EC Meeting Papers January 2018

should be run. Much of the reporting will be from Britain, but we’ll also look at other parts of Europe (including Germany) and further afield.

Stack them all together and the grand lie of Thatcherism is exposed. There are alternatives. We can do things differently.

None of the ideas in this series were dreamed up by some prodigy floating on a lotus leaf down from ivory towers. None are wrinkle-free. Their authors are real people, working within real constraints, who often struggle with a dysfunctional banking system or unhelpful national policies. As well as exploring the possibilities, we’ll be honest about their limitations.

But now is the time for experiments and arguments. To reacquaint our economy with the concept of democracy. To, finally, slay those zombies.

Glossary

Austerity The belief that by cutting spending and raising taxes you can eliminate government borrowing

Crowding out The belief that the public sector sucks up finances and workers that could otherwise go to businesses

Debt The total sum of all the borrowing taken by the state over the years

Deficit The overspend racked up by the government when it spends more than it receives in taxes

• Aditya Chakrabortty is a Guardian columnist