I made a podcast after the Budget for Politics Joe. I was interviewed by Ava Santana. They have now turned this into a video, but Ava disappeared in the edit. Still, for thsoe who want another shot of the Budget, and somewhat more, this is it:
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Buy me a coffee!
Love this!
Love our independent cafs and pubs too, you are right the people in the hospitality trade, usually young, are lovely, we need more places to assemble.
The costs to hire a community space are now prohibiting the healthy need to gather, play, and connect.
If I recall didn’t something rather big emerge from a coffee house?
Mmm can see why they might not want us to replicate this order of magnitude!
I like your thinking
I hadn’t heard of the coffee house link, so Google Gemini reveals the following which originated in a coffee house:
✅Lloyd’s of London, The London Stock Exchange, Sotheby’s and Christie’s auction houses
✅The Age of Enlightenment, The French Revolution, American Revolutionary Activity
Powerful stuff, coffee. I have had rather a lot of it today.
You were very good in that video. One commenter referred to you as the GOAT (Greatest of all Time). That’s high praise from Gen Z!
🙂
For fans of neoliberalism as a pejorative this article is very challenging
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08913811.2025.2582952?
There are a lot of references that only a trained economist would understand in my view
£41 for thsoe without university access.
On the subject of videos, I happened to just watch Gary Steventon’s latest, post budget. I think it illustrates the limits of his economic thinking, maybe shaped by his background in the City. He has not got beyond tax (the rich) and spend, and do what the bond traders tell you.
His heart is in the right place, certainly where inequality is concerned, but he needs a bit of re-education on economics.
Agreed. I found it very frustrating.
Worth noting, Gary had an MPhil in Economics from Oxford, yet seems so narrow as you’ve said. I.only comment on that as just recently I seem to see a lot of PHds on Bluesky rubbishing Richards ideas and/or MMT generally of late.
They are paid to defend what they have been taught. They are the very last people to be open minded.
“Much to agree with.” Absolutely agree with your suggestion to not limit the highest rate of tax to 45%. What do those high-earners need the money for? I always wonder…. Most people just want to have a reliable income with a bit of spare cash for a holiday once in a while. Keep up the good work. You’re practically the only economist speaking up for young people and the future.
I do worry about your caffeine intake.
I am a member of the Green Party so thanks for the praise of Zack – and the critique.
I guess everyone does something to excess. I do coffee. But I almost never drink and have no chronic health conditions, which is unusaal at 67.
A ambitious public investment I would like to see is in housing. Build high quality, carbon-neutral modular homes in facilities (set up as nationalised, not for profit) that could be set up in areas such as Sheffield, Port Talbot etc. where industry has been lost, providing stable, well paid high skilled jobs. Supply these homes to councils at zero upfront cost, with a levy on rental income, the remainder to remain with councils ringfenced for local infrastructure and facilities. Make social housing high quality, affordable, and for everyone. Community centres, health centres etc could be built in this way too so that communities are being built, not just dormitory estates. Suitable land that is being “banked” by developers would be made available for compulsory purchase by councils at current use value if they don’t start building on it within a reasonable timeframe. Links to FE colleges for apprenticeships to build the skill base needed for construction.
Better housing leads to better health, and quality of life. Wider availability of social housing with affordable rent and stable tenancies reduces the ability of private landlords to extract profit. Investment in industry and infrastructure brings growth.
Not brilliantly put, but hopefully you get the gist of the idea. Might be a terrible plan, but still, seemed worth typing out.