US equities, in fact shares around the world, seem to be running away with themselves right now. Is this healthy? And who wins, other than the investors who sell before the price tops out? This week Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about the relationship between shareholder value and the growth and productivity of the company’s shareholders are buying in to. Is part of the problem that the system promotes the managerial class, rather than incentivises entrepreneurs? Hosted on Acast. See acas...
Jan 20, 2020•42 min•Season 1Ep. 184
Who’d have thought it – Steve Keen and Phil Dobbie turn out to be a couple of royalists. As Harry and Megan prepare to chuff off to Canada, and royal-watchers have been decrying the whole thing as one massive constitutional crisis, we use it all as an opportunity to ask whether the royal family is worth keeping at all. The expectation was that one or other of our podcasters would have it in for the royals, but after looking at the numbers they both agree it’s better to stick with what we know. A...
Jan 15, 2020•27 min•Season 1Ep. 183
2019 was quite a year. We had the ongoing Brexit saga, the US China trade war, Europe close to recession and a big housing downturn in Australia. It was capped off with some of the worst bushfires ever seen. Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve what this year has in store for us? if austerity has gone will we see a bright future for Britain, or will it be dragged down by Brexit? Is this the year that Donald Trump gets re-elected, or will the US economy take a turn for the worst and drag him down with it?...
Jan 06, 2020•35 min•Season 1Ep. 182
It’s taken us a few years to tackle the obvious topic for the Debunking Economics podcast, what are the biggest failings of neoclassical economics. Prof Steve Keen tells Phil Dobbie that it starts on page one of rudimentary economics textbooks, which the idea of the demand curve. Having debunked that, he moves on to the capital market line, used to determine investment decisions. Then it’s the models being used to determine the impact of climate change. Then the concept of diminishing marginal p...
Dec 23, 2019•39 min•Season 1Ep. 181
It’s one of the basic constructs of classical economics – the concept of the opportunity cost. Steve Keen admits it works at the individual level – you are listening to this podcast at the expense of doing something else, for example. But does the theory work when applied to broader economic thinking? No, says Steve – it’s a case of false equivalences, that renders it meaningless. Does that mean it’s useless as a tool for economists? And is there a way Phil Dobbie can use it as a way of getting ...
Dec 16, 2019•27 min•Season 1Ep. 180
In this edition of the Debunking Economics Podcast Phil Dobbie and Steve Keen discuss business cycles. What causes them and how can we reduce their impact. As Steve explains, neo-classical economics teaches us that the turns in a cycle are caused by exogenous shocks when, in reality, it is the economies own internal cycle that is the root cause. Listen in to find out why business cycles really occur and what we can do to lessen their impact. Plus, Phil asks, why has the cycle stalled all of a su...
Dec 11, 2019•33 min•Season 1Ep. 179
Economists predict GDP growth by looking at business investment, government and consumer spending, plus the net level of exports. In the long term, of course, growth only comes from the products and services you sell and for that the Atlas of Economic Complexity, developed by Harvard University, is a powerful tool. It demonstrates how growth comes to countries with a highly complex mix of products for export – the less complex, the less the growth potential. As Prof Steve Keen says to Phil Dobbi...
Dec 03, 2019•31 min•Season 1Ep. 178
Economists love the concept of externalities - factors that cost you or benefit you, for which you made no contribution, or for which you bare no blame. In this week’s podcast Phil Dobbie describe show his new neighbour said he hopes he does his house up, because gentrification benefits everyone in the street because everyone’s house goes up in value. He asks Steve Keen whether, if that’s the case, he should charge his neighbour for some of the work, given he will benefit financially. Increasing...
Nov 24, 2019•29 min•Season 1Ep. 177
Jeremy Corbyn pledged over the weekend that, if he was to become Prime Minister, he would deliver free high-speed full-fibre broadband to everyone by 2030. To do it he would renationalise Open Reach, the network arm of BT. Is any of this a good idea? Phil Dobbie asks Steve Keen whether the government can deliver a solution any faster than the private sector. Surely subsidies are a better approach. And can’t something be learnt from the experience in Australia, where politicking has destroyed the...
Nov 18, 2019•42 min•Season 1Ep. 176
For all the best efforts we have seen over recent years, the gender pay gap in most countries remains an issue. There are lots of other factors determining how much you get paid, of course – your age, your education, where you live. Can these gaps ever be resolved? Probably not, says Steve Keen, who says the issue is one of hierarchy. Society needs hierarchy to organise itself, so we will always see some getting paid more than others, even if, on the face of it, they don’t deserve it. The questi...
