More late capitalism but then it will sow the seeds for something better (we hope) www.theguardian.com/environment/...

We had a tram system up to the late 1950s then lost it as the car was seen as the 'transport of the future', now we have to wait years for a new scheme. Meanwhile, we face a poor transport system (probably the worst of any large European city). Typical Leeds www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

A supply-side response may not have much of an impact if there are barriers on the demand side inhibiting people (young and old) getting into work www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Much attention has been given to high inflation and high levels of economic inactivity - it is evident now that the focus needs to switch to the rise in unemployment which we know will harm many lives www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Verdant - a new thinktank focused on economics and ecology (to be funded via “philanthropic organizations and high-net-worth individuals”) www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Pleased to see this paper now published - in it, I examine the status of Keynes as a post-growth economist www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

A welcome move - though despite talk of "win-win" outcomes, the transition to a four-day working week will likely be contested www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A signal perhaps that monetary policy is not the only lever available to curb inflation www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Pleased to see this paper now published - in it, I examine the status of Keynes as a post-growth economist www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

“Rich Baker” - a new high for nominative determinism

A review must be all-encompassing moving beyond claims of overdiagnosis to consider how the nature of life and work under present conditions creates depression and anxiety www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

No, laziness is a reaction to the irksomeness of work www.theguardian.com/books/2025/n...

They promised us flying cars so we might live better lives - instead we get submarine drones that could threaten our lives www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Invoking the idea of feudalism to describe the current economic formation is surely an error — capitalism persists despite its failings www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

This is a good move (if the borrowing is used wisely) though the risk of incurring the wrath of the bond markets remains. We need to imagine a system where the power of investors in bond markets is reduced (Keynes had something to say about this) www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

"One feature of capitalism is its ability to create work for people to do. A world without work is incompatible with capitalism," says me in this piece on AI and job loss - heartening to see a link to my book here www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture...

Ironically, the government's stance against a four-day working week seems likely only to increase support for it as a societal goal www.theguardian.com/business/202...

The centrist economist doth protest too much, methinks www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Review of my book in French (testing my language limits but Google translates suggests it has positive aspects: "His book 'Making Light Work' makes an important and instructive contribution to the literature on the quality of work") journals.openedition.org/travailemplo...

Participants in financial markets and buyers of gold display rational sentiments - discuss www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Instead of cutting BS jobs, AI floods us with “workslop” - with comments from me cybernews.com/ai-news/ai-b...

Unsure how these estimates are arrived at if the underlying data lacks info on hours worked... but if productivity is rising faster then its likely roots in lower headcounts and more intensive work hardly offers the basis for a step-change in the "UK's economic fortunes" www.ft.com/content/734f...

The question is not whether new technology will bring us more leisure time (this seems unlikely on current trends) but whether it *should* bring us more leisure time - what matters here is how technology like AI is developed and used www.ft.com/content/4011...

I guess in a path dependent world post neoclassical endogenous growth theory was bound to win a Nobel prize one day

Confused journalists googling Peter Howitt and finding a British actor and film director...

"As a working class teenager growing up in the 1980s much of what Harrison captures in V is a potent reminder of the world I had to navigate“ — words that resonate with me. And V remains powerful still today www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I understand the bond markets are influential but it is concerning to say the least that they can effectively dictate fiscal policy. There is a real question of democracy here. The economy should be managed for people not for bond traders www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

This result is hard to reconcile with persistently low investment levels in the UK - if jobs are in shorter supply, this is more likely due to old-fashioned cost-cutting than increases in business investment in AI www.theguardian.com/money/2025/o...

“living his best life” on holiday not doing research - a sobering message here for all academics (including the vast majority without Nobel prizes) www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

Mixed feelings about this scheme: it creates opportunity to learn new skills and gain a discount on a house (cooperative housebuilding is the future) yet it also looks like a way to secure cheap labour (the going rate for a labourer is probably > £20 per hour) www.theguardian.com/money/2025/o...

Simon called it the "Information Fallacy." We call it "efficient inefficiency"--more efficiently doing things which aren't worth doing: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

A notion of a hierarchy of courses fits with a functional view of education (one in step with human capital theory) www.theguardian.com/education/20...

I guess it is equally morally hazardous to not intervene to protect jobs in the wider car sector www.ft.com/content/27e5...

Tony Harrison RIP. He never forgot his roots in Leeds and wrote with great passion and force www.theguardian.com/books/2013/f...

Not yet a furlough scheme but evidence of the active role that the state can and must play in managing shocks www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

To stress a point often missed, govt borrowing acts to offset gaps in private spending and offers a support to growth - worry less about it than an economy that systematically fails to sustain higher private sector investment www.theguardian.com/business/202...

The UK labour market is "too flexible" to cope with disruption like a cyber attack and it would be better if it had a furlough scheme to protect jobs and livelihoods www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

“could” and probably won’t if the aversion to business investment in the UK economy remains www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Forget the rise of the robots, the labour market is cooling on the back of increased uncertainty and continued weak investment www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Jonas Gahr Støre has the support of all Leeds fans #lufc www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A four day strike for a four day week. Striking symmetry www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

The high demand for gold merely but effectively demonstrates the irrationality of human behaviour www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Economic experiment: is policymaking more effective with or without reliable data? www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Notable that the RMT are demanding a reduction in the working week www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

On the other hand, lower borrowing may scupper the chances of higher growth www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Partial answer: domestic firms have the power to raise prices www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I guess popular books on work keep literary agents in gainful (and joyful) employment

Work used to be a relatively under examined subject — now there are many popular books on the subject. I am not sure equating work with fun takes us very far but I guess I need to read this book www.theguardian.com/money/2025/a...

Inflation is political — it depends on power relations (the ability of firms to push up prices on the one hand and the ability of workers to push up wages on the other). Reporting on inflation should reflect these relations www.theguardian.com/business/202...

A welcome development — many episodes of Play for Today from the 1970s remain powerful and thought-provoking. Hopefully the revival will have the same effect www.theguardian.com/media/2025/a...