Wellbeing should replace GDP as primary indicator of progress say Greens
Measure Used To Green The Have Ireland's Be Should Suggested Wellbeing Party Indicators Progress
It is time for wellbeing to replace GDP as the primary indicator of progress in Ireland according to the Green Party.
The Minister of State for Community Development, Joe O’Brien, and Charities Deputy Neasa Hourigan have established a group to look at the potential for using wellbeing indicators to measure the welfare of the Irish nation, instead of relying on GDP as the primary indication of Ireland's progress.
Wellbeing Indicators would measure how Ireland is doing in “a much broader way” than simply economic performance they say.
“The pandemic has underlined for us the importance of particular areas of our lives that we generally do not measure as a government,” Minister O’Brien said.
“We can’t possibly begin to effectively tackle the challenges we face as a society unless we have a full and true picture of where we stand. The development of wellbeing Indicators can help us to do this.”
Wellbeing indicators can “supersede economic indicators” according to Minister O'Brien, and they can and should be used in decisions around allocation and reallocation of resources.
“GDP only improves alongside economic growth and yet the pursuit of economic growth has often come at the expense of our own wellbeing and that of our environment. By focusing on quality-of-life improvements and not solely economic growth, we have some chance of growing sustainably and improving wellbeing as we move into a post-Covid recovery.”
Deputy Neasa Hourigan said the policy would represent an opportunity to place issues such as “the caring economy, language and ethnic rights, environmental justice, women's rights and intragenerational (youth) policy" at the centre of decision making.
“This process must be ambitious in becoming a formative part of budgetary decision making and oversight and be truly integrated into the political process,” she said.