VoxTalk Vaults

Pablo Selaya interviewed by Tim Phillips, 30 May 2018 Recent evidence suggests that infrastructure put in place by the Roman empire over 2,000 years ago might have lasting economic consequences to this day. In this Vox Talks, Tim Phillips talks to Pablo Selaya about his recent research on the persistence of historical public goods provision, in the form of road network development in Roman times. The specific features of these roads - originally built for military access into newly-conquered territories - meant the transport network grew to be uniquely extensive and efficient, with lasting benefits for economic development.

Swati Dhingra, Karl Whelan, Luc Frieden interviewed by Tim Phillips, 29 June 2018 2 years on from the UK’s referendum vote to leave the EU, substantial questions about the path to Brexit remain. In this special edition of Vox Talks, Tim Phillips talks to Swati Dhingra, Karl Whelan, and Luc Frieden about how the process of Brexit negotiation is itself impacting UK households already, from food price inflation to bilateral trade relations across Europe. The data suggests these effects are not transitory, but will persist beyond the current climate of policy uncertainty.

Nauro Campos interviewed by Tim Phillips, 22 June 2018 The issue of how to reform the EU is well discussed in research and policy. But through which institutions and in which order these reforms should take place is less well debated. Nauro Campos discusses the role of Europe’s institutions in its successes and failures. Based on the findings of the recent CEPR eBook, “Bretton Woods, Brussels, and Beyond: Redesigning the Institutions of Europe”, he suggests that the risks of not reforming these institutions are at least another recession across Europe, but also threats to the European project itself.

Jon Danielsson interviewed by Tim Phillips, 25 May 2018 The advent of cryptocurrencies has captured the imaginations of consumers, businesses, and investors alike. Policymakers are grappling to regulate them, while economists are still working out the potential that cryptos have to disrupt financial markets. In this Vox Talks, Jon Danielsson takes a different view, explaining why cryptos "just don't make sense", and why they should be treated with some scepticism. 

Nicola Fuchs-Schündeln interviewed by Tim Phillips, 14 May 2018 CEPR Research Fellow Nicola Fuchs-Schündeln was this year's winner of the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize. In this edition of Vox Talks, she discusses her research on working hours, the origins of our political views, and the lessons we can draw from the German reunificatioin. 

L Alan Winters interviewed by Tim Phillips, 30 April 2018 Brexit is due to be completed in less than a year, which will have a fundamental impact on the UK's trading relationships with the rest of the world. In this Vox Talks, Alan Winters discusses how modern trade agreements are made, and why they are harder to negotiate than many assume. In order to avoid huge disruptions of trade, the UK must negotiate new agreements across the globe - a task made more difficult by the need to harmonise the sometimes contradicting regulations of different countries.

Jeromin Zettelmeyer interviewed by Tim Phillips, 12 March 2018 Any reform of the Euro Area's fiscal and financial infrastructure must address the balance between member countries' risk-sharing and their market discipline. In this Vox Talk, Jeromin Zettelmeyer discusses the proposals put forward in a new CEPR Policy Insight, "Reconciling risk sharing with market discipline: A constructive approach to euro area reform", that sets out six reforms to improve financial stability within the Euro Area in a way that addresses the deadlock between members' currently polarised interests.

David Miles, Alan M. Taylor, Thomas Steger, Jagjit Chadha interviewed by Tim Phillips, 08 February 2018 Long-run trends in house prices are inextricably linked to growing inequality and other macroeconomic policy challenges. In this special edition of Vox Talks, Tim Phillips speaks to participants of the CEPR-Imperial College Business School conference, 'Housing – Learning from the past and looking to the future', which took place at Imperial College on 19th January 2018.

Thomas Sampson, Dennis Novy interviewed by Tim Phillips, 08 January 2018 The average British household is already worse off than it was before the Brexit vote. Dennis Novy and Thomas Sampson discuss how much of the rise in inflation is due to Brexit. Higher prices are costing the average household £404 a year.

Fabio Ghironi interviewed by Tim Phillips, 07 December 2017 Most macroeconomists have accepted that their tools need to incorporate more real world phenomena, such as financial intermediation and labor market frictions. Fabio Ghironi discusses the need to incorporate more microeconomics to macroeconomics.

