Welcome

Welcome to the website of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Limits to Growth—a platform for cross-party collaboration  on shared and lasting prosperity in a world of environmental, social and economic limits. Our aims are: to create the space for cross-party exploration on environmental, social and economic limits to growth; to assess the evidence for such limits, identify the risks and build support for appropriate responses; and to contribute to the international debate on ‘redefining prosperity’.

We regularly commission briefings and reports. For a list of publications to date, please see the publications page. For updates on our policy debates with invited experts, please see the events page.

Following the July 2024 election, the group is due to reconstitute in the coming weeks. If you’re interested in joining the APPG as Member of Parliament or Member of the House of Lords, please email our secretariat at appg@cusp.ac.uk.

Wellbeing Matters—Tackling growth dependency | Briefing Paper

Economists have known for more than eighty years that the GDP is not a good measure of social progress. Yet, for the most part, UK policy still proceeds as though growth in GDP is the most important determinant of political and economic success. In the context of declining growth rates across the advanced economies and the need to tackle urgent challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss and social inequality, this strategy is at best short-sighted and at worst disastrous both for societal wellbeing and for long-term sustainability. This policy briefing highlights some alternatives to the conventional approach. It presents a three-fold strategy for moving beyond GDP.

Briefing →

Latest Updates

How can we build back better after COVID? | Panel discussion w/ Caroline Lucas, Tim Jackson, Mariana Mazzucato, Michael Marmot and David King

How can we build back better after COVID? | Panel discussion w/ Caroline Lucas, Tim Jackson, Mariana Mazzucato, Michael Marmot and David King

Jun 2, 2020 | , ,

Set out to engage MPs across the political spectrum, the online discussion was chaired by Krishnan Guru-Murthy (Channel 4), and expertly deliberated on the prospects for a socially and environmentally just economic recovery—which takes into account not only the need to prevent the worst of climate breakdown, but does so in a way that sustainably strengthens the wellbeing of people.

Towards a Wellbeing Economy | EESC calls for a new vision of prosperity

Towards a Wellbeing Economy | EESC calls for a new vision of prosperity

Jan 23, 2020 |

The European Economic and Social Committee overwhelmingly adopted a position paper on the sustainable and inclusive ‘wellbeing economy’ that Europe needs. A call on the EU ‘for a new vision of prosperity’, highlighting that building the wellbeing economy must start by adopting ‘a precautionary approach in which social stability does not depend on GDP growth’ and proposed the development of new indicators of economic performance and social progress.

Is growth an illusion? | Deutsche Bank hosting event programme at #wef2020 in Davos to discuss the post-growth challenge

Is growth an illusion? | Deutsche Bank hosting event programme at #wef2020 in Davos to discuss the post-growth challenge

Jan 19, 2020 |

Under the title Is Growth an Illusion?, Deutsche Bank hosted an event programme in Davos, accompanying the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum; to discuss the future of growth with leading politicians and internationally renowned experts from various fields. CUSP director Tim Jackson joined Deutsche US Chief Executive Christiana Riley and co-panellist Andrew McAfee.

Beyond Redistribution—Confronting inequality in an era of low growth | Briefing Paper

Beyond Redistribution—Confronting inequality in an era of low growth | Briefing Paper

Oct 24, 2018 | , ,

The second in our series of briefing papers on building An Economy That Works explores inequality in the UK. It examines the evidence for rising inequality over the last fifty years, estimates the economic welfare lost to society from an unequal distribution of incomes and addresses the critical question of managing inequality in the context of declining growth rates.

Understanding, Safeguarding and Strengthening the Precautionary Principle | Briefing Paper

Understanding, Safeguarding and Strengthening the Precautionary Principle | Briefing Paper

Oct 13, 2017 | ,

Uncertainties over which EU environmentally-related policies are likely to be culled in the process and aftermath of the ‘Great Repeal Bill’ should be cause for concern regarding the long term health of both humans and the ecosystems on which we all depend. The Precautionary Principle offers a comprehensive defence against policies which favour ‘growth’ at the cost of potentially irreversible or catastrophic risk.

Spring Budget 2017 | Response by the APPG on Limits to Growth

Spring Budget 2017 | Response by the APPG on Limits to Growth

Mar 13, 2017 | , ,

Budgets are routinely analysed by people who believe there is nothing problematic about economic growth. Forecast rates of GDP growth play a key role in the Budget calculations, and Budgets are praised or criticised based on the e ect they are deemed to have on future growth. In our view, such analysis misses a critical aspect of the contemporary debate: namely the prospect that there may be environmental, social and secular limits to economic growth.

Limits Revisited: A Review of the Limits to Growth Debate | Report

Limits Revisited: A Review of the Limits to Growth Debate | Report

Apr 18, 2016 | , ,

Four and a half decades after the Club of Rome published its landmark report on Limits to Growth, the study remains critical to our understanding of economic prosperity. This new review of the Limits debate outlines the contents of the Club of Rome’s report, traces the history of responses to it and dispels some of the myths surrounding it. One of the most important lessons from the study is that early responses are absolutely vital as limits are approached.

Research

 

Publications 

 

Events 

 

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