Judge Britain's success on people's 'free time' not economic output, says Green Party

‘It’s time to shift away from the culture which sees us work harder and harder for longer and longer, often without reward or satisfaction’

The 'free time index' would count the hours people are not at work – or commuting (Simon Calder)

Britain’s success would be judged on the amount of leisure time people have, not economic output, under radical plans put forward by the Greens.

The “free time index” would count the hours spent relaxing, with family and pursuing other interests – with the government expected to act if it fell, the party said.

It would replace gross domestic product (GDP), the key indicator for judging the nation’s health, based purely on how well or badly the economy is performing.

The idea will form the centrepiece of the Greens’ autumn conference, starting on Friday – building on existing proposals for a four-day working week.

“True freedom will only be found when people have more control of their time,” said Sian Berry, one of the party’s co-leaders.

“It’s time to shift away from the culture which sees us work harder and harder for longer and longer, often without reward or satisfaction.”

Jonathan Bartley, the joint leader, added: “The free time index would count the hours people are not at work – or doing work on a long commute.

“It should be an aim of the government to see a yearly increase in this free time index, so that the quality of time which is truly our own becomes the real measure of wellbeing.”

The proposal has echoes of the agenda pursued, briefly, by David Cameron, when he became Conservative leader – before being abandoned after the economy crashed.

He once said: “It's time we admitted that there's more to life than money and it's time we focused not just on GDP but on GWB – general wellbeing.”

Mr Cameron charged the Office for National Statistics with finding new ways of measuring personal fulfilment, but the idea appeared to run into the sand.

Now the Greens will urge other politicians to think again when the party gathers for the three-day conference in Bristol’s city hall.

Mr Bartley and Mr Berry were announced as co-leaders last month, after Mr Bartley and Caroline Lucas, the party’s only MP, shared the helm for two years.

They immediately voiced an ambition to become Britain's “third political party”, by replacing the Liberal Democrats, who are poised to replace Vince Cable as leader, after poor performance in the polls.

The Greens, like the Lib Dems, have backed a fresh Brexit referendum, accusing the government of failing to deliver on the promises made in the first.