We’re being hurt by the fixation on economic growth at all costs | Larry Elliott

We have to challenge the tyranny of GDP - the metric that lists speculation, pollution and gambling as being good for the economy

There had never been anything quite like the thick "pea-souper" fog that blanketed London 65 years ago. The wind dropped and the air grew damp. For five days, smoke from coal fires and power stations was trapped, making it hard to breathe. For the frail and elderly what became known as the Great Smog was deadly. Initial estimates put the death toll at 4,000.

The coal burned in the capital in 1952 turned the city into a deathtrap, but it was good for growth. It was cold and damp as well as foggy, and the more fuel that was bought, the better it was for the economy.

Related: Is the reign of GDP as the only measure of wealth coming to an end? | Jane Gleeson-White

Simon Kuznets, who first came up with the idea of GDP, had a point when he said it should exclude harmful things

Related: The economy is failing. We need to think radically about how to fix it | Liam Byrne