The pandemic is an opportunity for policymakers to fix the structure of the economic system

The pandemic is an opportunity for policymakers to fix the structure of the economic system
The year is 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic has come to an end, and the global economy is on the path to recovery. How did we get here?
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has embraced mission-oriented governance in letter but not in spirit. Far from empowering the state to serve the public interest, his plan for a COVID-19 testing “moonshot” threatens to weaken further the capacity of the public-health sector.
Skewed public-private relationships […] are just one part of the problem.
The UK prime minister’s crude characterisation of how drug innovation works has worrying implications
The relationship between the public and the private sector is broken – For too long, governments have socialized risks but privatized rewards.
The world is approaching a tipping point on climate change, when protecting the future of civilization will require dramatic interventions. Avoiding this scenario will require a green economic transformation.
The historic plan is a turning point for the bloc but policymakers need new tools to direct it.
The pandemic is an opportunity for policymakers to fix the structure of the economic system
The year is 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic has come to an end, and the global economy is on the path to recovery. How did we get here?
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has embraced mission-oriented governance in letter but not in spirit. Far from empowering the state to serve the public interest, his plan for a COVID-19 testing “moonshot” threatens to weaken further the capacity of the public-health sector.
Skewed public-private relationships […] are just one part of the problem.
The UK prime minister’s crude characterisation of how drug innovation works has worrying implications
The relationship between the public and the private sector is broken – For too long, governments have socialized risks but privatized rewards.
While the world waits with bated breath for a safe, effective, widely available COVID-19 vaccine, another option for ending the pandemic has been staring us in the face. A government-led industrial and coordination strategy to achieve universal testing could bring the crisis to an end in a matter of months.
The world is approaching a tipping point on climate change, when protecting the future of civilization will require dramatic interventions. Avoiding this scenario will require a green economic transformation.
The historic plan is a turning point for the bloc but policymakers need new tools to direct it.
With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing governments to spend on an unprecedented scale to sustain businesses and households, there has never been a better time to restore the state to its proper role as a rudder for the broader economy. The market alone is simply no match for the challenges of the twenty-first century.
Governments have spent trillions in tough times without creating structures that turn short-term fixes into a more inclusive economy.
With governments spending on a massive scale to save industries and mitigate the economic fallout from COVID-19, they should be positioning their economies for a more sustainable future.
Marina Mazzucato, founder of the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose at University College London, thinks businesses need a green roadmap.
Without a global recovery plan, demand will stagnate and inequality will increase
It is no coincidence that countries with mission-driven governments have fared better in the COVID-19 crisis than have countries beholden to the cult of efficiency. Effective governance, it turns out, cannot be conjured up at will, because it requires investment in state capacity.
Mariana Mazzucato and others on why the UK must not impose spending cuts in response to higher debt.
With people across the world spending far more time at home than usual, many are struggling to find ways both to stay occupied and to relieve stress. We asked some of our contributors where and how they are finding motivation, inspiration, or solace during this strange and uncertain time.
Strong health systems, adequate testing capacity, and an effective, universally available vaccine will be key to protecting societies from COVID-19. But ensuring that no one is left behind requires not just unprecedented collective investment, but also a very different approach to innovation.
After the 2008 financial crisis, we learned the hard way what happens when governments flood the economy with unconditional liquidity, rather than laying the foundation for a sustainable and inclusive recovery. Now that an even more severe crisis is underway, we must not repeat the same mistake.
Unless we fix the system, American taxpayers will get gouged on a vaccine they paid to produce.
Government has the upper hand for the first time in a generation. It must seize the moment.
Economic experts on the pros and cons of the party’s ambitious policy programme
We need to move away from ‘shovel-ready’ projects and think about ‘green transition’ projects
“Governments can accomplish remarkable things when they have not been hollowed out in the name of misguided “free-market” ideology. Now that humankind is confronting the existential challenge of climate change, our survival depends on reclaiming the public spirit of the Apollo program – and the hope it inspired.”
“By exploiting technologies that were originally developed by the public sector, digital platform companies have acquired a market position that allows them to extract massive rents from consumers and workers alike. Reforming the digital economy so that it serves collective ends is thus the defining economic challenge of our time.”
“Since 2008 the UK economy has again been failing, with today’s political crisis one of the consequences. This is precisely the time when bold ideas are needed from all political parties.”
