Mariana Mazzucato: Why is there always money for war but never for public investment?

Economic growth is at the centre of British politics once again. Tony Blair says Labour needs a new plan. Keir Starmer, Wes Streeting and Andy Burnham are all setting out competing visions for the country's future. But after years of promises about prosperity, innovation and renewal, why do so many people feel the economy is no longer working for them?In this episode of The Fourcast, Jackie Long speaks to economist Professor Mariana Mazzucato, whose ideas helped shape Labour’s original pitch for power and whose new book, The Common Good Economy, argues that governments have lost sight of what the economy is actually for.They discuss whether markets should serve society rather than the other way around, who gets to define the “common good”, and whether mission-driven government can survive in an era of political instability, nationalism, trade wars and rapid technological change. They also explore Labour’s record in government so far, Tony Blair’s intervention in the party’s future, the debate over net zero and growth, and whether AI could transform the economy as profoundly as the industrial revolution.