Jo Michell
@jomichell.bsky.social
Professor of economics at UWE Bristol. Chair of Post-Keynesian Economics Society. Interested in macro, finance, banking, climate change, inequality, demographics.
https://people.uwe.ac.uk/Person/JoMichell
https://people.uwe.ac.uk/Person/JoMichell
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Jo Michell
@jomichell.bsky.social
· Nov 22
Beyond Growth | Jo Michell
Can Labour rise to the politics of growth after fourteen years of stagnation?
www.phenomenalworld.org
Got a longish read in @phenomenalworld.bsky.social on the budget, Labour's economic strategy and UK political economy.
www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/bey...
www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/bey...
Reposted by Jo Michell
Reposted by Jo Michell
FT Editorial on the BBC - The broadcaster has made errors, but its board has failed to defend it www.ft.com/content/406e...
November 11, 2025 at 7:46 AM
FT Editorial on the BBC - The broadcaster has made errors, but its board has failed to defend it www.ft.com/content/406e...
This is an interesting take.
November 11, 2025 at 7:45 AM
This is an interesting take.
Reposted by Jo Michell
NEW: Rachel Reeves signals she intends to remove the two-child cap *in full*
"I don't think a child should be penalised because they're in a bigger family through no fault of their own," she tells BBC.
"I don't think a child should be penalised because they're in a bigger family through no fault of their own," she tells BBC.
November 10, 2025 at 3:05 PM
NEW: Rachel Reeves signals she intends to remove the two-child cap *in full*
"I don't think a child should be penalised because they're in a bigger family through no fault of their own," she tells BBC.
"I don't think a child should be penalised because they're in a bigger family through no fault of their own," she tells BBC.
Grimly depressing that someone so directly and obviously connected with the spread of misinformation has so far succeeded in pushing claims about 'bias' at the BBC -- and that you have to really work hard reading the news reports to extract this crucial piece of information.
Should Gibb be sacked? yes, obviously. He's an abomination of basic journalistic standards. His GB News channel spreads conspiracy theory & disinformation. His Jewish Chronicle newspaper spreads invented stories. He is plainly trying to undermine the BBC so it's as bad as everything else he touches.
November 10, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Grimly depressing that someone so directly and obviously connected with the spread of misinformation has so far succeeded in pushing claims about 'bias' at the BBC -- and that you have to really work hard reading the news reports to extract this crucial piece of information.
Reposted by Jo Michell
"systemic", in context means "having material amounts of use for purposes other than crypto speculation on a crypto exchange", which currently describes basically no products and IMO quite possibly never will
BoE systemic stablecoin proposals out. Backing 60/40 split UK gov debt and unremunerated reserves. Access to central bank liquidity. Holding limits www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/2025/no...
Bank of England launches consultation on regulating systemic stablecoins
The Bank of England (the Bank) has today published a consultation paper (CP) setting out its proposed regulatory regime for sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins.
www.bankofengland.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 1:53 PM
"systemic", in context means "having material amounts of use for purposes other than crypto speculation on a crypto exchange", which currently describes basically no products and IMO quite possibly never will
Reposted by Jo Michell
Scrapping the cap entirely is both good policy *and* good politics.
Half measures will "save" some money short-term, but will piss *everybody* off and still leave very large numbers of children suffering from a policy designed to make them poorer.
inews.co.uk/news/politic...
Half measures will "save" some money short-term, but will piss *everybody* off and still leave very large numbers of children suffering from a policy designed to make them poorer.
inews.co.uk/news/politic...
Food vouchers, free milk and two-child cap: Reeves weighs up help for families
Ministers' long-awaited child poverty strategy is due this month - and it's closely tied to the Chancellor's Budget
inews.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 8:57 AM
Scrapping the cap entirely is both good policy *and* good politics.
Half measures will "save" some money short-term, but will piss *everybody* off and still leave very large numbers of children suffering from a policy designed to make them poorer.
inews.co.uk/news/politic...
Half measures will "save" some money short-term, but will piss *everybody* off and still leave very large numbers of children suffering from a policy designed to make them poorer.
inews.co.uk/news/politic...
Reposted by Jo Michell
Have there been any suggestions about who leaked the memo?
November 9, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Have there been any suggestions about who leaked the memo?
Reposted by Jo Michell
The BBC will fuck things up from time to time. Lots of major news organisations do; just look at The Times having to memoryhole several fake news stories in a matter of weeks.
