One year on from the first coronavirus lockdown, there have been seismic changes not only in our daily lives but also in the policy landscape. It is easy to become complacent about the extent of the economic policies put in place by governments in response to the crisis.
Today’s FAI Economic Commentary summarised in 10 key points, the commentary is produced quarterly and provides a snapshot of the Scottish economy.
One year on, the pandemic still constricts growth but sentiment improves for the future. After a year of economic pain and ongoing uncertainty, certain sectors in the economy continue to bear the brunt.
Economic theory tells us that trade can help boost employment outcomes in the long run. However, the benefits of trade are not necessarily experienced equally, or at all. Today we have published a new report which examines how jobs in the UK are supported by exporting activities, including how these supported jobs differentially impact different parts of society.
This was a budget of two parts – more spending in the short term to support mitigate the impacts of covid restrictions, and future fiscal tightening to address concerns about fiscal sustainability. But what were the implications for Scotland?
The UK has one of the highest levels of regional income inequality across developed countries. The Johnson government proposes to tackle this with a leveling up agenda. But where does Scotland fit into this picture? We show that the answer to this question depends on the type of regions we compare. As a whole, Scotland has income levels close to the UK average but looking closer we find a more nuanced picture.
Emma Congreve is joined by Mairi Spowage to look back on a year like no other. In this podcast, we discuss our articles from over the past year, picking our highlights and discussing how our thinking has evolved over the course of 2020. Links can be found below to all articles we are discussing – so you can read along at home!
Mairi Spowage, Deputy Director of the Institute, is joined by Dr Hannah White, Deputy Director of the Institute for Government, to discuss the interaction between the budgetary processes at Westminster and the devolved governments, how well devolved budgetary processes are understood by Westminster, the experience of inter-governmental relations throughout the pandemic, and of course Brexit and the Internal Market Bill.
With the pandemic forcing many people to work from home for the first time, much has been said about how home working could influence the future of work. But which jobs are likely to be most or least affected by home working? And what are businesses saying about their experience so far?
How could the pandemic and the UK’s new trading relationship with the EU interact to affect Scottish businesses and Local Authorities?