Secrets to Nailing High-Pressure Economic Plans for the UK – You Won’t Want to Miss This!

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Sir Keir Starmer’s Labor Party is expected to form the next UK government according to polls. But in the face of what is likely to be an economy in very bad shape, his proposals – and especially his green prosperity plan – are still piling up, and how do they compare with the programs of the United States and Europe?

As FT reporters detailed in this week’s series Starmer ProjectLabour’s plans are (surprisingly) bold, with an interventionist industrial policy strikingly different from that of the current Conservative government.

Chancellor-wannabe Rachel Reeves, who was in Washington for talks this week, makes no secret of embracing “Bidenomics” as a project. His party’s version of the US president’s $369 million green industry plan (somewhat misleadingly titled the Inflation Reduction Act) plans to borrow £28bn a year up to 2030 to spend on transitional policies such as subsidizing wind farms, insulating homes and speeding up Britain’s nuclear programme.

The EU also announced a green incentive program to try to prevent European companies from escaping across the Atlantic to accept the offer of US subsidies.

But as government borrowing costs have risen sharply since Labor’s plan was announced in 2021, critics say it is now less cost-effective for the UK and could divert funds from other priorities such as health. The FT editorial staff asks if it is a larger program, in relative terms, than the American one it can still be convenient.

Reeves today acknowledged the scale of the challenge, saying the plan will now only start to take shape in second half of Labour’s first term.

The party also faces resistance from some of its supporters in the trade union movement who have done so attacked plans to end new oil and gas licenses in the North Sea. And some within the party are suggesting it might be better to take a leaf out of Joe Biden’s book and ditch the title “green prosperity plan” for a new focus on job opportunities rather than climate change.

However the plans turn out, Labor seems determined to take a more activist approach.

At the onset of the energy crisis, for example, he decided to call for a tax on windfall gains for energy companies. This, in a diluted format, was eventually adopted by the government and, as we reveal today, it is further softened by ministers after lobbying by industry, argue that the levy is a deterrent to investment.

One thing he seems nailed to is the grim economic landscape a new government would inherit, with low growth, trade relations strained by Brexit and weak public finances.

And as economics editor Chris Giles reports, the picture could get even bleaker if the Conservatives roll out more tax cuts despite evidence that they are not accessible.

Good to know: UK and European economy

A “Atlantic declaration” agreed by Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak aims to strengthen economic ties as allies move away from globalization and China’s role in supply chains. He hopes to increase US-UK trade in defense, nuclear materials and critical minerals used in electric car batteries.

THE eurozone is in technical recession after his the economy shrank by 0.1% in both of the last two quarters according to revised data. Analysts say the move could make the European Central Bank more reluctant to continue with its rate hike programme.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan nominated former banker Goldman Hafize Gaye Erkan as head of the Turkish central bank, emphasizing the shift away from unorthodox policies which sent the country’s currency to historic lows.

To know: global economy

I could Tokyo become the “second city of the western world”? Asia Business editor Leo Lewis examines his chances of becoming a global financial hub.

Brazil is divided on a proposal to drilling for oil in the sea off the mouth of the Amazon River. National oil and gas company Petrobras filed an appeal after the environment agency rejected its request to drill an exploratory well.

Columnist Tim Harford says little stories can teach us that sometimes an economy can be dragged down by a simple mistake monetary policy, while sometimes a recession occurs because the economy has hit a relentless obstacle. In this case, what an amusement park can teach us about central banking.

To know: business

The profitable era of cable news seems to be coming to an endjudging by the crisis a Cnn and the departure of Chris Licht, its struggling CEO, after a 13-month period of disputes, staff riots and chaos. There is even more media upheaval in the UK, where two decades of the The Barclay family’s ownership of The Telegraph has come to an end.

Thought you’d heard of all the ways the pandemic has disrupted business? Sealone of the largest jewelry companies in the world, said the Covid-induced lull in dating has had hit the demand for engagement rings.

The 2021 claim by a former Whole Foods boss that switching from meat to vegetable alternatives it used to be a “digitization-like megatrend” now it seems to ring hollow. Was a painful two-and-a-half-year journey for investors in the industry ever since.

Investor appetite for environmental and social activism Also it seems to go downjudging by this year’s annual meetings of US companies, which reflect rising political tensions and opposition from politicians such as Florida governor and presidential candidate Ron DeSantis.

Can the return of Bob Iger raise Disneyfaced with a declining legacy business, streaming services losing money, and a plummeting stock price? Watch the latest FT movie.

The summary of science

The world remains”carbon balance” — the amount of CO₂ that can be emitted to have a 50% chance of limiting global warming to 1.5°C, has halved in the past three years, according to new calculations. That budget would be used up in less than six years at current emissions levels. Here is our new puzzle: the AZ of climate change.

The UK data regulator has warned that the rapid advancement of technology that collects and applies information directly from the human brain bring a serious risk of bias and discrimination in employment and threatens privacy. He called for new regulations on applications of neurotechnology in non-medical fields, such as wellness and marketing, and in the workplace, to prevent ethical violations.

Aware of the potential damage to military, civilian and commercial communications from a so-called satellite blackout white hat – or ethical – hacker are invited to probe for defects in a US government Moonlighter launched into space on Sunday.

Indian authorities He abandoned the periodic table and the theory of evolution from school textbooks as part of a campaign by the Hindu nationalist government. Science teachers have warned that the move could endanger the information technology sector, a major economic contributor to the country.

Where is the Hitler beetle and Taylor Swift’s centipede? Science commentator Anjana Ahuja discusses the politics of species naming and if those with offensive names new ones should be given.

Something for the weekend

Challenge yourself with the range of FT weekends and daily cryptic crossword puzzles.

Some good news

As Mercury rises in the northern hemisphere, many readers’ thoughts may turn to barbecue. The bad news is that a typical four-person outdoor cooking set releases more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than a 170-mile car ride. The good news is, there are five easy ways to do this make your barbecue more environmentally friendly.