Will Hutton writes for the Observer and is co-chair of the Purposeful Company
June 2024
Labour needs billions to fund its plans – and I know where it can be found
Will Hutton
By harnessing the power of pension funds, it truly can become the party of growth
Thatcherism, austerity, Brexit, Liz Truss... goodbye and good riddance to all that
Will Hutton
For 45 years, Britain has been blighted by Conservative ideologies that promised a path to prosperity, but achieved nothing of the sort
Socialism isn’t a dirty word. It’s simply about wanting to make a fairer society
Will Hutton
Labour’s leadership needn’t struggle to define the ideology; it’s in its very constitution
May 2024
We’ve got the talent and the tech. So why can’t Britain grow its own world-beaters?
Will Hutton
Other lives
Katherine Gieve obituary
May Contain Lies by Alex Edmans review – fake news rules… and that’s a fact
So empire and the slave trade contributed little to Britain’s wealth? Pull the other one, Kemi Badenoch
Will Hutton
April 2024
Britain was wise to cleave to Europe as the empire began to disintegrate. It’s time to do it again
Will Hutton
Ideas of exceptionalism and ‘laissez-faire’ policies are still driving economic myths that should be stone dead
Ditching European trade for China and India was ever a poor bet. Now it’s a farce
Will Hutton
Brexiters’ Asia hopes have foundered amid economic woes and hardline nationalism; it’s time to look at markets in our own backyard
Conservatism’s biggest failure is the despair it has created about Britain’s future
Will Hutton
Fantasies about British exceptionalism have brought the UK to the brink of collapse. We need a new, realistic vision, says author and journalist Will Hutton
March 2024
The UK is trapped in a cycle of political, social and financial turmoil. But there is a way out…
The Conservatives’ pernicious reign, defined by a toxic belief in self-organising markets, has brought Britain to its knees. But we now have an opportunity to turn things around
For the birds? Far from it. At last Rachel Reeves has given Britain a plan for economic liftoff
Will Hutton
Despite being called continuity Hunt, the shadow chancellor has set out a proposal for meaningful change
Ignore the rightwing moaners. We don’t have 9m shirkers – they just want better work
Will Hutton
A wild west labour market and millions of people on NHS waiting lists are responsible for the ballooning benefits bill, not idleness
February 2024
The first step to our economic liberation is to tear up these crippling fiscal rules
Will Hutton
The Tories starved councils, thinking no one cared. Now they’re bust – and we care very much
Will Hutton
January 2024
Jeremy Hunt, instead of blowing £10bn on tax cuts, why not spend it on boosting growth?
Will Hutton
Economic dynamism comes from high public investment, for which the rich should be contributing more
Book of the day
The Alternative by Nick Romeo review – moral substitutes for the free market model
A survey of the global alternatives to the current economic system makes for an enlightening, inspiring read, but you’re left wondering why such initiatives have failed to take hold
Management and unions cooperating? That would make everyone happier
Will Hutton
Keir Starmer’s planned labour reforms would lift morale in focusing on agreement, not strife
December 2023
Britain is stuck in a doom loop: the system is rigged against growth. That needs to change
Will Hutton
With Bidenomics beginning to pay off, Keir Starmer needs to keep the faith and lift the gloom
