Stern Calls for £40–50 Billion Annual Spending Boost on Green Infrastructure

Nicholas Stern, former Treasury chief economist, urged Andy Burnham to appoint Ed Miliband as chancellor and commit to raising public spending by two to three percentage points of national income annually—roughly £40–50 billion. Stern directed the investment toward clean energy, transport, and infrastructure. His endorsement carries weight: as author of the 2006 Stern Review on climate economics, he frames underinvestment as compounding costs, not fiscal prudence. The proposal represents a structural reorientation of UK fiscal policy, not marginal adjustment.