| Unit name | Applied Economics: Current Economic Problems |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ECON30065 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Mr. Huxley |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
Introduction to Macroeconomics ECON10011 |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | School of Economics |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
The course begins with an introductory lecture and then moves on to look at private provision of public services and private/public initiatives. This is followed by consideration of regulation of utilities in the UK. For the remainder of the first term the course then covers wage inequality and the national minimum wage, the scarring effects of unemployment, the rise of the workless household and child poverty, intergenerational transmission and the impact of childhood deprivation, and neighbourhood and peer group effects in economic and social out turns. The course then considers the factors that determine the developed countries economic performance in relative and absolute terms. It begins by examining the record of the conservative governments supply side reforms of the 1980's, in particular the impact of industrial relation reform on the productivity of the 'old economy'. These reforms are contrasted to the more recent productivity improvement in the US and the possibility that this results from a second industrial revolution and the emergence of a 'new economy'. This is followed by lectures on Globalisation and the integration of the world economy. Finally we look at recent and future developments in the European Union. This section focuses on monetary union, the Single European Act, and their impact of these reforms on the institutions and performance of the European economies.