Nov 12, 2019•40 min•Season 1Ep. 175
Steve Keen and Phil Dobbie had very different ideas about Brexit a few years ago. Now they both agree it’s a vote that should never have happened? So, is it the impact of tariffs?? Is it the impact on foreign investment? Is it impacts on the supply chain? No, many of those things, Steve believes, will be overcome. It’s the one unsurmountable thing that was never discussed ahead of the vote – the one thing that is likely to kill the whole idea. Now they agree on one thing, Brexit will never happe...
Nov 03, 2019•42 min•Season 1Ep. 174
One of the constraints of MMT is that to create more government money you need to have a sovereign currency. That rules out countries in the Eurozone and developing nations heavily reliant on the US dollar. Yet the idea of a Green New Deal is to resolve the issue of climate change using MMT. How can you pursue a global issue with a protocol that only applies in certain parts of the world? And how do you apply it without going down the dangerous road of world government? Questions Phil Dobbie put...
Oct 27, 2019•33 min•Season 1Ep. 173
Larry Randall Wray has suggested Modern Monetary Theory should be applied to create a Green New Deal. This week and next, Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about the idea of creating government money to tackle the climate emergency. Would it work? Is there a danger that public sector spending will crowd out private investment in innovative approaches to renewable energy? And what can we learn from the original New Deal, from Roosevelt just after the Great Depression? Hosted on Acast. See acas...
Oct 21, 2019•34 min•Season 1Ep. 172
There’s a glimmer of hope that the US China trade war will ease a little. In other words, it won’t get worse. But even so, the tariffs and other conditions are being felt in both countries. Steve Keen, who is not a fan of global trade, admits this one is having a destructive effect on the global economy. So how will it end? Could Trump achieve his aim of drawing manufacturing back to the United States? If he does, how long will it take? And what happens in the meantime? Hosted on Acast. See acas...
Oct 12, 2019•34 min•Season 1Ep. 171
At the Labour party conference recently, UK Shadow Chancellor outlined the policy aim of reducing the working week to 32 hours, with no loss in pay. It’s been lambasted by many, who see it as a way of reducing productivity and costing jobs as businesses fail against overseas competitors with a lower cost base. In this week’s podcast, Prof Steve Keen tells Phil Dobbie that the protagonists have got it wrong. The reason productivity has slowed is because companies are becoming too reliant on low c...
Oct 07, 2019•31 min•Season 1Ep. 170
Modern monetary theory tells us that we shouldn’t worry about government debt – that governments can create money to spend to projects that will create full employment. Even if that is the case, what happens when the money you need isn’t in your currency? It’s a question Phil Dobbie puts to Prof Steve Keen in this week’s Debunking Economics podcast. You can’t create foreign currency, but you might well need it to pay for your government expenditure. So how does Modern monetary theory work in pra...
Sep 30, 2019•38 min•Season 1Ep. 169
There were times when men would leave their families to head for the hills and pan for gold. There were times when the value of currencies was tied to gold. These days, there aren’t so many discoveries and money is no long tied to the gold standard. Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve Keen what is the use of gold today, and why do investors rush to it in times of uncertainty. And if it has nothing to do with monetary policy, why is most gold still locked up in the vaults of central banks? Hosted on Acas...
Sep 23, 2019•30 min•Season 1Ep. 168
According to the World Health Organisation, Antibiotic resistance is rising to dangerously high levels in all parts of the world. New resistance mechanisms are emerging and spreading globally, threatening our ability to treat common infectious diseases. Sadly, the ROI of antibiotic research is now too low for most pharmaceutical companies to consider. In this week’s free edition of the Debunking Economics podcast Phil Dobbie and Prof Steve Keen talk about the failings of the free-market system a...
Sep 16, 2019•30 min•Season 1Ep. 167
Regular listeners will know that most money in circulation is created, bot by central banks, but by commercial banks when they issue loans. In this week’s podcast Phil Dobbie asks Steve Keen how fundamental this is to the slow growth, low interest economy the world has found itself in. Isn’t there a danger that banks will limit the supply when times are bad when, in fact, what the economy needs at those times is more money? Just how much influence do central banks have on the activities of comme...
Sep 09, 2019•41 min•Season 1Ep. 166
Britain gave us the steam engine and so many other inventions. But what has it done lately. Not a lot. Is it because we have beenhamstrung by Brussels, and we'll be free to goback to those halycon days after Brexit. We need entrepreneurship and innovation, says Steve - but a lot of that has to come from the government sector. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sep 02, 2019•35 min•Season 1Ep. 165
The markets are concerned that we are on the verge of a global recession. How do they know? Not from reading tea-leaves but by studying yield curves. An inverted yield curve has signalled every recession since the 1980s. So, Phil Dobbie asks Steve Keen, does that mean next year is going to be 2008 all over again. In short, no is the answer. 2008 was caused by a collapse in credit-based demand. We’re not seeing the same level of decline in that demand this time. So, the good news is, we might not...
