The Green New Deal is a set of economic policies designed to address climate change, reduce economic inequality, and create new job opportunities. The proposal was first introduced in the United States by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Edward Markey in 2019. However, the idea of a Green New Deal has spread globally, including in the United Kingdom.
In the UK, the Green New Deal was first proposed by the Green Party in 2007. The party’s manifesto called for a “radical transformation” of the economy to promote sustainability, including investments in renewable energy, public transportation, and affordable housing. The Green Party’s proposal for a Green New Deal was also inspired by the original New Deal, which was a set of government programs introduced in the United States in the 1930s to address the Great Depression.
However, it was not until 2019 that the concept of a Green New Deal gained mainstream attention in the UK. The Labour Party, led by Jeremy Corbyn, included a Green New Deal in their manifesto for the 2019 general election. The party’s proposal called for a £250 billion investment over ten years to create a sustainable economy, including investments in renewable energy, public transportation, and affordable housing. The proposal also included the creation of a National Transformation Fund to finance these investments.
The Labour Party’s Green New Deal was developed by a team of experts, including economists, environmentalists, and social justice campaigners. The team was led by Ann Pettifor, an economist and author who has been advocating for a Green New Deal for over a decade. Pettifor is the director of the think tank Policy Research in Macroeconomics (PRIME) and was a member of the Green New Deal Group, which first proposed the idea of a Green New Deal in the UK.
The Green New Deal proposed by the Labour Party was also influenced by other proposals, including the Green New Deal Group’s proposal and the report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The Labour Party’s proposal was also supported by a range of environmental groups, including Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, and Extinction Rebellion.
Although the Labour Party’s proposal for a Green New Deal did not win the 2019 general election, the concept has continued to gain momentum in the UK. The Green Party has also continued to advocate for a Green New Deal, and other political parties, including the Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party, have included similar proposals in their manifestos.
In 2020, a group of UK academics, activists, and politicians launched the Green New Deal Group 2.0, which aims to build on the original Green New Deal proposal and develop a more comprehensive and ambitious plan for a sustainable economy. The group includes Pettifor, as well as other experts in economics, climate science, and social justice.
In conclusion, the Green New Deal is a set of economic policies aimed at addressing climate change, reducing economic inequality, and creating new job opportunities. The idea was first proposed in the UK by the Green Party in 2007, but gained mainstream attention in 2019 when the Labour Party included a Green New Deal in their manifesto. The Labour Party’s proposal was developed by a team of experts led by Ann Pettifor, who has been advocating for a Green New Deal for over a decade. The concept of a Green New Deal continues to gain momentum in the UK, with the launch of the Green New Deal Group 2.0 and support from environmental groups and other political parties.
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