Top economists urge Burnham to back UN inequality initiative

Forty of the world's most influential economists and academics have written to Prime Minister Andy Burnham asking him to commit Britain to a bold new experiment in global inequality measurement. The signatories include Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel laureate who has spent decades documenting how wealth concentrates at the top, Mariana Mazzucato from University College London, Larry Kramer who leads the London School of Economics, and Kate Pickett, whose book The Spirit Level became a touchstone for progressive thinking about how unequal societies damage everyone.

Their proposal is straightforward in concept but ambitious in scope: they want the UK to help establish an International Panel on Inequality at the United Nations. The body would work much like the climate science panels that have shaped global environmental policy—gathering evidence, tracking trends, and recommending solutions. Stiglitz himself would chair it. Four countries have already been involved in its development: Brazil, South Africa, Norway, and Spain.

The academics frame their request carefully, acknowledging Burnham's signature political commitment. His "Makerfield test"—named after his constituency—is designed to ensure that regions historically overlooked by Westminster finally get their share of resources and attention. The letter praises this domestic focus but argues that inequality is not merely a British problem. It is global, deepening, and becoming more entrenched as geopolitical tensions rise. A trusted, independent body that could measure and analyze inequality worldwide, they suggest, would give policymakers the kind of hard evidence they need to act.

The timing matters enormously. Britain will chair the G20 in 2027, a forum that brings together the world's largest economies—both the traditional Western powers and rising nations like China, India, and Brazil. The academics see this as Burnham's moment to reclaim Labour's historical role as a champion of global development and to demonstrate leadership on the world stage. They urge him to signal British support for the initiative when he attends the UN General Assembly next month.

This push reflects deeper frustrations within Labour's own ranks. When the party returned to power under Keir Starmer, it cut overseas aid spending to increase defense budgets—a decision that prompted the resignation of development minister Anneliese Dodds. The new foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, has signaled he wants to reverse course and make international development central to Labour's foreign policy again. Some backbench MPs are calling for the party to commit to spending 0.7 percent of national income on aid, a target set by Gordon Brown under the last Labour government but abandoned and then slashed further by the Conservatives. Analysis suggests that some African countries have seen their bilateral aid cut by as much as 90 percent.

Stiglitz brings particular credibility to this effort. He previously chaired a Vatican commission on debt in developing countries and recommended policies ranging from outright debt relief to new laws against "vulture funds"—investment firms that buy distressed debt cheaply and then pursue aggressive collection tactics. His involvement signals that this is not a symbolic gesture but a serious attempt to reshape how the world thinks about and measures inequality.

The Foreign Office responded cautiously but positively. Stewart Wood, the minister for growth, said the government believes that building a fairer economy requires international partnership and coordination. He indicated willingness to work with allies to strengthen global institutions, combat inequality, and coordinate development support. Whether that translates into a formal British commitment to the International Panel on Inequality remains to be seen, but the academics have given Burnham both a clear ask and a political opening—a chance to show that Labour's commitment to fairness extends beyond Britain's borders.