Labour must resist the siren calls of austerity

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

53% : Under the shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds and the shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves, the plan has evolved from aspirations to clear targets: double onshore wind, triple solar power, quadruple offshore wind; decarbonise the electricity system by 2030; train tens of thousands of doctors and nurses; build new, green steel production facilities; use defence spending to drive a domestic industrial renaissance.To achieve this, we will have to borrow to invest: the £28bn-a-year that Reeves has promised until 2030 should remain the central spine of Labour's promise.
48% : In January this year he in effect committed the Treasury to a policy of "intergenerational justice" on climate change - meaning that any investment needed to decarbonise Britain must come from taxation, not borrowing.
46% : So did Brexit, which has exacerbated the skills shortage that blights every sector, and permanently weakened sterling - without any concomitant boost in exports.
32% : "It won't work, it's not necessary and it will harm people": that's the one-line summary of how Labour should react to tomorrow's Autumn Statement (17 November), which looks likely to raise taxes and cut public spending by around £60bn by 2027.

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