I have just posted this short on YouTube and elsewhere:
This is the transcript:
The result for the Greens in Gorton and Denton is stunning, unbelievable, off the scale. Whatever words you want to use, this was a historic by-election result by a party that is clearly going to shape the future of British politics, and I'm delighted about that because we have needed a left-wing challenge to Labour for a very long time and have not had it.
But, and I want to add a word of warning amongst all the euphoria we've got now, this places an enormous burden on the Greens.
Let's be clear. There aren't many of them in Parliament. Zack Polanski isn't even there yet, and the party processes are incredibly slow. Changing Green policy is difficult, even cumbersome, and requires people to attend at its conferences, which is not a democratic representation as a consequence, and there are still real flaws in green economic policy.
The Greens have to speed up their processes. They have to make sure that they can come up to date. They have to create policies which are acceptable now to people, particularly in the field of economics.
They have still not properly updated their economic policy, which says that the government should create all money. That is absurd. We now need the Greens to have a solid, modern monetary theory-based economic policy that can answer the questions that our economy has and which can liberate money to achieve what they want: full employment, prosperity, equality, a real prospect of tackling climate change, all those things matter. But the Greens, without a sound economic policy based, as I say, on the principles of modern monetary theory, which explains the proper role of money and taxation and how the government should manage both, is not going to be viable.
So I'm delighted for everybody involved in getting Hannah Spencer elected in Gorton and Denton. I admire what Zack Polanski has done. I believe we have an opportunity. But please, can you look at your economics again and again until you have something that is available which will withstand the attack from the right-wing that is inevitably coming your way, because without that reform, without a solid economic foundation, without a justification for the programmes that you want to put in place and which this country wants, you will be in trouble.
So my appeal is  this: let's go Green, but let's do so on the basis of sound economics.
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Buy me a coffee!
Richard
Have you contacted the Green Party?
I promise you, they see what I say.
Well done Richard!
Hear! Hear! Nothing to disagree with there!
Richard, you, Steve Keen and Stephanie Kelton need to get a series of meetings with Zach, the Green MPs and the key people in the Green Party to teach them MMT and Post-Keynesian economics and with that foundation help them craft sound economic policies.
Noted
They aren’t the ones who “need a meeting”.
As Richard says, Greens who are into economics and specifically those on the Economics policy working group read his blog and other material; and it’s getting into the policy update.
What IS needed, is a programme of communications so that ‘ordinary’ Green party members and especially those who’ll be at the Conference this autumn understand at least the basics and don’t amend, bend or otherwise undermine the validity of a renewed, revised policy. Although broad demographic support from party members is generally a good way to decide policy, rather than top down imposition or overruling party congress decisions (compare Labour leadership on PR…) on technical matters it needs building a substantial base of understanding.
I hope to have time to meet with some Greens at tomorrow’s symposium!
Colin
This is why we have a programme of 120 (I mean, 120) short videos now beginning.
See you tomorrow.
Richard
Indeed, Richard (and I’ve actually downloaded some for another rather unusual educational purpose I’ll mention tomorrow FYI…
Let’s see how we (in GPEW) can spread the word in chunks that are digestible
Seconded. I know you are a busy man Richard, but strike while the iron is hot and all that.
Thanks
There’s a job for you there Richard! how refreshing would it be for a politician on tv promoting MMT. It would certainly shake-up the neoliberal establishment!
Go for it!
I am not looking for a job.
I already do 60 hours a week.
I attended an Ecology party conference many years ago. Thatcher was PM.
I can confirm what you say about the nature of conference policy making.
Thinking about Andy Lippock’s comment above, I know you and your team are constantly reflecting on and reviewing your activities and outputs and I wouldn’t want to cast anything you do in a negative light. This is early days but I am sure the question will arise whether any of that 60 hours could be redirected given the new reality in the making with this by-election result? The Greens will be pushed from all sides now and given the absolute centrality of the need to correct and communicate their economic policy we all need to give thought to how we can influence their direction of travel.
Noted
They need to get rid of some of their stupid policy documents which were enacted during the ‘Challenor ‘ . These policies are still part of the party’s programme. One example is to encourgage the making and sale of pornographic videos. I kid you not. Daily Mail and others of the ilk will start to scutinise everything issued to find stuff to attack with.