No one is calling for the abolition of The Times, however.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
No one is calling for the abolition of The Times, however.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
UK newspaper editor calls Bill de Blasio fake interview blunder ‘humiliating’
A Times associate editor reportedly addressed situation in an email to staff, saying: ‘We should have been on our guard’
www.theguardian.com
November 10, 2025 at 9:53 AM
The BBC will fuck things up from time to time. Lots of major news organisations do; just look at The Times having to memoryhole several fake news stories in a matter of weeks.
No one is calling for the abolition of The Times, however.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
No one is calling for the abolition of The Times, however.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Reposted by Jo Michell
Objectivity, impartiality and balance are all *different things*, and the lazy tendency to treat them as synonyms, and to use partisan balance alone as a proxy for the others, is the root cause of a vast amount of nonsense.
Robbie Gibb once suggested that reporters should reflect if they were getting more retweets from one side than the other - a braindead analysis that ignores that fair and impartial reporting of education might get more Tory retweets than say, criminal justice.
Stephen really does have the best take on this. It’s not clear that the BBC Board or indeed the rest of the News team really understood the message of the previous reviews, which were about getting detail right. Instead they wanted to know what was ‘biased’ or not like they were blotting out stains.
November 10, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Objectivity, impartiality and balance are all *different things*, and the lazy tendency to treat them as synonyms, and to use partisan balance alone as a proxy for the others, is the root cause of a vast amount of nonsense.
Reposted by Jo Michell
Stephen really does have the best take on this. It’s not clear that the BBC Board or indeed the rest of the News team really understood the message of the previous reviews, which were about getting detail right. Instead they wanted to know what was ‘biased’ or not like they were blotting out stains.
The impossible dream some people on the British right are chasing is that you can have a BBC News operation that retreats from detail and expertise, that takes dictation from the government, but this will only create incompetence and failure when it suits you:
To fix the BBC, focus on competence and cash
Corporation fails to learn from criticism, while politicians have consciously reduced its scope for quality journalism
www.ft.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:20 AM
Stephen really does have the best take on this. It’s not clear that the BBC Board or indeed the rest of the News team really understood the message of the previous reviews, which were about getting detail right. Instead they wanted to know what was ‘biased’ or not like they were blotting out stains.
Reposted by Jo Michell
This isn't a revolutionary government. But as a Labour government, it does need to be the people's representative to the system. So far it's acted as the system's representative to the people - "no, you can't have that, tough choices". And time is running out to deliver outcomes by the election
November 10, 2025 at 8:36 AM
This isn't a revolutionary government. But as a Labour government, it does need to be the people's representative to the system. So far it's acted as the system's representative to the people - "no, you can't have that, tough choices". And time is running out to deliver outcomes by the election
Reposted by Jo Michell
The key is to raise taxes enough to actually be able to do something with it, beyond placating the OBR and bond markets
Breaking the tax pledge is the right call...and politically sulphurous. Reeves must argue, far more forcefully, that taxes are *the* essential downpayment we all pay for a fairer society.
Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇
renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...
Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇
renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...
If Labour want a fairer society, they must argue for it
Labour must make the political argument: taxes are the critical downpayment we all pay to live in a fairer society.
It now seems all but certain that direct taxes will rise in the forthcoming Budget...
renewal.org.uk
November 10, 2025 at 8:20 AM
The key is to raise taxes enough to actually be able to do something with it, beyond placating the OBR and bond markets
Reposted by Jo Michell
Breaking the tax pledge is the right call...and politically sulphurous. Reeves must argue, far more forcefully, that taxes are *the* essential downpayment we all pay for a fairer society.
Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇
renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...
Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇
renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...
If Labour want a fairer society, they must argue for it
Labour must make the political argument: taxes are the critical downpayment we all pay to live in a fairer society.
It now seems all but certain that direct taxes will rise in the forthcoming Budget...
renewal.org.uk
November 10, 2025 at 7:34 AM
Breaking the tax pledge is the right call...and politically sulphurous. Reeves must argue, far more forcefully, that taxes are *the* essential downpayment we all pay for a fairer society.
Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇
renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...
Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇
renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...
