Blog and updates
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16 Apr 2019
Micro credit versus direct subsidies in improving health care in developing countries
Low-income countries face major disease burdens from preventable and treatable communicable diseases. A persistent puzzle is the low uptake of highly effective preventive health products, such as...
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16 Apr 2019
YouTube super-stars and controlling the band-wagon effect
The stars of social media such as YouTube have to strike a careful balance to maintain and boost their popularity: uploading enough new material for ‘attention-volatile’ consumers, while not...
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15 Apr 2019
Confusing pairs of key phrases in A Level Economics - have a go at our 'Test Yourself' Activities
Here's a fantastic activity from our team of contributors who have identified the key phrases that are often misused during A Level Economics exams. As promised in February, we are now making the...
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13 Apr 2019
London's new Ultra Low Emissions Zone
Recently we have seen the introduction of the new Ultra Low Emissions Zone in London, designed to charge the owners of the most polluting vehicles an extra £12.50 for entering the area, in addition...
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13 Apr 2019
Solving the plastic packaging paradox
An excellent piece here from Tim Harford - looking at the paradox of plastic packaging. Packaging is a complex issue, but this article deconstructs some of the paradoxes associated with the use of...
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12 Apr 2019
Welfare reforms have increased household vulnerability to external shocks
Thanks to the large cuts to working-age benefits and tax credits made as part of the UK government’s austerity programme, the tax and benefit system is now less effective at protecting households...
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5 Apr 2019
Economics Weekly Quiz - 5 April 2019
Here's this week's economics news quiz, including the new 'classroom mode' for teachers using the activity in class.
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4 Apr 2019
Community Grain Banks and Basic Development
One of the central tenets of economics is that uncertainty reduces efficiency. Nowhere is that more true than in development economics, where uncertainty about incomes, and meeting basic needs -...
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4 Apr 2019
Development Economics - Universal Health Care
A very powerful World Health Organisation clip looking at universal healthcare. The important take-away: one-half of the global population don't have access to the healthcare that they need. That...
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4 Apr 2019
Unintended Consequences of Regulation - Fixed Odds Betting Terminals
Here is a classic and topical example of the unintended consequences of regulatory intervention. The reduction in the stake for fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs) has seen the bookmakers respond,...
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4 Apr 2019
Debt crisis warning for poorest countries
The Jubilee Debt Campaign are worried about rising levels of government debt that combined with falling commodity prices and rising US interest rates have increased the poorest countries' debt...
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4 Apr 2019
Would a four-day week improve productivity and reduce inequality?
The New Economic Foundation's Aidan Harper argues here that we should be looking at the possibility of introducing a four-day working week, not just for its mental health benefits, but for its...
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31 Mar 2019
The Triple-Power of Infrastructure Spending
A great reminder in these topical examples that targeted infrastructure spending is tripled powered - driving higher levels of AD, long run aggregate supply and competitiveness.
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29 Mar 2019
Economics Weekly Quiz - 29 March 2019
Here's this week's economics news quiz, including the new 'classroom mode' for teachers using the activity in class.
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22 Mar 2019
Economics Weekly Quiz - 22 March 2019
Here's this week's economics news quiz, including the new 'classroom mode' for teachers using the activity in class.
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15 Mar 2019
Economics Weekly Quiz - 15 March 2019
Here's this week's economics news quiz. From this week on, we've included a 'Classroom mode'. Now teachers can show all 10 questions in a classroom environment before revealing the answers. Be sure...
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14 Mar 2019
Distributional effects of the Right to Buy Scheme
The Right to Buy Scheme was introduced by Mrs.Thatcher in 1980 and was designed to get council house tenants on the housing ladder. I should know: my grandparents bought their house this way.
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13 Mar 2019
Hammond's Spring Statement 2019 - a summary on Powerpoint
For anyone wishing to have an in-class discussion or analysis of today's Spring Statement delivered by Chancellor Philip Hammond, here is a Powerpoint summary of the key points. The information is...
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13 Mar 2019
The Economics of Knife Crime
Economics does not pretend to provide all the answers. But, perhaps surprising to some, it has a lot of useful insights to offer on crime.
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11 Mar 2019
Alexa joins the Consumer Price Index!
Smart speakers are in and envelopes are out of the revised basket of goods and services used to calculate the consumer price index.
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