Aug 27, 2019•38 min•Season 1Ep. 164
A little over 75 years ago World powers signed the Bretton Woods agreement, that saw the US dollar as the planet’s reserve currency, tied to reserves of Gold. In this week’s podcast Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about how the agreement missed the opportunity to create a separate reserve currency, the approach preferred by John Maynard Keynes. They also discuss why the link to Gold reserves was eventually removed, the role of the IMF and World Bank, both born out of Bretton Woods, and whet...
Aug 19, 2019•35 min•Season 1Ep. 163
Economics is still built around the age-old factors of production – land, labour, capital and, perhaps, entrepreneurship. Yet, you can’t run machines without power and you can’t expect workers to function without food. So why isn’t energy implicitly included as one of the key functions of the economy? Clearly it should be. In today’s Debunking Economics podcast Professor Steve Keen explains how he is working with climatologist Tim Garrett and mathematician Matheus Grasselli to develop a new mode...
Aug 12, 2019•44 min•Season 1Ep. 162
Boris Johnson wants to introduce free ports in the UK. International trade secretary Liz Truss has said the 10 ports would create thousands of jobs. So, will these new tariff free zones, where goods can be imported and exported without the paperwork, help Britain grows its manufacturing base, or is it just a way to try and keep car plants onshore for a while longer as the UK heads to a no-deal Brexit? Phil Dobbie puts these questions to Prof Steve Keen, who has spent some time early in his caree...
Aug 05, 2019•30 min•Season 1Ep. 161
As the US Federal Reserve prepares to cut rates today, and the European Central Bank grapples with the how to boost growth without pushing interest rates into negative territory, Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve Keen whether we’ve reached the end of the line for monetary policy. Even central banks are admitting more needs to be done by governments to provide stimulus to flagging economies. Isn’t it time to question the extent of the influence of central banks and some of the fundamental theories they...
Jul 31, 2019•36 min•Season 1Ep. 160
In a recent Debunking Economics podcast Steve Bannister explained his climate modelling and how existing energy technologies won’t scale enough to save the planet. Omar Cheema, managing director of Vivantive, disagrees. His company provides advice on clean energy projects for multinational corporations, governments and investors. He says solar power is already providing an efficient source of energy, the obstacles are geopolitical, vested interests and the resistance to provide the necessary cap...
Jul 24, 2019•57 min•Season 1Ep. 159
Is debt good or bad? Or does it depend on the type of debt? One of our listeners, Roy Langston, wrote in to ask why Steve Keen is in favour of bank created debt. Shouldn’t investment be funded by other people’s savings? If debt is funded by money created by banks, pursuing income from the interest, doesn’t it create too much debt money, which Steve is calling to resolve through a debt jubilee? An interesting question that Phil Dobbie puts to Steve, as well as discussing when debt can be a good t...
Jul 15, 2019•39 min•Season 1Ep. 158
Just after WW2 the UK government’s spending on pensions in the UK amounted to about 2 percent of GDP – these days its nearer 8 percent. Despite this, over the years we’ve seen an increasing number of people funding their retirement through private schemes, rather than relying on state pensions. And yet, a recent YouGov poll shows that one third of the population reckon they won’t have enough to live off when they retire. In this edition of the Debunking Economics Podcast Phil Dobbie asks Prof St...
Jul 08, 2019•24 min•Season 1Ep. 157
As the UK Labour party grapples with ways to reduce the advantage of inherited wealth, so we all start life on an equal footing, Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about the idea of a land tax. Could it replace income tax as the major form of taxation? On the surface, it seems like it could counter a lot of economic problems, such as income diversity, housing affordability and the geographic concentration of capital. Unlike income tax, it’s also impossible to dodge. So what’s the downside? Hos...
Jul 03, 2019•34 min•Season 1Ep. 156
Most press coverage of Facebook’s announcement of a new global currency by 2020 has been negative. Facebook already knows so much about us, can we trust them with our money? But they seem to have missed the intent of the Libra Foundation, which is a not-for-profit, of which Facebook is one of many equal partners, trying to extend access to banking to the 1 billion or so who are currently outside the system. Phil Dobbie talks to Prof Steve Keen about the benefits of the Libra project, whilst cons...
Jun 24, 2019•34 min•Season 1Ep. 155