“Em entrevista, Mariana Mazzucato, da University College London, aprova Lagarde para o BCE, mas acha Ursula von der Leyen uma “escolha deprimente”.” Luís Reis Ribeiro
“As I wrote in February, this suite of approaches—often called industrial policy, though Warren brands it as “economic development”—has roots in the ideas of Alexander Hamilton. It’s also clearly inspired by the same economic thinker, Mariana Mazzucato, who has consulted with Ocasio-Cortez and her allies about the Green New Deal.” Robinson Meyer
Country’s future depends on whether Brexit solves or exacerbates its weaknesses
“In Italia, periodicamente, si torna a dibatter sulla presenza dello Stato nell’economia, con la consueta preconcetta dicotomia fra quelli che sostengono i benefici della liberalizzazione e quelli che si battono per le nazionalizzazioni”.
Mazzucato’s letter from the first page of Italian newspaper La Repubblica
“Economics has never accepted the idea that the public sector creates wealth. But it does—and acknowledging that can lead to sweeping change.”
“Ten years after the global economic crisis, profits have recovered, but investment remains weak. Ultimately, the reason is that economic policy continues to be informed by neoliberal ideology and its academic cousin, “public choice” theory, rather than by historical experience.”
“From a novel by Jonathan Franzen to insights into the 2008 financial crash – five books to help us understand how political forces shape the markets”
“The internet giants depend on our data. A new relationship between us and them could deliver real value to society.”
“Tenemos la oportunidad de orientar la innovación hacia la solución de problemas concretos, en proyectos tan audaces como la misión de llegar a la Luna, pero dirigidos a resolver nuestros retos sociales y tecnológicos”
“By losing our ability to recognize the difference between value creation and value extraction, we have made it easier for some to call themselves value creators and in the process extract value.” pdf version
“Only with a clear debate about value can rent-extracting activities in every sector, including the public one, be better identified and deprived of political and ideological strength.”
“My suggestion is that before we add happiness indicators, we first take out rents. This would cause the GDP of some countries to drop drastically and for new questions to be asked about the “direction” of growth, not only its rate.”
Mariana Mazzucato argues that the wealth-creating role of the state is often forgotten, and the lessons cross political divides.
“What we need is a more dynamic conversation about the direction in which both public and private sectors can act with vision to co-invest in the challenges of the future, share both risks and rewards, and in so doing co-create new markets for the economy of tomorrow.”
The Caribbean poor might have been devastated by disaster, but their islands also host huge global wealth.
Shovel-ready infrastructure is not the solution Mazzucato writes.
“We need to better understand how modern capitalism works—and why, in key ways, it now doesn’t.” Michael Jacobs and Mariana Mazzucato
“Increasing investment is essential to Italy’s future, as is fundamentally changing public-private relationships to make them less focused on favours and subsidies, and more on transformational opportunities.”
The government is to invest billions more in UK research and development to grow the post-Brexit economy. Is it mission possible, asks Mariana Mazzucato
“The right price for vaccines must take into account the value of their collective creation but also the fact that they are essential goods produced collectively to safeguard the vulnerable—no matter where they live.” Mariana Mazzucato & Els Torreele PDF
“Le imprese di Trump rappresentano il simbolo dell’economia malata che il tycoon attaccava durante la campagna elettorale” PDF
“It is the actions of US businesses, like his own, that lie behind the failure of the economy to deliver rising living standards for ordinary Americans. They have made money by extracting value, not creating it.”
“Innovation-led growth can square a circle that is challenging modern capitalism: how to generate sustained and sustainable economic growth, built on high-value, well-paying jobs. This is at the core of entrepreneurial societies, and it is a good objective. The problem is how to get there.”
“The time is ripe for progressives to make their case with confidence and to rethink capitalism. Narratives about wealth creation must become more collective, as should the distribution of the rewards which result. The public realm matters to wealth creation, just as it matters to building a stronger and more just society.” In German
“If Theresa May is serious about industrial strategy, she must begin a fundamental shift in how economic growth is understood, and fostered. Growth has a direction as well as a rate, and the aim of industrial-innovation policy must be to set that direction.”
“I travagli che da diversi anni scuotono il sistema finanziario italiano offrono spunti di riflessione sul ruolo che la finanza potrebbe e dovrebbe avere in un ecosistema economico dinamico ed efficiente” PDF English version
Why government must negotiate a better deal for publicly funded research. PDF Online, Henk Out Reply, Mazzucato Torreele Response
The argument should be about the best way the state can help drive growth, writes Mariana Mazzucato. PDF
Mazzucato and Jacobs on why we need to Rethink Capitalism. PDF
“Austerity – which has affected the living standards of many working people – was not imposed by the EU, but was a choice by the current government.”
