The School of Economics is pleased to advertise the next guest lecture within the Contemporary Economic Issues series, which takes place on Monday the 25th of February, from 6pm, in lecture theatre Arts 01.02. Our speaker this week is Prof. Diane Coyle, OBE (Smith School for Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford), discussing:

 GDP: measurement and values

by Prof. Diane Coyle, OBE

GDP has many critics, especially since the financial crisis; not surprisingly, many people are reappraising conventional economic wisdom. However, the critiques confuse two potential challenges to the status of GDP in public policy. One is the question of whether 'sustainable growth' is in fact an oxymoron - do we need to go 'beyond growth' for sustainability? The other is whether GDP is an appropriate measure of growth, or whether instead policymakers should adopt another kind of metric, perhaps even directly measuring well-being. This talk will set out the distinctions between economic growth, welfare and GDP, discuss both misguided and valid criticisms of GDP, and suggest another approach to measuring 'the economy'.

 Diane Coyle runs the consultancy Enlightenment Economics . She is Vice-Chair of the BBC Trust and was a member of the Migration Advisory Committee from 2007-2012, and a member of the Competition Commission from 2001-2009. She is also a visiting research associate at the University of Oxford's Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment. Diane has published numerous books, articles, and newspaper columns, as well as being a regular presenter of the BBC 4 ‘Analysis’ programme. She specialises in competition analysis and the economics of new technologies and globalisation

 

Refreshments are available at the end of the seminar to which members of the public are warmly welcomed to attend on a free entry basis.