Growth at all costs is not a sustainable policy | Letters

The key task should be to ensure that essential services improve the wellbeing of individuals and local communities, writes Peter Riddle . Plus letters from Sheila Triggs and Stephen Smith A key lesson for the UK from the US midterm elections is that a different approach to manag

The key task should be to ensure that essential services improve the wellbeing of individuals and local communities, writes Peter Riddle . Plus letters from Sheila Triggs and Stephen Smith A key lesson for the UK from the US midterm elections is that a different approach to managing the economy is essential if Labour hopes to retain power in two years’ time. Voters in the UK will judge Andy Burnham’s government just as harshly as American voters have judged Donald Trump if they too feel the economy is not working for them.

Meeting the rising costs of food, utilities, transport and housing has become a daily challenge for millions of people. The pain of rising costs is compounded by a collapse in the quality and reliability of many vital public services and a sense that many people feel that their community life has become more fractious, fragile and unsafe. Continue reading...