News

Economics Observatory

Crime story

As more data on crime and policing become available, economists are getting deeper insights into the causes and effects of criminal behaviour, and a greater understanding of how the criminal justice system works. Tom Kir... Read more...

Financial Times

Rationing access to apprenticeships is increasing the UK's skills deficit

Places for vocational training should be funded in the same way as degrees and match demand from young learners, says Richard Layard. ... Read more...

Freakonomics

How to succeed at failing, part 2: life and death

In medicine, failure can be catastrophic. It can also produce discoveries that save millions of lives. On this episode of Freakonomics, John Van Reenen, Amy Edmondson, Carole Hemmelgarn, Gary Klein and Robert Langer shar... Read more...

Freakonomics

How to succeed at failing, part 1: the chain of events

We tend to think of tragedies as a single terrible moment, rather than the result of multiple bad decisions. On this episode of Freakonomics, John Van Reenen, Amy Edmondson, Helen Fisher, Ed Galea, Gary Klein, David Ried... Read more...

The Guardian

Warning over unconscious bias against working-class pupils in English schools

Schools in England must do more to challenge unconscious bias in the classroom against children from working-class backgrounds - Lee Elliot Major discusses practical recommendations schools and policymakers can take to h... Read more...

The Hill

Does working from home damage productivity? Just look at the data.

Working from home keeps employees happy, reduces pollution by cutting billions of commuting miles and supports millions of employees with care and disability challenges in work. Nick Bloom reviews the existing data on wo... Read more...

The Observer

Struggling self-employed in UK would prefer salaried job security, report claims

The authors of The Self-employment Trap, published by the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP), show how stagnant incomes and rising costs are having an impact on the wellbeing of the self-employed and increasing their ... Read more...

The Economist

Nicholas Bloom predicts a working-from-home Nike swoosh

Nick Bloom explores the forces driving the predicted increase in remote work over the coming decade. He outlines that working from home will benefit firms, employees and society.  ... Read more...

The Guardian

Equality depends on education. England's class of 2023 have suffered a grave injustice over A-level results

Lee Elliot Major explains why England's 2023 school leavers have been unfairly treated over their A-level results. Just under half of A-level entries in the private sector in 2023 were graded A* and A grades, compared wi... Read more...

Anna Valero appointed to the Office for Budget Responsibility's advisory panel

Congratulations to Anna Valero, distinguished policy fellow at the Centre for Economic Performance, who has been appointed to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) advisory panel.   Established in 2011... Read more...

Saul Estrin becomes a Fellow of the British Academy

Congratulations to Saul Estrin, emeritus professor of managerial economics and strategy at LSE and associate in CEP’s growth programme, who has been elected as a new Fellow of the British Academy.  He is amon... Read more...

Financial Times

Growing green awareness gives eco-innovation a competitive edge

Ralf Martin investigates whether consumers' environmental convictions will fade when confronted with higher prices, showing that consumers seem to prefer environmentally conscious choices, and indicating that changing at... Read more...

New Statesman

Labour forgets that not everyone goes to university

Labour forgets that not everyone goes to university. Richard Layard argues that the party’s focus on tuition fees neglects half of young people – and its past success with apprenticeships. ... Read more...

CEP Announcement

Professor Brian Bell reappointed as chair of the Migration Advisory Committee

Brian Bell has been reappointed as chair of the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) for a further three years.  Professor Bell, an associate in CEP’s labour market programme, was appointed chair of the MAC on ... Read more...

iNews

How the UK's housing system compares to the rest of the world - from renting to house prices

CEP researchers Christian Hilber and Paul Cheshire compare the decline in the UK's home ownership rate, from 70 per cent in 2004 to 64 per cent in recent years, to other countries around the world - UK house prices have ... Read more...

Free and Equal: What would a fair society look like? makes the FT's summer reading list

Free and Equal: What would a fair society look like? has been chosen as one of the best reads on economics for this summer by the Financial Times. The book by Daniel Chandler is described by the paper’s chief econ... Read more...

Bloomberg

Brexit Caused a Third of UK Food Price Inflation, LSE Paper Says

Researchers from the Centre for Economic Performance show that Brexit is responsible for a third of UK food price inflation since 2019 - regulatory, sanitary and other border checks added almost £7 billion to total... Read more...

The Guardian

Brexit food trade barriers have cost UK households #7bn, report finds

Researchers from the Centre for Economic Performance, from the London School of Economics, estimate that extra barriers on EU food imports have pushed up bills by £250 on average since Brexit.  ... Read more...

Financial Times

Economist Daniel Chandler: 'Shareholders have all the power. It doesn't have to be that way.'

Daniel Chandler, the author of 'Free and Equal', makes the case for workplace democracy - drawing on Rawlsian principles to disentangle modern-day political debates. Interviewed by Henry Mance.  ... Read more...

Economy 2030

The Economy 2030 Inquiry: two years in

The Economy 2030 Inquiry examines the scale and impact of economic change that the UK is living through in the 2020s, and will set out a plan for successfully navigating this change.  For the past two years, resear... Read more...

Anna Valero joins the chancellor's economic advisory council

Anna Valero has been appointed to the chancellor’s economic advisory council, it was announced today. The council provides independent, expert advice on economic policy to help grow the economy. Dr Valero, senior... Read more...

The Guardian

If Labour is to succeed it needs not just new policies, but a whole new philosophy

After four general election defeats, the Labour party seems likely to form the next government. In this Guardian opinion piece, Daniel Chandler shares his view that, for the Labour party to succeed, it needs not just new... Read more...

The Guardian

How much should parents get involved in kids' education? I'm an expert, and a dad, and even I'm confused

New research suggests extra activities and help with homework have little effect – but the question is more complicated than it at first appears. Lee Elliot Major discusses what is important when it comes to educat... Read more...

Financial Times

Alan Manning: 'Achieving growth by just having more people is not what we should aim for'

Alan Manning, the UK government's former immigration advisor, considers whether Britain's post-Brexit migrant strategy has worked. ... Read more...

Financial Times

Make wellbeing central to public policy

Richard Layard explains the benefits of making wellbeing a core public policy. ... Read more...