If someone is claiming unemployment benefits should the government be able to make them work a full-time jobs to remain eligible for benefits? You could argue that if someone is receiving unemployment benefits, offering them ‘job experience’ may have certain benefits. Benefits of Unemployed having to Work It makes sure people are not claiming benefits …
Readers Question: Is large government spending bad for economic growth? to what extent does empirical evidence support this assertion? How Government Spending Might Lead to Lower Economic Growth Higher spending leads to higher taxes. Higher income taxes may discourage people from working. High corporation tax might discourage firms from setting up in that country. (e.g. …
This is a list of government spending as a % of GDP. The highest on this list is Zimbabwe with 97.8% of GDP. Amongst developed countries, the highest levels of government spending include Iceland (57%), Sweden (52%) and France (52.8%) China’s government spending accounts for only 20% of GDP
Readers Question: The number of Rhinos that are killed every year for their horns is increasing. They may soon be extinct. What would an economist do about this? An economist would say that if Rhinos are at risk of becoming extinct it would impose a significant social cost on society. Therefore the economic incentives should …
A joke – Three guys walk into a bakery; an investment banker, a government employee, and a tea partier. The lady behind the counter puts out a dozen cookies. The investment banker pockets 11 and tells the tea partier the damn government worker is trying to steal his cookie. There was a time when bank …
Readers Question: What is economic analysis? Can you give some examples? Kindly refer me to an easy to read book on economic analysis. Economic analysis involves examining issues and problems from the perspective of an economist. Economic analysis would involve some or all of the following: Examining the opportunity cost of a decision. (e.g. if the …
Readers Question: Also what are the negatives to the Robin Hood Tax that has been suggested and is it akin to the suggested European transaction tax? A ‘Robin Hood tax’ is a popular name for a Tobin tax that was proposed by Nobel laureate James Tobin. Initially, the idea was to place a small tax …
Fiscal union involves individual countries sharing the same common budget. It means spending and tax levels would be taken by a central fiscal authority. Fiscal union also means debt would be financed by a common bond rather than individual countries. Fiscal union is proposed as a step for further European integration. It would mean a …