“How many billionaires does it take to change a battery? The answer, it turns out, is zero.” Professor Mazzucato writes for Project Syndicate on why public agency ARPA-E has beaten the private sector to a key breakthrough in battery technology.
“Le fasi in cui si sostiene il ruolo dello Stato nello sviluppo economico sono sempre seguite da un attacco contro il suo intervento nel buon funzionamento dei mercati.”
Mazzucato on how public and private sectors must forge a Green New Deal
Prof. Mazzucato writes for the Guardian following the 2015 Spending Review.
Professor Mazzucato’s article about UK Chancellor George Osborne’s speech.
Seven economists (including Joseph Stiglitz, Thomas Piketty, and me) have agreed to become economic advisers to Jeremy Corbyn, the new leader of the British Labour Party. I hope we will have a shared goal to help Labour shape an economic policy that is investment-led, inclusive, and sustainable.
“Devons-nous nous inquiéter de ce qui se passe en Chine? La croissance de la principale économie émergente est-elle en panne ? Ou bien le récent ralentissement économique et la dévaluation de la monnaie ne sont-ils que de simples remous?” This article was first published on the front page of La Repubblica on August 21, 2015. English version
by Mariana Mazzucato
“Pechino ha bisogno di minore rigidità e di decentramento ma anche la Ue deve reagire in maniera flessibile e dinamica per evitare la catastrofe.”
Professor Mazzucato contributed to the RSA Journal with an article on The Market-Creating State. PDF
Prof. Mazzucato argues that a strategy of reforms without investment is doomed to fail.
“L’emergenza ellenica riguarda tutta l’economia, dai dati “macro” alle singole imprese. Ma l’ipocrisia tedesca e il rigore “copia e incolla” non servono: bisogna agire come la Germania post-1945. L’austerità non aiuta, come sapeva bene Keynes, però ai greci si chiedono tagli su tagli” PDF English version
“O Brasil deveria definir os vetores das políticas públicas e das ações privadas a longo prazo, em vez de priorizar os “benefícios” da austeridade” Mariana Mazzucato, Caetano Penna PDF
Professor Mazzucato argues that Greece should not do what Germany says it does (austerity), but what Germany actually does (invest).
“Una teoria sulle ragioni della sconfitta del Partito laburista alle elezioni britanniche comincia a prendere piede. Ma è una teoria sbagliata. Per quelli che basano le loro previsioni sui sondaggi, il risultato è stato una sorpresa.”
Professor Mazzucato argues that, in its search for a new leader, the Labour party also needs a new story about innovation, the economy and wealth creation.
“Il braccio di ferro tra Atene e i creditori internazionali sembra avviarsi verso l’ennesimo compromesso e già riecheggia il coro dei falsi ottimisti: meglio un compromesso di un default. E invece proprio questo è il momento di dirlo chiaro e forte: si profila un accordo che rischia di non risolvere nulla.” English version
“Mariana Mazzucato macht einen Vorschlag, wie Staat und Unternehmen zusammenarbeiten können.”
The conventional view in mainstream economics today is that governments have little capacity to spark innovation. The state should play as limited a role in the economy as possible, the thinking goes, intervening only in cases of “market failure.” This is far from the truth.
“Norge etter oljen: Norske myndigheter er opptatt av å øke konkurranseevnen og produktiviteten. Men ifølge innovasjonsøkonom Mariana Mazzucato er det noen alvorlige spørsmål knyttet til denne strategien – og minner om: Lær av andres feil.” Mariana Mazzucato
“Il principale problema dell’Europa, si sente spesso ripetere, è che l’unificazione monetaria non è stata accompagnata da una vera politica fiscale comunitaria. E che senza una vera “unione fiscale” sarà impossibile uscire dalla crisi. Per “unione fiscale” si intende però soprattutto la necessità di correggere le differenze tra i Paesi.” PDF English version
“Governments should make markets, not just fix them” Mariana Mazzucato
An edited extract of Professor Mazzucato’s lecture to mark winning the New Statesman SPERI Prize in Political Economy 2014.
Governments should make markets, not just fix them, Mazzucato writes for Foreign Affairs
We need to battle against inequality and financialisation in 2015 argues Mazzucato
“Per uscire dalla stagnazione attuale l’Unione non ha bisogno di istituzioni azzopate, ma di una spinta decisiva alla ripresa di lungo termine…”
Mazzucato on how the state can act as a force for innovation and change.
