Long before the coronavirus crisis began, the share of payments made using paper money had been falling. But the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated us towards a cashless future. Is the end of cash ahead? Or is that exaggerated? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Ken Rogoff (former Chief Economist at the IMF) and Sir Howard Davies (Natwest Group), and we say farewell to Lizzy on her final episode!   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

Joe Biden is going to inherit a United States ravaged by the Covid crisis, with surges in coronavirus cases and deaths. But he'll also need to deal with a country divided on a huge range of issues, including economic policy. What is Bidenomics? And what should it be? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Rebecca Henderson (Harvard University, NBER).   Music by Slenderbeats   ..read more

The coronavirus pandemic has forced governments around the world to borrow huge sums and push up their public debts in order to support businesses, protect incomes and save lives. How long will it be before the government can realistically balance the books? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Lord Robert Skidelsky (crossbench peer, Keynes biographer), and Paul Johnson (Institute for Fiscal Studies).   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

Digital technologies, such as Zoom, WhatsApp and Amazon have helped people during coronavirus lockdown restrictions around the world. Share prices in big tech firms have soared as a result, but what does this mean for the rest of us? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Brad DeLong (University of California at Berkeley) and Scott Galloway (NYU Stern).   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

The coronavirus pandemic has emptied cities of workers, bars and restaurants have been closed and public transport systems have been bankrupted. But will Covid mark the end of the era of the 'Triumph of the City' and usher in a period of urban decline? Or are there reasons to be optimistic? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Lord Michael Heseltine (UK Deputy Prime Minister, 1995-97) and Catherine McGuinness (Head of Policy, City of London Corporation.)   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

The Covid-19 pandemic is a health crisis, but also an economic one. Economists and epidemiologists are now working together, merging their models and creating the new discipline called “epi-macro”. But how will it work? And will governments listen to the results? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Professor Neil Ferguson (SAGE, Imperial College London) and Sir Tim Besley (LSE)   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

The coronavirus pandemic has underlined the many deep social and economic fractures within countries - divides of race, class, education and income. But will it end up exacerbating them too? Could the pandemic end up making for a more equal planet? And is a reduction in the global inequality gap even a good thing? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Sir Angus Deaton (Economics Nobel Laureate, 2015)   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

Could Covid-19 provide a chance to reset international trade relations? Can the US and China reach a ceasefire in their trade war? And what will become of Britain after Brexit? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Pascal Lamy (former Director-General of the WTO)   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

The coronavirus crisis has plunged us all into a world of quite extraordinary economic confusion. What are the implications of this confusion? Should it change the way policymakers think? Should it prompt reform of the discipline of economics itself? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Lord Mervyn King (former Governor of the Bank of England)   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more

During the Covid-19 crisis we have tended to look to national governments to act, expecting them to pull every lever available to protect life. But have we been looking in the wrong place? Are local, state and regional authorities – often with more knowledge of which policies are appropriate and workable in a given area - better placed to take the lead in health emergencies? Ben Chu (The Independent) and Lizzy Burden (The Telegraph) speak to Raghuram Rajan (former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India)   Music by Slenderbeats ..read more