My Blog
Meat and potato pies and the Nobel Prize in economics
Tragedy struck at a mid-week game played during the holiday season in Football League Division Two. The pies ran out
A quiz for the end of 2012
There are many puzzles about the economy, and in the holiday spirit a quiz is provided at the end. A
Bankers, Greens and the Barking Mad: When Prophesy Fails
Forecasts of the end of the world have an even worse track record than predictions in economics. Some followers of
Prisons, incentives and how to save the planet
Criminals are refusing to leave Portugal’s prisons. According to the International Herald Tribune, prisoners are starting to want to serve the
A stitch in time. We need smarter government, but less of it
What is the connection between the content of Boris Johnson’s speech this week to the CBI, tax avoidance and evasion,
International Airlines Group: a ‘fantastic object’? The psychology of mergers and acquisitions
International Airlines Group (IAG), formed in January 2011 by a merger of British Airways and Iberia, is in the news.
Our Friends in the North are trapped in a monetary union
Michael Heseltine’s report on economic growth came out last week. It contains 89 recommendations. A mere 57 varieties, to recall
Corporation tax: fostering the illusions of the electorate that someone else will pay
Corporation tax is very much in the news. Starbucks is merely the latest to be in the spotlight, having paid
If it can happen to Google, who can feel safe?
The dramatic crash in Google’s share price and the temporary suspension of trading in the company’s shares made headline news.
Don’t say IMF, it’s IMF Squared!
In the boom decade of the 2000s, corporate rebranding and renaming was all the rage. Some were successful. Others are
Policy makers have learned from the mistakes of the 1930s
Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman will shortly be in town. With Lord Richard Layard, he will be calling for more
Ninja Turtles, Nick Clegg and Market Failure
Christmas is coming. Retailers are beginning to push their offers hard. The first page of a search on Google for
George Osborne’s economic policy seeks to blind markets from the truth
Andrew Mitchell, the government’s chief whip, remains in some difficulty after his exchange with the police at the gates of
We are all better off than we think
Apple’s iPhone5 has already smashed sales records. The first day on which consumers could make purchases over the web, more
A Tale of Two Recessions: Grounds for Optimism
The economic news at the moment is mixed, and the impact of the 2007-2009 financial crash is far from over.
How Big Is My Multiplier?
The debate rages about whether the Chancellor should implement a Plan B, or C or D or even Z. There
Why teachers are just like bankers
The current highly emotional debate about GCSE grades is not very enlightening. But what has happened tells us a lot
How to unpick the apparent paradox of falling GDP and rising unemployment
GDP estimates are eagerly awaited in the City, and dominate the media headlines. Huge significance is attached to arithmetically trivial differences, whether between market expectations and the announced figure, or to subsequent revisions to the data.
But GDP is not something which can be put in a set of scales, say, and measured accurately. The concept is clear. It is the value of national output at market prices. Market prices? How do we value the public sector, where there are no market prices? A series of plausible conventions has evolved as to how to value such activities. But there is a substantial amount of arbitrary judgment involved.
USA vs China continued… The Influence of Networks (and the Olympics!)
The last three Olympics have seen a titanic battle between the US and China to head the medals table. If
Who will rule the 21st Century?
This is a nice big question to ponder on the holiday beach or in the rented villa. A vast amount
