Around 500 pupils from schools as far away as Cornwall and Manchester travelled to Eton for the Keynes Society’s event.
The panel debate centered on four current issues: advanced economies and stagnation, a comparison of the futures of India and China, the future of emerging economies, and global interdependence.
The expert panel consisted of John Micklethwait (Editor-in-Chief of The Economist), Gerard Lyons (Chief Economic Advisor to the Mayor of London), Professor Xiaolan Fu (Founding Director of the Technology and Management Centre for Development at Oxford), and Professor Robert H. Wade (Professor of Political Economy and Development at the LSE).
Throughout the debate the panel was asked questions by the audience. A contrast between the possibility of future stagnation in advanced economies and Dr. Lyons’ more positive view got the event underway.
Professor Fu also commented on the possibility of an innovation slowdown due to high entry barriers and IP concerns. The futures of China and India were then appraised. Mr. Micklethwait discussed the extent to which the Trans-Pacific Trade Partnership seeks to constrain China and the effects of this on its future growth.
Next, Dr. Lyons outlined the shift from BRIC to MINT economies. Professor Wade also highlighted the role of micro-finance in developing economies. Finally, global interdependence was discussed. Professor Wade gave an expert analysis of the effects of globalisation on inequality and addressed Piketty’s arguments in Capital. He concluded the debate by explaining that “Development is hard. There are no silver bullets.”