Reposted by Jo Michell
While going through the proofs for "The British General Election of 2024" (out very soon!) I came across this - Paul Johnson of the IFS's verdict on Labour's manifesto last year. Labour's current attempts to claim the need to break their tax pledges was impossible to forsee don't stack up
November 10, 2025 at 8:28 AM
While going through the proofs for "The British General Election of 2024" (out very soon!) I came across this - Paul Johnson of the IFS's verdict on Labour's manifesto last year. Labour's current attempts to claim the need to break their tax pledges was impossible to forsee don't stack up
Reposted by Jo Michell
I agree with @arusbridger.bsky.social about BBC governance. Although v hesitant about another rearrangement, the single corporate-style board is massively flawed, not least because there needs to be some distance for the governors/board members from editorial decisions
Michael Prescott and Sir Robbie Gibb both bailed out of journalism years ago, and enjoy lucrative careers in corporate PR. And now they are the arbiters of BBC editorial standards. Go figure www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/media/...
The BBC has bigger impartiality problems than its coverage of Trump
It is the BBC’s entire governance structure–rather than individual stories–that should cause most concern
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 7:46 AM
I agree with @arusbridger.bsky.social about BBC governance. Although v hesitant about another rearrangement, the single corporate-style board is massively flawed, not least because there needs to be some distance for the governors/board members from editorial decisions
Reposted by Jo Michell
This (not from that piece) is one of those charts where I am completely aware of the data but my mental map of how the global economy works still almost refuses to update to the new reality. Because the pace of change has been so rapid.
November 10, 2025 at 7:57 AM
This (not from that piece) is one of those charts where I am completely aware of the data but my mental map of how the global economy works still almost refuses to update to the new reality. Because the pace of change has been so rapid.
Reposted by Jo Michell
Written before the BBC resignations but this by @arusbridger.bsky.social is really worth reading. www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/media/...
The BBC has bigger impartiality problems than its coverage of Trump
It is the BBC’s entire governance structure–rather than individual stories–that should cause most concern
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 7:26 AM
Written before the BBC resignations but this by @arusbridger.bsky.social is really worth reading. www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/media/...
Have there been any suggestions about who leaked the memo?
November 9, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Have there been any suggestions about who leaked the memo?
Reposted by Jo Michell
I had my disagreements with the BBC under Tim Davie but he was a decent man doing a difficult job.
To see Trump's White House claiming credit for his downfall and attacking the BBC should worry us all.
To see Trump's White House claiming credit for his downfall and attacking the BBC should worry us all.
November 9, 2025 at 8:00 PM
I had my disagreements with the BBC under Tim Davie but he was a decent man doing a difficult job.
To see Trump's White House claiming credit for his downfall and attacking the BBC should worry us all.
To see Trump's White House claiming credit for his downfall and attacking the BBC should worry us all.
I don’t suppose there’s any chance that this will be seen by other senior leadership teams as a warning about the prospects of a strategy of attempting to compromise with populist right positions.
November 9, 2025 at 8:25 PM
I don’t suppose there’s any chance that this will be seen by other senior leadership teams as a warning about the prospects of a strategy of attempting to compromise with populist right positions.
Found a fox trapped in a fence earlier today. Unfortunately I was not wearing a kimono.
November 8, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Found a fox trapped in a fence earlier today. Unfortunately I was not wearing a kimono.
Reposted by Jo Michell
“Nobody thought a Labour government would have to raise taxes by more than £70bn,” claims one insider in this excellent piece. Shows the problem of the climate of fear in meetings created by some of Starmer’s aides, in that plenty of Labour insiders, did, in fact, think this!
The politics of breaking manifesto promises
The history of politicians who go back on their words has lessons for Rachel Reeves as she mulls raising taxes
www.ft.com
November 8, 2025 at 10:32 AM
“Nobody thought a Labour government would have to raise taxes by more than £70bn,” claims one insider in this excellent piece. Shows the problem of the climate of fear in meetings created by some of Starmer’s aides, in that plenty of Labour insiders, did, in fact, think this!
Interested by this comment: what is it about the language of economics that seems insincere in this context, even to an economist?
November 8, 2025 at 9:38 AM
Interested by this comment: what is it about the language of economics that seems insincere in this context, even to an economist?
Odd article. The research paper cited is more like a blog post. And 'model the impact of extinction' is overstating it. As far as I can tell, the Fed authors have just drawn a line on a chart.
www.ft.com/content/60df...
www.ft.com/content/60df...
November 7, 2025 at 9:41 AM
Odd article. The research paper cited is more like a blog post. And 'model the impact of extinction' is overstating it. As far as I can tell, the Fed authors have just drawn a line on a chart.
www.ft.com/content/60df...
www.ft.com/content/60df...