Welcome to the IEA Weekend Newsletter!

• Confused thinking...
• Don’t Pan(dem)ic…
• Zeroing In...
• Short Cummings?

Confused thinking, Keynesianism...and coronomics

Many thanks for joining us for this week’s IEA newsletter, on a week when it’s impossible to ignore the colossal impact of the coronavirus.

The true long-term implications of the outbreak have yet to emerge. But some of the measures proposed to curb the pandemic are already confusing and riddled with inconsistencies. Take, for example, the suggestion that the over-70s could be put into isolation for four months. 

     

On our blog this week, IEA Editorial and Research Director Len Shackleton – himself a member of this ‘vulnerable’ group – questioned the wisdom and practicality of such measures.

Len points out that 10 million people fall into this category, with half a million over-70s still in the labour market. 



He warns of the impact this could have on the economy - and of the unforeseen consequences such a move could have. And he discusses how, as a libertarian, he objects to the idea of defining whole groups of people based on statistical patterns. Read this thoughts here.

Also on our blog, Ryan Bourne, of the Cato Institute in Washington, warns of the dangers of “Corona Keynesianism”.  He says commentators and economists proffering “fiscal stimulus” arguments to protect the economy are wrong – and their proposals are dangerous.  Find out why here.

Don’t Pan(dem)ic...

The wider implications of the disease are hard to predict.  Will it, for example, accelerate the growth of home working? Or will people be desperate to return to the workplace once they can?  Will employers decide they can cut down on the space they need? And will artificial intelligence be seen as a safer workforce bet than vulnerable humans?

This latter question was addressed by Len Shackleton in a 2018 paper for the IEA.  History strongly suggests that jobs destroyed by technological change are often replaced by new jobs elsewhere – and there are often significant social, economic and regulatory barriers to the adoption of theoretically possible innovations.

To read Robocalypse Now? – Why we shouldn’t panic about automation, algorithms and artificial intelligence, click here.

Carmageddon?

In our newsletter last week, we highlighted a new IEA podcast on another aspect of artificial intelligence – driverless cars. 

In case you missed it, you can listen to The Road Ahead? What impact will driverless cars have on public policy? here.

Zeroing in...

In recent years climate change has been seen as the existential crisis of our time. But with the growing threat of coronavirus and a global health crisis on a scale many of us cannot comprehend, will the battle against climate change retain its urgency?

This week’s podcast marks the first in a new series by the IEA, exploring free-market approaches to achieving the government’s target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Digital Manager Darren Grimes interviews Kingsmill Bond, the New Energy Strategist for Carbon Tracker, a financial think tank that carries out in-depth analysis on the impact of the energy transition. 

Kingsmill believes this revolution is the most important driver of financial markets and geopolitics in the modern era.

You can subscribe to our podcasts on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Podbean.

Short cummings?

IEA Director General Mark Littlewood appeared in this week’s BBC documentary Taking Control: The Dominic Cummings story. 



Mark joined the likes of former MEP Dan Hannan and former MP Douglas Carswell giving their take on Boris Johnson’s controversial chief adviser. You can watch it here. 

Taking control...

The documentary revealed that Dominic Cummings can be described as many things to many people. But what exactly did we learn about the man and about the ideology that drives him?



This week, Mark and Prof Len Shackleton joined Digital Manager Darren Grimes to discuss the BBC documentary on Mr Cummings and his attempts to reform Whitehall.

You can listen here. 

Whitehall farces...

Number 10’s maverick strategist is also the subject of an article in the current edition of our magazine EA.



The article Dominic’s Short Cummings? looks at attempts by him – and others before him – to shake up Whitehall. You can read it here.

Although primarily aimed at students, EA is written by some of the leading writers on economics from around the world.  The latest edition looks at the impact of unintended consequences, the dangers of a cashless society, the economics of the music business and much more. You can download it - and all previous editions - for free here.