‘Today’s GDP slump shows why Labour’s green prosperity plan is vital’

Today’s abysmal growth figures are further evidence of Britain’s economic decay under the Tories. At the heart of this month’s slump in GDP are big falls in construction and manufacturing. This should be setting alarm bells ringing.

Growing up in Merseyside in the 1980s, I saw first-hand the scarring effects of industrial decline – and how it holds back areas and communities for generations. We cannot afford to let history repeat itself.

That’s why the race to net zero is so important. It is a race for industrial revival and it is a race for energy security and independence. If we can move quickly, we can protect and create thousands of good jobs across the UK and breathe fresh life into our manufacturing heartlands and the wider economy.

But if we don’t – we risk haemorrhaging jobs abroad. Analysis published by the TUC over the summer shows that 800,000 manufacturing and supply chain jobs could be at risk if we do not speed up our transition to net zero. 

Labour’s green prosperity plan will be key to the transition

That’s why Labour’s green prosperity plan is so important. It provides the much-needed investment to ensure a quick and fair transition to a net zero economy. Moving to investing £28bn a year into the climate transition is essential to secure our industrial future.

The sceptics should look at what Joe Biden has achieved with his climate action plan across the pond. President Biden is demonstrating in real time how to grow an economy with public investment and an ambitious industrial strategy.

His Inflation Reduction Act is ramping up manufacturing and construction activity, with a flurry of new factories opening and an estimated $900bn in extra investment from the private sector.

And, with the US government setting terms that include fair pay and good union jobs, the Act has also boosted pay and conditions. That’s the kind of approach we desperately need here.

Unions and industry must work together – like at Hinkley Point C

Another good example closer to home is Hinkley Point C in Bridgewater, Somerset. At the end of last month, I had the pleasure of visiting Hinkley Point C, Britain’s first new nuclear power plant in a generation, and I was struck by what I saw.

Hinkley Point C is Europe’s largest construction site supporting 11,000 jobs and 1,000 apprenticeships. All of the work on site, including that of contractors and subcontractors, is covered by an agreement with the recognised trade unions Unite, GMB and Prospect. This ensures the jobs at the plant are good, union jobs with decent pay and secure contracts. Under the Hinkley agreement, every worker on site is invited to an induction to ensure they know their rights and entitlements.

Hinkley Point C shows what can happen when unions and industry work constructively together. We urgently need more projects like these rolled out across the country. The green prosperity plan includes a home retrofit programme that makes every home warm, new transport connections so that we can move around faster and clean power owned by the people from Great British Energy.

Now is the time to invest in our country’s future

As Keir Starmer rightly said over the summer: “Jobs – good, union jobs – will be fundamental to cleaner, safer work [and] new and better infrastructure for Britain. So, as new nuclear, battery factories and offshore wind repower Britain, Labour will build strong supply chains that create jobs, new skills and decent wages here in Britain.”

That is the kind of industrial strategy all of our unions – with workers across schools, hospitals and steel – can sign up to. It would represent a massive sea change from over a decade of Tory failure. Now is the time to invest in our country’s future and get shovels in the ground.