Economics
The Biden Bust is here
A wave of government spending would reboot the economy. Fairer taxes would pay for restored infrastructure. Skills would be improved,…
Like it or not, cryptocurrency is here to stay
There was a time when you could read a book to keep up to date about a subject. Well, that’s…
Rishi Sunak's spring statement speech in full
Mr Speaker, As I stand here, men, women and children are huddled in basements across Ukraine seeking protection. Soldiers and…
Rishi Sunak’s energy bill dilemma
This morning’s revelation that the UK economy grew 0.8 per cent in January, the fastest growth since April last year, is…
Is the government in denial about the looming economic crisis?
The priority for the UK and other rich democracies is to protect the people of Ukraine from the depredations of…
Get ready to start paying the cost of Covid
Forget the desirability (or lack thereof) of tax hikes: can Britain survive them? That’s the economic question that kicked off…
The hypocrisy of Elon Musk
Tesla’s sleek, if expensive, electric cars are leading the battle against climate change. Its batteries are moving renewable energy into the…
Eighteen months of inflation is not 'transitory'
The big central banks have been insisting for months now that the rise in inflation is temporary, and will fade…
What is the Bank of England playing at?
Last week, the Bank of England sent a number of confused messages. One was almost shocking: Andrew Bailey said that…
Will the Tories cut taxes before the next election?
The Tory party has reached a fork in the road, I say in the Times today. One path involves sticking…
Rishi Sunak's low tax pitch to MPs
Is Rishi Sunak a low tax chancellor? He certainly likes to tell anyone who will listen that he is. Yet…
Sunak faces the free-marketeers
Rishi Sunak didn’t give too much away tonight when he spoke at the ThinkTent Conservative Party Conference. The Chancellor is…
We're living through eerie reminders of the 1970s
There are eerie parallels with 1970s at the moment, I say in the Times today. The inflation of that decade was…
China and the WHO are given an easy ride in the Covid blame game
Are you ready to relive 2020? That’s what Adam Tooze is offering as he tells the story of Covid-19 through…
Could the squeeze on living standards bring down Boris?
There is about to be a two-phase onslaught on the living standards of those on low-to-middling incomes. On 1 October…
Has the Bank of England given up on its duty on inflation?
Has the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee quietly excused itself from its duty of keeping inflation down: namely, keeping the…
The EU's debt bondage expansion
In the global market for government debt, worth an estimated $92 trillion (£66 trillion), it amounts to little more than a…
What China wants from Britain
What are we to do about China? To turn a phrase beloved by the Chinese Communist party (CCP) on its…
A windfall tax would only hurt our weakened economy
The calls for tax hikes is ramping up. Last December the Wealth Tax Commission recommended a ‘one-off’ 5 per cent…
Now is the time for the Tories to be borrowing more
How should fiscal conservatism be defined? George Osborne inherited a fiscal deficit that was clearly unsustainable. During the panic over…
Why extravagant things don’t have to feel expensive
‘Suppose you bought a case of claret a few years ago for £20 a bottle. It now sells at auction…
John McDonnell’s right – the four-day week could work
Most people were scandalised by John McDonnell’s proposal to promote a four-day working week. But before we get incensed about…
Interview: Meet Mariana Mazzucato, big-state capitalism’s new champion
‘It was Plato who said storytellers rule the world,’ observes Mariana Mazzucato, her powerful voice tempered with a beaming smile,…
Letters
Let’s talk about guns Sir: I was surprised that the cover stories on the recent shootings in Las Vegas (‘Say…
What stopped Stoppard?
Two programmes this week presented two radically different world views, or rather ways of life. Aditya Chakrabortty’s series for Radio…