In the Spring 2008 edition of CentrePiece:

In this edition:

Big ideas: Unemployment and welfare to work

To illustrate CEP's impact on public policy and debate, John Van Reenen introduces and presents the first in a series of 'big ideas', surveying the significant research findings that have emerged from the Centre over the... Read more...

The Unemployment Trap

The Job Seeker's Allowance was introduced in late 1996 to encourage benefit claimants to look for work. New research by Barbara Petrongolo investigates whether it has succeeded in breaking the 'unemployment trap'. Read more...

In brief... Understanding trade unions

Richard Freeman, professor of economics at Harvard University, visiting professor at LSE and senior research fellow in CEP's research programmes on labour markets and wellbeing, has been awarded the IZA Prize in Labor Ec... Read more...

In brief... Can pay regulation kill?

John Van Reenen and colleagues present evidence on the impact of regulating the labour market for nurses on the performance of hospitals in England. Read more...

Can Better Management Sustain Growth in China and India?

The economies of China and India have been booming - but do they have the quality of corporate management to sustain growth over the longer term? Using CEP's global survey of over 4,000 firms, Nick Bloom and Rebecca Homk... Read more...

China's Entrepreneurs

China's remarkable economic growth has been achieved through the rapid emergence of a dynamic private sector. Linda Yueh explores what we know about the generation of self-employed entrepreneurs who have driven this tran... Read more...

In brief... India's foreign investment policy: the impact on productivity

What kind of liberalisation policies can make a difference to firms' productivity? Research by Arunish Chawla explores this question in the context of India's economic liberalisation of the 1990s. He analyses the impact ... Read more...

Will the Credit Crunch Lead to Recession?

Recent research by Nick Bloom - as well as research of an earlier vintage by Fed chairman Ben Bernanke - suggests that the impact of the credit crunch on uncertainty will lead to an economic slowdown much worse than we c... Read more...

In brief... Delayed doves

Do newly appointed external members of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) hide their true views on the right level for interest rates? Stephen Hansen and Michael McMahon look back at their voting recor... Read more...

Where To Build Britain's New Houses

The fast-growing cities of the Victorian age made Britain the workshop of the world. Tim Leunig argues that there are important lessons for how we manage today's economy, notably the need to end the highly restrictive pl... Read more...