Economics

By Valentina Magri 'Life is beautiful' is not just the title of a famous Italian comedy-drama, as of 2013, it may be also the statement of the typical English citizen. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has recently released a report entitled 'How’s Life in 2013', measuring the well-being of English people using the Better Life Index. The measure of the well-being is interesting for at least two reasons. The first is that it assesses individual and societal...

By Mary Mellor, Emeritus Professor, Northumbria University George Osborne’s Autumn Statement was a classic espousal of handbag economics, so named after the saint of the handbag, Mrs Thatcher. Handbag economics is the common sense of our age.  Public sectors are like households, they must live within their means, balance their books, cut their coat according to their cloth. Britain is to face more years of austerity, not because it is in recession, but in pursuit of the handbag ideal. According to...

By Malcolm Henry, Author of Views From The Boatshed There’s a debate going on in some nerdy corners of the internet about negative interest rates, which sounds like a desperately dull thing to be wasting time on, but it could be the spark that lights the lamp that leads us out of the economic gloom into a bright and prosperous future. A negative interest rate is being considered by some as the only plausible way to stir the economy out of the...

By Nathan Lee, Financial Analyst In 2007 Brazil was awarded the football World Cup with the backdrop of a strengthening economy and the prospect of social change. As it prepares to host the finals, the South American powerhouse lays dormant. There’s a subdued atmosphere surrounding Brazil in the run up to the football World Cup and 2016 Olympics. The cost of shining a spotlight on South America’s economic powerhouse has pushed the country to breaking point. Brazil’s economy contracted by...

By Adam Walker, Economic Correspondent   Is the Video games industry our Christmas Saviour? As the Christmas season begins to move into its busiest period the commercial world’s focus has been firmly fixed on the videogames industry. With a multitude of Triple A game titles being released across 2013 and one of the most highly anticipated console wars heating up, the holiday period is sure to see soaring demand from consumers. However, the importance of this games war goes beyond...

Britain's interpretation of a McDonaldized society. The effects of globalisation will result in the world becoming wedged between a bread bun and cheese-coated garnish - was my cursory understanding of George Ritzer's vision of a McDonaldized society. As panic spread across my face over the cosmological effects of such a bizarre looking planet, I decided to forgo contemporary reading habits and actually open the book – which got me thinking about a few British high street staples, and how they...