Econ of Keynes, Kalecki, Minsky, Lerner, Godley, Knapp, Robinson amongst other things. Rethinking economics. My specialty is hindsight.
Jul 5, 2018 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
When discussing the #NHS in terms of privatisation I always think it's useful to equate what neoliberals and the private sector are doing to it as akin to a parasite infecting its host. The goal of a parasite isn't to kill its host but to extract energy to allow it to grow. 1/11
Ultimately the parasite seeks to reproduce and spread, much the same as private providers offering and supplying public services has spread and increased over the years. So what is the "energy" these parasites are extracting, and how do they know they won't kill their host? 2/11
Jun 22, 2018 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
For me the biggest insight regarding #MMT isn't that taxes aren't needed prior to spending but that bonds are for monetary policy not fiscal. The big scary borrowing everyone hammers on about so much is nothing more than savings opportunities with an interest rate set by the BoE.
This realisation opens up important discussions about whether these savings opportunities are being provided on a fair and equitable basis, or indeed, whether they should exist at all in this format given the misinterpretation of their function.
Mar 23, 2018 • 22 tweets • 5 min read
No problem, will take a while so bear with me.
As the issuer of the pound sterling, all £s originate via the UK government. In order for the UK to be able to claim back £s for taxes it must have spent those £s into existence by purchasing goods/services for use by gov. 1/?
In the UK our unit of account is denominated as the £, the US the $, Japan the ¥. Via the Treasury and Central Bank, the UK government controls and owns the unit of account. The £ is simply a measure of a relevant obligation/debt in relation to a good or service in that unit. 2/?
