Despite the many legitimate criticisms of the short-lived Liz Truss administration, it did leave one exceptional legacy. It put the question of economic growth, and the importance of raising productivity, back on the mainstream political agenda.

It took an extraordinary triple whammy – the pandemic lockdowns, the post-lockdown disruptions to global supply chains, and the war in Ukraine – to finally force the British political class, in the shape of the Truss administration, to acknowledge the dire state of the economy.

Hence, over recent months, Conservative and Labour front benches have been talking about the importance of growing the economy. In January, prime minister Rishi Sunak announced five key pledges to address people’s ‘priorities’. The following month, Labour leader Keir Starmer countered with his ‘five missions for a better Britain’. A commitment to economic growth was at the centre of both parties’ five-point plans.

Both plans have been criticised for vagueness. But there is a deeper problem with Labour’s and the Tories’ approach to the productivity slump. While both parties have bought into the new economic consensus – that is, the belief that low business investment is at the root of lacklustre growth – they also share the belief that businesses need more state financial support. In today’s circumstances, though, this would mostly act to entrench the low-growth quagmire.

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