won’t be. The swirling speculation over its contents and the screeching U-turn over income tax seen recently, have led to increasingly desperate calls from Labour MPs, activists and commentators for the government to make public a clear overarching goal for its policies. As part of this, the Budget must have measures which contribute quickly to achieving this vote winning long term plan. These must address the cost of living crisis and rebuild the country’s crumbling social and environmental infrastructure.
Here’s a plan for a Popular Budget
This Green New Deal Group’s publication ‘A Popular Budget’ provides a radical input to the budget debate by having a vote winning end goal for government policies-the funding a ‘Social and Green New Deal’. Most importantly it provides an alternative to the far too infrequently challenged conventional economic policies, such as the Independence of the Bank of England, increasing austerity by obeying the Office for Budget Responsibility and the bond markets. All of which are the roadblocks to achieving a ‘Popular Budget’.
Larry Elliott, former economics editor of The Guardian and co-author of the forthcoming book on how to rebuild broken Britain, said:
“Far too much effort is put into obeying the bond market, rather than prioritising policies that can dramatically reduce our dependence on them. Tens of billions could be found by redirecting part of the massive personal savings such as ISAs and pension funds into much needed funding of social and green improvements in every community. Indeed, the economic activity and the investment potential of a Social and Green New Deal could actually act as an inducement to attract whatever lower level of foreign investment the UK government felt it needed”.
Ann Pettifor, author of ‘The Global Casino: How Wall St Gambles with People and Planet’ said:
“It’s time for the Government to show economic and political courage by reversing the Bank of England’s independence and taking back control of its ability to create money electronically and set interest rates. Its activities should then be redirected towards supporting the economic aims of the elected government and the priorities of its people”.
Clive Lewis, Member of Parliament for Norwich South and member of the Green New Deal Group, said:
“Sky-high bills for basic needs like water is a key concern for many people. The government needs a long-term plan to tackle the affordability crisis, including a transition to public ownership of utilities. Bill payers’ money should go back into the services we all need and use, instead of extracted for profit and to service excessive debt payments.”
Colin Hines, Convenor of the Green New Deal Group, said:
“A crucial illustration of how a Social and Green New Deal could benefit every constituency would be to dramatically increase energy efficiency and decarbonising the country’s 30 million homes. This will reduce energy bills and fuel poverty, improve comfort levels and generate hundreds of thousands of jobs across every constituency. The green bonus would be cutting fossil fuel energy use in dwellings which generate around 25% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions”.
Contact Details
Colin Hines Convenor of the Green New Deal
M +44(0)7738 164 304
Email: hinescolin@gmail.com
Larry Elliott
M +44(0)7771 958 899