Publications from Prime and collaborating experts

2006-2012: Ailing economy, failing solutions

Jeremy Smith, published by PRIME, 2nd February 2013.

How our national economy has fallen back over 6 years, how the labour market has evolved, and how traditional ‘productivity’ analysis provides flawed measures of performance of a national economy with high-level unemployment.

The power to create money ‘out of thin air’

Ann Pettifor, published by PRIME, 2nd January 2013.

In this review of Geoffrey Ingham’s Capitalism, Ann Pettifor stresses the need to understand capitalism’s elastic production of money and move beyond Adam Smith and ‘fractional reserve banking.’

Ann Pettifor and Douglas Coe, published by PRIME, 24th October 2012.

At their annual meeting in Tokyo this year, IMF economists destroyed the case for austerity. While their analysis constituted a small part of a routine report – the World Economic Outlook – and was technical in form, the devastating impact of their conclusions could not be ignored by the media. These IMF conclusions are of the greatest possible importance and must not be allowed to be lost with the passage of time. We are concerned that they should be fully understood by the public at large.

This PRIME briefing sets out the issues, including the implications of the new IMF analysis of multipliers, as well as the UK Treasury assumptions which are now heavily questioned.

Why the economic case for a 3rd runway at Heathrow still won’t fly

Ann Pettifor and Jeremy Smith, published by PRIME, 3rd September 2012.

In this PRIME Position Paper, Ann Pettifor and Jeremy Smith record why – on economic as well as environmental grounds – they remain strongly against the Heathrow extension, and against building any new major airport in the London and south-east region.  They therefore also disagree with those who oppose the Heathrow extension but favour a major new airport in say the Thames Estuary.

Understanding the Crisis: Clarity on Measurement, Clarity on Policy

Professor John Weeks, published by PRIME, April 4, 2012.

In collaboration with PRIME, Professor John Weeks has written a critique of the coalition government’s “deficit disorder” approach to economic recovery. This paper argues that the government’s prioritising of debt and deficit reduction remain unfounded. Rather, as evidence suggests, financial markets have no reason to be alarmed about the state of UK public finances. This paper advocates a practical, non-ideological policy reversal based on fiscal stimulus, financed through public borrowing and personal income tax increases.

The Economic Consequences of Mr Osborne

Professor Victoria Chick & Ann Pettifor, published by PRIME, updated January 27th 2011.

Fiscal consolidation does not ‘slash’ the debt, but contributes to it, as the extent of economic recovery becomes increasingly uncertain Prof. Victoria Chick and Ann Pettifor examine a century’s worth of macroeconomic evidence to argue that contrary to conventional wisdom we need to ‘spend away the debt’.

Where Did Our Money Go?

Published by new economics foundation & PRIME, October 4th 2010.

In 2008, the Government issued the biggest single public bail-out in history to rescue major retail banks in the middle of a credit crisis. This report asks where our money went, who has benefited from it, and what was asked of the banks in return.

The economy continues to pay a very heavy price for the failures of the financial system. These matters affect every individual in the UK.

Spending Away Debt

Ann Pettifor & Douglas Coe, first published by the New Economics Foundation and co-authored with the Green New Deal group as part of “The Cuts Won’t Work,” December 2009.

Keynes and his associates developed the theory of the multiplier (see Appendix 1 for a full explanation).  The principle underlying this theory was that any new spending had a series of ‘repercussions’ through the economy. This meant that the aggregate impact would be far larger than the original expenditure.  Any new employment will lead to more tax revenue. Equally, those who take up work no longer claim benefits… If government expenditure on implementing public works is £1 billion, the multiplied impact on national income is £1.5 billion.

The Cuts Won’t Work

Published by new economics foundation & Prime, December 7th 2009.

This second report from the Green New Deal Group argues that the UK is currently missing a historic opportunity in the pre-budget report to tackle public debt, create thousands of new green jobs and kick-start the transformation to a low-carbon economy.

Contrary to the policy of all the major political parties, cutting public spending now will tip the nation into a deeper recession by increasing unemployment, reducing the tax received and limiting government funding available to kick-start the Green New Deal. Instead a bold new programme of ‘green quantitative easing,’ rather than simply propping up failing banks, could help reduce the public debt and kick-start the transformation of the UK’s energy supply while creating thousands of new green-collar jobs.

A Green New Deal

Published by new economics foundation; co-authored by Ann Pettifor, July 21st 2008

The global economy is facing a ‘triple crunch’: a combination of a credit-fuelled financial crisis, accelerating climate change and soaring energy prices underpinned by encroaching peak oil. It is increasingly clear that these three overlapping events threaten to develop into a perfect storm, the like of which has not been seen since the Great Depression, with potentially devastating consequences.

The Coming First World Debt Crisis

Ann Pettifor, published by Palgrave Macmillan, 2nd October 2006.

In this book Ann Pettifor turns her attention from the debt crisis affecting developing countries and examines the ballooning debts of first world or OECD countries. She explores the history and roots of the forthcoming international debt crisis – economic liberalisation – and the restructuring of the international financial architecture in the early 1970s. The book goes on to explore the implications of high international indebtedness for governments, corporations, households and individuals. An important and unique contribution is Pettifor’s discussion of the justice and morality of debt, particularly for individuals.

The Real World Economic Outlook

Edited by Ann Pettifor, published by Palgrave Macmillan, September 2nd 2003

Real World Economic Outlook reviews issues in the global economy from a different, radical and more realistic perspective. In stark contrast to the output of other institutions like the IMF and World Bank, this report is written in an accessible way, informing and offering alternative analyses of the global economy to a wide audience. With contributions from high profile and leading thinkers, it sets out to integrate economic, environmental, and gender themes to transform mainstream economic thinking and offer alternative analyses and solutions.

Professor Victoria Chick, published by MIT Press, July 20th 1983

A reassessment of J. M. Keynes’s The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money this book is intended to encourage others to bring the General Theory back into mainstream teaching, because it “gives a far richer understanding of the structure of macroeconomic interactions and methods of analysing them than much of what has been written since.”