From the Guardian yesterday:
As convener of the group that coined the term Green New Deal, I would like to contest Adair Turner's view that we should not overstate its job generating potential (Climate change watchdog backs expansion of Heathrow, November 27). The numbers depend on the amount of investment put into turning Britain into a low-carbon economy. As Alistair Darling's efforts to bribe us back to declining shopping malls are seen to fail, more attention will shift to President-elect Obama's promised emphasis on funding millions of new "green collar" jobs and the need for the UK to allocate adequate funds to do likewise.
Many still appear to think that the present crisis will be a temporary downturn. But it took a quarter-century for Wall Street to return to the levels of 1929 after the Great Crash, and the Japanese economic crisis has seen falling house prices for nearly two decades. The only conclusion we can draw from these appalling events is that we will need a massive reflation of the economy that generates huge job and business opportunities, while saving money by dramatically lessening carbon use. David Miliband and Hilary Benn reportedly urged such an approach for the pre-budget report in cabinet, but were rebuffed. As the economic slump drags on, this is no time for Adair Turner's cautious approach to the Green New Deal.
Colin Hines
Convenor, Green New Deal Group
I am a member of the Green New Deal group.
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How does Colin Hines propose that jobs are created in the UK, though a Green New Deal or any other way when, structurally we are committed to labour liberalisation within the EU, and, when the Doah deal goes through, to the movement of skilled migrant labour from 153 member countries of the WTO.
Unfortunately, the people with progressive environmental and social ( in other ways) porposals, will not deal with this basic reality – which undermines any proposals they make.
This undermines the proposals as it tends to suggest that the ideas are not for real, but only to look good, get votes if related to polical Party etc.