We are being failed by the economy

‘The type of economic growth over the past decades has increased inequalities and environmental degradation.’ Photograph: Alamy

The chief executive of the Royal Society of Arts, Andy Haldane, says the worsening health of Britons is holding back the UK economy (Report, 10 November). It’s the other way round: the UK economy is failing the health of Britons. The type of economic growth over the past decades has increased inequalities and environmental degradation, with a detrimental impact on our wellbeing. Governments have undermined and weakened social welfare mechanisms (including the NHS). We are now faced with all sorts of health-related and environmental problems. Only a shift away from the blind pursuit of growth towards a wellbeing-centred economy will restore the vitality of our societies and the planet.
Prof Lorenzo Fioramonti
Institute for Sustainability, University of Surrey

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