Dr Peter Levell

The spread of COVID-19, and international measures to contain it, are having a major impact on economic activity in the UK. In this observation we describe how this impact has varied across industries using data on share prices of firms listed on the London Stock Exchange, and how well targeted government support for workers and companies is in light of this.

This presentation was given by Peter Levell as part of the "A look ahead to the March 2020 Budget" preview briefing.

The value of the pound has changed a lot over the past three years - making us all a little poorer. Back in December 2015, £1 would buy you about €1.40. Today it will get you nearer €1.14. It has suffered a similar fate against most major currencies, losing about 15% of its value over that time. A big part of the fall occurred literally overnight, once the result of the EU referendum became apparent in the early hours of 24 June 2016. That's a big change, but what does it mean for all of us?

Economists disagree on the size of labour supply elasticities. The column uses a model of female labour supply to show that there is substantial heterogeneity in both cross section and over the business cycle. It is not possible to think about labour supply elasticity as a unique structural parameter. To understand the consequences of income tax changes, for example, we need to be explicit about whose tax is changing.

This presentation was delivered by Peter Levell as part of an event held on 5th October where a chapter of the Green Budget 2018, "The exposure of different workers to potential trade barriers between the UK and the EU", was launched.

It is now just over two years since the UK’s vote to leave the European Union. Since then, it is fair to say that there has been a confusing barrage of apparently contradictory claims about the state of the economy.

Peter Levell gave a public talk on the topic of "What's the price of free trade?" at the University of Manchester on 23/03/18 to an audience of over 200 people.