Diane Coyle, Jonathan Haskel interviewed by Tim Phillips, 21 November 2017 GDP is the default indicator we use to measure how well or bad a country is doing. Diane Coyle and Jonathan Haskel discuss how factors such as technological change, skills, or the economic structure should be taken into account. They jointly won the first Indigo Prize in October 2017, a competition asking participants to think about a new GDP measure.

Ricardo Reis, David Miles interviewed by Tim Phillips, 01 November 2017 David Miles and Ricardo Reis discuss the 19th Geneva Report on the World Economy, which asks why inflation has remained in such a narrow range over the last decade. 

Christian Dustmann, Barry Eichengreen interviewed by , 23 August 2017 Christian Dustmann and Barry Eichengreen discuss the first report in CEPR’s Monitoring International Integration series, which analyses the roots of the decline in trust in both national and European political institutions and asks whether, as a result of these developments, the EU is at risk of disintegration.

Chad Bown interviewed by Bob Denham, 05 June 2017 Chad Bown talks to Bob Denham about his new eBook "Economics and policy in the Age of Trump". The eBook includes 18 chapters by leading economists across a range of areas in domestic and international economic policy. Many chapters are sharply critical of the Trump administration’s new approach.

Patrick Honohan interviewed by Bob Denham, 12 August 2016 How can the Irish economy respond to being torn between two neighbours by Brexit? Bob Denham (Econ Films) interviews Patrick Honohan (Trinity College Dublin) on what economic connections do and don’t need to be unpicked, from labour markets to managing the border. 

Patricia Jackson interviewed by Bob Denham, 08 August 2016 Would losing passporting really be a crisis for the City? Or could the finance sector find a way around newly-imposed restrictions? Bob Denham (Econ Films) asks Patricia Jackson (Atom, Ernst & Young) about the attractiveness of London, the likelihood of a mass exodus and the future of British finance.

Diane Coyle interviewed by Bob Denham, 05 August 2016 How much was Brexit a result of the UK’s industrialised regions losing out from globalisation? Bob Denham (Econ Films) talks to Diane Coyle (University of Manchester) to discuss the decimation of communities in the late 80s and early 90s, as well as the failure of policy-makers to fix this ever since.

David Miles interviewed by Bob Denham, 03 August 2016 Is labour productivity the most important factor in the UK’s economy post-Brexit? And did economists really have a mostly unanimous voice during the EU referendum? Bob Denham (Econ Films) talks to David Miles (Imperial College London, former MPC) about the rationality of voting to leave and whether freedom of movement really is politically fundamental to the Single Market.

Peter Baldwin interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 16 April 2016 Should copyright assure authors and rights holders lasting claims, much like conventional property rights, or should copyright be primarily concerned with giving consumers cheap and easy access to a shared culture? In this Vox Talk, Peter Baldwin – author of the book ‘The Copyright Wars: Three Centuries of Transatlantic Battle’ – outlines how America went from being a leading copyright opponent and pirate in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to become the world’s intellectual property policeman today. He describes a ‘Californian civil war’ over open access: between the content owners in Hollywood and the high-tech companies in Silicon Valley.

Julian Le Grand interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 09 April 2016 Do governments have the right to influence citizens’ behaviour related to smoking tobacco, eating too much, not saving enough, drinking alcohol or taking marijuana? Or does this create a nanny state, leading to infantilisation, demotivation and breaches in individual autonomy? In this Vox Talk, Julian Le Grand – co-author with Bill New of ‘Government Paternalism’ – discusses the lessons from behavioural economics about human mistakes and the potential for the state to guide citizen decision-making in positive ways.

Martin Sandbu interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 26 March 2016 Was the euro a straitjacket that caused an inevitable crisis? Or would earlier action have staved off a debt catastrophe? In this Vox Talk, Martin Sandbu – author of "Europe’s Orphan: The Future of the Euro and the Politics of Debt" – argues that rather than blaming the euro for the political and economic failures in Europe since the Global Crisis, the responsibility lies firmly on the authorities of the Eurozone and its member countries.

