What impact will automation – the so-called “rise of the robots” – have on wages and employment over the coming decades? Nowadays, this question crops up whenever unemployment rises. In the early nineteenth century, David Ricardo considered the possibility that machines would replace labor; Karl Marx followed him. Around the same time, the Luddites smashed … Continue reading The Rise of the Robots
Author: Robert Skidelsky
Economist and member of the House of Lords
Supply matters – but so does demand
Co-authored with Marcus Miller At long last, the defenders of George Osborne’s deficit-reduction strategy have come up with a reasoned case. The thoughtful argument in support of the UK chancellor is made by Ryan Bourne and Tim Knox, economists at the centre-right Centre for Policy Studies think-tank. They say that Britain suffered a huge supply … Continue reading Supply matters – but so does demand
Puttnam and the Defamation Bill
As one who spoke and voted for Lord Puttnam's amendments to the Defamation Bill passed in the Lords on February 6, may I say that Matthew Parris's attack on the amendments misses the point. The Puttnam amendments remedy two major omissions from the Bill: its failure to deal with the question of costs and its … Continue reading Puttnam and the Defamation Bill
High-speed rail could set Britain – and Europe – on the path to recovery
The chancellor's fiscal policy has been a disaster – a growth-first strategy driven by a bond-funded HS2 could be the answer When George Osborne took over the Treasury, he decided that fiscal policy would be governed not by the state of the real economy but by the state of the public finances, as measured by … Continue reading High-speed rail could set Britain – and Europe – on the path to recovery
Meeting our Makers
In the early 1950s, Britain was an industrial giant. Today it is an industrial pygmy. Manufacturing was industry’s bedrock. In 1952 it produced a third of national output, employed 40% of the workforce, and made up a quarter of world manufacturing exports. Today manufacturing is just 12% of GDP, employs only 8% of the workforce, … Continue reading Meeting our Makers
Natural-Born Pianists?
The editor of The Guardian, Alan Rusbridger, has written a book about how he decided to practice the piano 20 minutes a day. Eighteen months later, he played Chopin’s fearsomely difficult Ballade No. 1 in G Minor to an admiring audience of friends. Could anyone have done this? Or did it require special talent? The … Continue reading Natural-Born Pianists?
Leveson Inquiry
Leveson Inquiry Speech, Friday 11th January 2013 My Lords, almost everything that there is to say has already been said, not least by the noble Lord, Lord Prescott, so I will just concentrate on two points. First, there is the ingenuity of Leveson, which recognises that voluntary self-regulation via the almost toothless Press Complaints Commission … Continue reading Leveson Inquiry
Models Behaving Badly
“Why did no one see the crisis coming?” Queen Elizabeth II asked economists during a visit to the London School of Economics at the end of 2008. Four years later, the repeated failure of economic forecasters to predict the depth and duration of the slump would have elicited a similar question from the queen: Why … Continue reading Models Behaving Badly
One more chance for Osborne to change course
On Wednesday in his Autumn Statement George Osborne, the chancellor, is expected to admit that it will take three more years of austerity than originally planned to bring borrowing under control. Extravagant hopes are being placed on Mark Carney, the newly appointed Bank of England governor. There will be talk of an incipient recovery meeting … Continue reading One more chance for Osborne to change course
Inequality is Killing Capitalism
It is generally agreed that the crisis of 2008-2009 was caused by excessive bank lending, and that the failure to recover adequately from it stems from banks’ refusal to lend, owing to their “broken” balance sheets. A typical story, much favored by followers of Friedrich von Hayek and the Austrian School of economics, goes like … Continue reading Inequality is Killing Capitalism
Robert Skidelsky 