Boxing clever? Osborne delivers. Andy Rain/EPA

Budget 2015: Experts respond

Instant reaction from academics as George Osborne delivers his post-election budget.
Take five. Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

Budget 2015: experts respond

George Osborne has delivered his fifth and final budget before the general election. Our academic experts respond.
More racket in your pay packet. John Garghan

The simple win‑win case for higher wages in Britain

Two things stand out about the economic recovery in Britain. One is the sluggish growth in real wages. The other is the sluggish growth in productivity. That the two phenomena have coincided is no accident…
Ready for the hard sell? Hannah McKay/PA Wire

Autumn Statement: the experts respond

The chancellor of the exchequer, George Osborne, has delivered the financial package he hopes will convince voters to deliver a Conservative majority in May 2015. Here, our team of academic experts responds…
Work is important, but so is fun. Andrew Matthews/PA

Every weekend could be four days long, if the will was there

In a world of iPhones and drones, people are right to wonder why they are still working so hard. The past century saw huge technological advances and yet there hasn’t been a corresponding increase in leisure…
There’s more to life than the hard slog. kooklanekookla

The case for working less

The focus of conventional employment policy is on creating “more work”. People without work and in receipt of benefits are viewed as a drain on the state and in need of assistance or direct coercion to…
Just don’t ask economists for the solution. Dominic Lipinski/PA

Economics Nobel must acknowledge the global financial crisis

The 2013 winners have now been announced. David Spencer responds in a postscript at the bottom of this article. What are economists for? Well, one obvious answer is to “do economics”, defined in the academic…
Those leaves won’t carry themselves. Alejandro Soffia Vega

Obsession with ‘hard work’ is a dangerous distraction

This year’s Conservative Party conference has reminded us incessantly that George Osborne and his fellow ministers are “for hardworking people”. This same slogan has also become popular among Labour politicians…

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