Adair Turner interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 19 March 2016 Prior to the Global Crisis, modern macroeconomics largely ignored the details of the financial system, and favoured mathematical precision and elegance at the expense of realism. So argues Adair Turner in this Vox Talk. He also explains the key arguments in his book, ‘Between Debt and the Devil: Money, Credit and Fixing Global Finance’: that most credit is not needed for economic growth but rather drives real estate booms and busts; and that sometimes it’s better to print your way out of financial crises.    

Gernot Wagner interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 16 December 2015 At the heart of policy debates about our collective responses to climate change is the issue of risk and uncertainty - ‘unknown unknowns’ about the impact of global warming. In this Vox Talk, Gernot Wagner - co-author with Harvard’s Martin L. Weitzman of 'Climate Shock: The Economic Consequences of a Hotter Planet’ - argues for Pigovian taxes and carbon pricing, against geoengineering solutions, and why 'we need to stick it to CO2, not to capitalism’.

Charles Bean interviewed by Bob Denham, 23 October 2015 Interest rates have been historically low for decades - long before the financial crisis. What are the causes? And what are the consequences? In this Vox Talk Charlie Bean discusses the findings of the 17th Geneva Report. He argues that the main cause of low interest rates globally is higher savings by the middle aged and that this cause will subside as the middle aged start to retire. But that will take decades and in the meantime there are challenges and risks for monetary policy.

Philippe Aghion interviewed by Viv Davies, 19 January 2015 Jean Tirole’s Nobel was for his transformative work on industrial organisation. In this Vox Talk Philippe Aghion talks about Tirole’s contribution. The interview was recorded in November 2014.

Wouter den Haan interviewed by Viv Davies, 23 December 2014 Macroecomics has changed in a number of ways since the global crisis. For example, there is now more emphasis on modeling the financial sector, self-fulfilling panics, herd behaviour and the new role of demand. This Vox Talk discusses these changes as well as those areas in macroeconomics that are currently perhaps not researched enough. Wouter den Haan explains the inadequacy of the conventional 'rational expectations' approach, quantitative easing, endogenous risk and deleveraging and refers to current CEPR research that reflects the changes. He concludes by reminding us that the 'baby boomers' issue could be the basis of the next crisis.

Franklin Allen interviewed by Viv Davies, 23 December 2014 Franklin Allen, Professor of Finance and Economics at Imperial College London, and Director of CEPR's Financial Economics Programme, talks to Viv Davies about current challenges in financial economics. Allen presents what he thinks will be the main focus of the FE Programme going forward. He also discusses banking union in Europe, how financial economics has changed since the crisis and what he considers to be the major risks now facing the Eurozone.

Ian Goldin interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 21 November 2014 Global hyperconnectivity and increased system integration have led to vast benefits in terms of income, education, innovation and technology. Yet globalisation has also created serious concerns about how local events can so easily cascade over national borders to become crises that affect everyone. This Vox Talk discusses the widening gap between systemic risks and their effective management. Goldin argues that the new dynamics and complexities of globalisation are endemic and will potentially destabilise our societies unless they are addressed immediately and more effectively.

Martin Ruhs interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 12 November 2014 Many low-income countries and development organisations are calling for greater liberalisation of labour immigration policies in high-income countries. At the same time, human rights organisations and migrant rights’ advocates demand more equal rights for migrant workers. This Vox Talk discusses the tensions between human rights and citizenship rights and argues that you cannot always have both. 

Philip Lane interviewed by Viv Davies, 03 November 2014 Contrary to widely held beliefs, the world has not yet begun to ‘delever’ and the global debt-to-GDP is still growing. Growth and inflation are also dangerously low. This Vox Talk discusses the findings and policy recommendations of the 16th Geneva Report. It argues that much more can and should be done to improve resilience to debt shocks and discourage excessive debt accumulation.

Richard Layard interviewed by Viv Davies, 15 October 2014 Mental ill-health causes more suffering than physical illness, poverty or unemployment. Greater spending on helping people recover from mental health problems would generate massive savings to national economies. This Vox Talk discusses how successful psychological treatments have been developed and urges policymakers to act. Layard argues that psychological therapy costs nothing.

