Five Principles for a New Economic Consensus

This paper puts forward five principles for a new economic consensus, which could serve as a modern alternative to the Washington Consensus of 35 years ago. They are built on new ideas that have gained currency in economics over the past three decades. We also provide examples of the policies that could follow from these principles. The goal is not to advocate a particular constellation of policies pitched as global ‘best practice’, because a one‐size‐fits‐all approach does not make much sense: As local circumstances vary, so should policies. Ultimately, it is up to each polity to decide for itself. Our hope is that the principles contained in this paper can help organise the thinking required to make those decisions.