Should we forget the rules?

Fiscal rules, deficit targets, inflation targets, interest rate rules — every one of them was invented by neoliberal economists to constrain government and limit what democracy can achieve. In this video, I explain why these economic rules are holding back the UK economy and why it's time to forget them entirely.

Current economic policy starts with spending caps and debt-to-GDP targets before ever asking what society actually needs. This is backwards. Governments are uniquely capable of delivering universal healthcare, mass education, climate transition, and full employment — but austerity and rigid fiscal rules prevent that action. Rachel Reeves and the Labour government remain bound by rules designed to shrink the state, not serve the public.

I set out a different approach rooted in functional finance: start with societal goals, identify the real resources — labour, skills, infrastructure — needed to deliver them, and only then consider the finance required. Taxation exists to manage inflation by withdrawing excess spending power, not to "fund" government spending. Interest rates should steer financial flows towards productive investment in housing, small businesses, and public services — not fixate on an inflation target that monetary policy barely influences.

Forty-five years of market hegemony and neoliberalism have delivered poor outcomes — rising cost of living, crumbling public services, and growing national debt used to justify yet more austerity. The Bank of England needs reform. Fiscal policy and monetary policy must be used pragmatically, judged by outcomes, not by arbitrary rules. Economics is meant to serve society, and it's time UK politics reflected that.

If you believe democratic goals should come before deficit rules, like, subscribe, and join the conversation in the comments.