Roland Kupers interviewed by Viv Davies, 25 July 2014 Complexity science is changing the way we think about social systems and social theory. Unfortunately, economists’ policy models have not kept up and are stuck in either a market fundamentalist or government control narrative. This Vox Talk argues for a new, more flexible policy narrative, which envisions society as a complex evolving system that is uncontrollable but can be influenced.

Philippe Weil interviewed by Viv Davies, 20 June 2014 The CEPR Business Cycle Dating Committee recently concluded that there is not yet enough evidence to call a business cycle trough in the Eurozone. Instead, the committee has announced a 'prolonged pause' in the recession. This Vox Talk discusses the possible directions that this situation could lead to and questions whether the Great Recession has harmed the Eurozone’s long-term growth prospects to the extent that meagre growth could become the 'new normal'.

Diane Coyle interviewed by Viv Davies, 09 June 2014 As a measure of economic activity, GDP is imperfect, but no more so than any single indicator of the whole economy. Yet public policy debate about the economy is often focused on GDP growth to the exclusion of other important considerations. This Vox Talk argues the case for a ‘dashboard’ of alternative indicators that, in addition to measuring economic activity, could also capture social welfare, sustainability and the benefits of innovation.

Rachel Griffith interviewed by Viv Davies, 26 May 2014 Diet-related chronic diseases are a major public health concern. Addressing this concern is a key government policy objective. This Vox Talk argues that the impact of these policies on diet and health outcomes depends on how consumers adapt their consumption behaviour and on how firms respond in terms of the prices they set and the foods they offer.

Wendy Carlin interviewed by Viv Davies, 20 May 2014 Wendy Carlin talks to Viv Davies about the 'Curriculum Open-access Resources in Economics' (CORE) project, which was established by the Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) at Oxford and proposes a new approach to economics teaching for undergraduates. The aim is to update the existing economics curriculum so that it reflects recent developments in economics, the economy and in teaching methods. They discuss the 'three gaps' in economics teaching that the project seeks to close. The interview was recorded in April 2014 at the annual conference of the Royal Economic Society.

Markus Eberhardt interviewed by Viv Davies, 11 May 2014 The debt-growth link is essential to today's marcoeconomic policy choices. This Vox Talk discusses new evidence based on data on total public debt for 105 economies between 1972 and 2009 and two centuries of data for the UK, US, Sweden and Japan. There is no convincing proof that austerity works and that it is dangerous for policy makers to pretend otherwise.

David Autor interviewed by Viv Davies, 02 May 2014 David Autor talks to Viv Davies about his recent research that analyses the differential effects of trade and technology on employment patterns in US local labour markets between 1990 and 2007. While the effect of trade competition is growing over time, the effect of technology has shifted from automation of production activities in the manufacturing sector towards computerisation of information-processing tasks in the service sector. The interview was recorded in April 2014 at the annual conference of the Royal Economic Society.

Nauro Campos interviewed by Viv Davies, 26 April 2014 Nauro Campos talks to Viv Davies about his recent research with Fabrizio Coricelli and Luigi Moretti that, using data from the various enlargements since the 1970s, yields new results about the benefits that both rich and relatively poor countries, with the exception of Greece, have derived from becoming EU members. Campos estimates the gain in per capita GDP to be approximately 12%. The interview was recorded on 10 April 2014.

Stijn Claessens interviewed by Viv Davies, 18 April 2014 Stijn Claessens talks to Viv Davies about the recent IMF book titled 'Global Crises: Causes, Consequences and Policy Responses', co-edited with M Ayhan Kose, Luc Laeven, and Fabian Valencia. The book provides a comprehensive overview of current research into financial crises and the policy lessons learned. They discuss crisis prevention and management, and the crisis in the Eurozone. The interview was recorded in April 2014.

Geoff Mulgan interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 11 April 2014 Geoff Mulgan talks to Romesh Vaitilingam about his recent book, 'The Locust and the Bee: Predators and Creators in Capitalism's Future'. Mulgan suggests that the economic crisis was a dramatic reminder that capitalism can both produce and destroy, but that it also provides a historic opportunity to choose a radically different future for capitalism - one that maximizes its creative power yet minimizes its destructive force. They discuss the importance of social innovation and the creative economy. The interview was recorded in May 2013.

