Employ more people and support them with a universal basic income paid for by a tax on automation.
Wow! Is that what McDonnell's going to do, or rather how he's going to do it?
Sorry, but it sounds a bit far fetched to me, if automation is so endemic in the world of work that it can be taxed sufficiently to provide a basic (I assume this means more than just survival) income, where are all the jobs going to come from?
I suppose we could go back to building massive (worthy) civil projects, like Cathedrals, Castles, etc they kept people employed locally for forty or fifty years or more, provided apprenticeships, and created related employment in Market trading and Inn's and coaching services and other hostelry's. I suppose in modern day parlance this could HR2/3/4 projects, (not motorways of course, must think about climate change etc.)… so maybe it would work, still seems a bit OTT, but good luck to him if he can sell this idea!