Prof. Peter Lindert discusses the evidence on social spending and the economy since the nineteenth century summarized in his new book- 'Making Social Spending Work'. Why did it take so long? What are the effects of social spending on growth? What are the threats to the welfare state?  We finish by covering the reformers and non-reformers in tackling the looming pension crisis, as population ageing  appears in many of the world's economies ..read more

In this episode, we meet Dr. Leigh Gardner to consider the experience of a number of former British colonies in Africa. We review the literature and Leigh's work on the cost of financing and operating former colonies and compare their debt and borrowing experiences  with other regions. We also discuss her recent work on constructing national accounts for eight African economies 1885-2008 and review their experiences over the long run.  The magnitude and frequency of economic shrinking stands out as a major brake to economic convergence in the cases considered ..read more

In this episode, we meet 'the guy who wrote the book on' why economists need economic history, Dr. Chris Colvin (Queen's University Belfast). We discuss the importance of the subject for policy makers, economists and the additional tools economic historians bring to their research.  From panics to pandemics, we can only learn from the past ..read more

In this episode, we meet with the eminent Prof. Diane Coyle to discuss the evolution of measuring economic activity through time. When and why did the process begin and how did it evolve? What were the political motivations that drove the changes regarding how and what we recorded? How does it measure what we value and does it place appropriate value on what we measure ..read more

This week, we chat with Professor Morten Jerven on the weakness of data in developing economies. We discuss the history of political machinery behind final economic statistics, the misaligned incentives facing data collectors and providers and the inconsistency between key international databases. We also discuss the comparative lack of funding for statistical agencies in developing countries, given the gigantic tasks facing them, and finish with how much it might cost to improve statistical capacity to a relatively acceptable level ..read more

In this episode, we discuss the subtitle of Professor Jared Rubin's book: 'Why the West got Rich and the Middle East did Not.' We consider the Golden Age of Islam against the Western European backwater, facing its long dark age. Jared offers an original political economy framework to help understand why the latter eventually pulled ahead, in terms of economic performance. We look at the context of the birth of both religions and their subsequent relationships with contemporary political elites and legal systems. We also review how the path dependent processes emanating from these had long last ..read more

In this episode, we chat with Prof. Tamás Vonyó about the long run variation in the impact of World War II across a range of European economies. We begin with discussing the comparative wartime destruction across regions (using Tamás' "5 D's") and then move on to contrast the growth experiences of Western Europe and Eastern Europe with these initial starting points in mind. We also revisit the 1980s collapse of the Eastern Bloc and reconsider the role of factor inputs as a cause of socialism's failure, as an alternative to the traditional narrative, which places the blame on productivity/innov ..read more

Prof. Deirdre McCloskey has written prolifically on a wide range of topics. In this episode, she discusses her trilogy of books which attempt to explain what she coined 'The Great Enrichment' since the nineteenth century. We discuss the use of language in economics, the potentially overstated role of physical capital, how liberalism spawned innovation and fostered ideas, as well as comparing some historical living standard examples throughout ..read more

Today, we meet Professor Hans-Joachim Voth to discuss some of his work on the economic forces around religious and political epochs characterised by extremism. We begin by reviewing the long term economic effects of the Spanish Inquisition and consider the historical  roots of anti-semitism  in explaining Nazi support centuries later. Finally, we look at how "social capital" may have negative effects in garnering support for extremist movements and look at the effects of road building on political votes for the Nazi party ..read more

Professor Peter Temin's 'Lessons from the Great Depression' remains a standard classic three decades since its publication. In today's episode, Peter talks about the Great Depression's lessons for today's policy makers and the use of fiscal policy with and without a gold standard. We also consider how the existing theories available to each generation influence their policy makers in their choices ..read more