Gregory Clark interviewed by Viv Davies, 04 April 2014 Gregory Clark talks to Viv Davies about his new book titled "The Son Also Rises: Surnames and the History of Social Mobility". Using surname data from eight countries, the study concludes that fate and social status is determined by ancestry and that social mobility rates are lower than conventionally estimated, they do not vary across societies and are resistant to social policies. Effectively, capitalism has not led to pervasive, rapid mobility. The interview was recorded in London in March 2014.

Eswar Prasad interviewed by Viv Davies, 29 March 2014 Eswar Prasad talks to Viv Davies about his recent book, ‘The Dollar Trap: How the US dollar tightened its grip on global finance’, which examines how, paradoxically, in light of the financial crisis, the dollar continues to play a central role in the world economy and why it will remain the cornerstone of global finance for the foreseeable future. They also discuss the current frameworks for international economic cooperation as well as currency wars, unconventional monetary policy and the prospects for the renminbi becoming the world's reserve currency. The interview was recorded in London in March 2014.

Charles Calomiris interviewed by Romesh Vaitilingam, 21 March 2014 Charles Calomiris talks to Romesh Vaitilingam about his recent book, co-authored with Stephen Haber, ‘Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit’. They discuss how politics inevitably intrudes into bank regulation and why banking systems are unstable in some countries but not in others. Calomiris also presents his analysis of the political and banking history of the UK and how the well-being of banking systems depends on complex bargains and coalitions between politicians, bankers and other stakeholders. The interview was recorded in London in February 2014.

Viral Acharya interviewed by Viv Davies, 14 March 2014 Viral Acharya talks to Viv Davies about his recent work with Sascha Steffen that, using publicly available data and a series of shortfall measures, estimates the capital shortfalls of EZ banks that will be stress-tested under the proposed Asset Quality Review. They also discuss the difference in accounting rules between US and EZ banks and the future potential for banking union in the Eurozone. The interview was recorded by phone on 25 February 2014.

Vicky Pryce interviewed by Viv Davies, 15 February 2014 Vicky Pryce talks to Viv Davies about her recent book ‘Prisonomics: Behind bars in Britain’s failing prisons’, which analyses the economic and social costs and consequences of women in prison and women’s prisons in the UK. Pryce presents the case for penal reform and provides a number of policy recommendations. The interview was recorded in London in January 2014.

Charles Wyplosz interviewed by Viv Davies, 08 February 2014 Charles Wyplosz talks to Viv Davies about the recent Special Geneva Report, ‘The PADRE Plan: politically acceptable debt restructuring in the Eurozone’, co-authored with Pierre Pâris and published jointly by CEPR and ICMB. Wyplosz explains how debt restructuring can be managed in a safe way, why it would not have an inflationary effect and how moral hazard could be mitigated, if not eliminated. The interview was recorded in January 2014.

Gary Horlick interviewed by Viv Davies, 31 January 2014 World-leading trade lawyer, Gary Horlick, talks to Viv Davies about the 2013 WTO Bali ministerial conference and the post-Bali agenda. Horlick discusses food security, agriculture and whether mega regional trade agreements pose a threat to the future of the WTO. They also discuss the potential benefits of the post-Bali agenda for developing countries and the ‘trade transforming’ effect of SMEs and the internet. The interview was recorded in January 2014.

Alejandro Jara interviewed by Viv Davies, 25 January 2014 Alejandro Jara talks to Viv Davies about the 2013 WTO Bali ministerial conference and the recent Vox report, ‘Building on Bali’, co-edited with Simon Evenett. Jara presents his views on the post-Bali agenda, mega regional trade agreements and trade protectionism. They also discuss the extent to which the ‘global value chain revolution’ has changed the nature and focus of international trade and trade agreements. Jara concludes by presenting policy recommendations for the way forward. The interview was recorded in January 2014.

Nicholas Crafts interviewed by Viv Davies, 21 January 2014 Nicholas Crafts talks to Viv Davies about his recent work on the threatening issue of public debt in the Eurozone. Crafts maintains that the implicit fault line in the EZ is evident; several EZ economies face a long period of fiscal consolidation and low growth and that a different sort of central bank might be preferable. They also discuss the challenges and constraints of banking, fiscal and federal union. The interview was recorded in London on 17 January 2014.