To Corbyn's Credit

Here:

The recent statement from Jeremy Corbyn that "austerity is a policy choice not economic necessity" provides a welcome return to serious discussion in the Labour leadership debate.

Therefore, the assertions that Corbyn is a “danger” who is causing harm to the Labour Party and the public in general is quite surprising and inappropriate  (for example, see FT View 15 August, that Mr Corbyn's candidacy brings "potential harm to...British public life").

Many of Corbyn's policies are advocated by prominent economists and commentators. An example is his proposal to fund public investment by the sale of bonds to the Bank of England.

Yet, until now, politicians competing to hold the centre ground have largely ignored such policies or cast them as unthinkable.

Corbyn's proposals should be welcomed even by his opponents for stimulating serious discussion of crucial issues such as the role of the public sector in investment, management of debt and money, and how to tackle inequality.

It is to Corbyn's credit that he has broadened the policy discussion so that the shared assumptions behind the narrow range of policies advocated by both  the Conservative government and the other Labour leadership candidates are now being debated.

Signed by the following teachers and researchers in economics:

Victoria Chick, University College London 

Susan Himmelweit, Open University

Malcolm Sawyer, University of Leeds 

Annina Kaltenbrunner, University of Leeds 

Gary Dymski, University of Leeds Ruth Pearson, University of Leeds 

Hugo Radice, University of Leeds 

Ann Pettifor, Prime Economics 

Jeremy Smith, Prime Economics 

Steve Keen, Kingston University 

Eva Karwowski, Kingston University 

Engelbert Stockhammer, Kingston University 

Alfredo Saad, SOAS 

Guy Standing SOAS 

John Weeks, SOAS 

Carlos Oya, SOAS 

George Irvin, SOAS 

Ioana Negru, SOAS 

Chris Cramer, SOAS 

Jo Michell, University of the West of England 

Susan Newman, University of the West of England 

Daniela Gabor, University of the West of England 

Andrew Mearman, University of the West of England 

Ozlem Onaran, University of Greenwich 

Jeff Powell, University of Greenwich 

Mehmet Ugur, University of Greenwich 

Giovanni Cozzi, University of Greenwich 

Maria Nikolaidi, University of Greenwich 

Simon Mohun, Queen Mary University 

Neil Lancastle, DeMontfort University 

James Meadway, City University 

John Grahl, Middlesex University

Rhys Jenkins, University of East Anglia