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The curse of big numbers

The curse of big numbers

There are many irritating things about the world of politics and economics but perhaps the most irritating of all is something I like to call numberism. The term might not be familiar but you will almost certainly know what I mean. Numberism is when politicians take a big number and

Unjolly hockey sticks

Unjolly hockey sticks

Someone asked an interesting question at the Institute for Fiscal Studies’ post-Budget briefing yesterday: have we ever seen a squeeze in real earnings like the one we’re currently experiencing? The question matters because real earnings are one of the most important barometers of the economy’s health. During the

We need more maps

We need more maps

Were it not for a mapping error, or rather a series of them, Christopher Columbus might never have sailed for America. When he set out across the Atlantic in 1492, the Italian explorer did so confident in the understanding that provided he headed in a roughly straight line westwards from

Energy and Inflation: A Series of Unfortunate Events

Energy and Inflation: A Series of Unfortunate Events

Sellindge is a village in Kent just off the A20 between Ashford and Folkestone. It is so small - just over 1,000 inhabitants - that most people barely notice it as they speed down towards the English Channel in their cars or on the Eurostar. But if you were

Everything is always more complicated than you think, COVID edition

Everything is always more complicated than you think, COVID edition

One of the big economic and social stories of the past year is that for the first time since WWII the UK’s population is shrinking. I did a report for Sky News about this earlier on this year [https://news.sky.com/story/the-three-forces-at-play-that-raise-serious-questions-about-this-years-census-12250750] , a film of which you

Mind the (housing) gap

Mind the (housing) gap

Britain’s housing market has long been more complicated than anyone would like to admit. There is, we are told, a terrible housing shortage. Yet large parts of the country have so many vacant houses that they are being dismantled. We are told there is a disastrous gap between London

Is this worst pandemic in British history?

Is this worst pandemic in British history?

The short answer is no. In terms of the numbers of people dying, this is not yet Britain’s worst pandemic. It’s not yet worse, in terms of deaths, than the worst weeks of the Hong Kong flu epidemic in the late 1960s and early ‘70s. It is almost