The Eurozone needs investment, not austerity. Juncker should embrace mission-oriented public investment to shape and create markets in health, energy, climate and inclusion
Italian version part 1 and part 2 (as featured in Italian newspaper La Repubblica)
“When Renzi visited Silicon Valley last month, he did so in the name of bringing innovation, competition and dynamism to Italy. He is right to make this a key concern given that this country has had little dynamism for the last 20 years due to stagnant productivity and hence stagnant growth. “
by Mariana Mazzucato, Capital
“Schon lange vor der globalen Wirtschaftskrise hat unser Politiker eine Frage beschäftig: Wo ist das europäische Google? Wo sind die innovativen Unternehmer? Die, die bereit sind, hohe Risiken einzugehen?”
Italian version (as featured in the Italian magazine “Donna”, a supplement of La Repubblica)
“A big question for the past 20 years has been: where are the European Googles? Why are all the funky, creative, dynamic, innovative companies like Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook coming out of the US and not out of Europe?”
Italian version (as featured in Italian newspaper La Repubblica)
“Caro presidente, ho visto dai giornali che lei ha comprato il mio libro “Lo Stato Innovatore”, questo mi ha suggerito l’idea di scriverle una lettera.”
by Mariana Mazzucato, Le Monde Diplomatique
“Oft wird behauptet, die Nöte der ‘peripheren’ Länder der Eurozone, etwa Portugals und Italiens, seien durch einen ‘verschwenderischen’ öffentlichen Sektor verursacht. Dabei wird das Offensichtliche übersehen: dass diese Länder eher an einem stagnierenden öffentlichen Sektor leiden, der die strategischen Investitionen versäumt hat, die erfolgreichere Kernländer wie Deutschland seit Jahrzehnten tätigen.”
Mazzucato’s article for the Observer argues for a new framework to understand the role of the state in creating and shaping new markets.
“So the big question is: will the different types of ‘structural reforms’ and spending cuts induce growth in the periphery, the PIIGS? My answer is that, without investment in key areas, NO they won’t.”
Global pharmaceutical companies are dodging the risks by loading R&D costs on to taxpayers, writes Mazzucato.
Public sector austerity and lagging private sector investment hamper Canada’s ability to be a world leader in new technologies.
Entrepreneurship and smart growth are what every policymaker today wants to foster. It’s not just about startups, venture capital and “garage tinkerers”, but the willingness and ability of economic agents (public and private) to take on risk and real Knightian uncertainty to create new products and services.
Talk of a more moral capitalism is just hot air unless we rehabilitate and reward the idea of value creation
Mazzucato argues that a programme of forward-thinking public spending is crucial for a prosperous society.
Mazzucato, M. (2013), Political Quarterly, Vol 84 (4): 444–447
Growth requires the kind of committed finance behind Silicon Valley, writes Mazzucato.
Productive public spending leads to growth, as illustrated by the US, writes Mariana Mazzucato.
“Apple. Lo Stato dentro l’iPhone”
“Spending review 2013: what will it mean for science and innovation?”
“The myth of the ‘meddling’ state”
Silicon Valley has surfed the wave of US Government-funded investments, writes Mazzucato
“Budget 2013: come on, chancellor, you can change Britain’s future”
“Many of the “new economy” companies that like to portray themselves as the heart of U.S. “entrepreneurship” have very successfully surfed the wave of U.S. government-funded investments.” Mariana Mazzucato
“UK GDP figures: panel verdict”
The relationship between risk and reward must change to support long term growth, Mazzucato argues.
“Without banking reform, investing in innovation is too great a risk”
“Public money spent on ‘digging ditches’ won’t stimulate the economy”
“Banks must learn to reward the good risks”
“If the Eurozone is serious about growth, it can have it”
“Without state spending there’d be no Google or GlaxoSmithKline”
“Austerity is not the answer to Europe’s economic woes”
“Building the Entrepreneurial State”
Or, how to get paid a bonus for not doing your job
“Will UK medicine give us a Greek cold?”
“The state doesn’t need the private sector to be entrepreneurial”
“How to build an ideas factory?”
“US healthcare reform is not an act of meddling”
“Intelligent investment in innovation”
“Economic insight”
What is needed in the pharmaceutical industry is more radical innovation, including radical thinking about the ‘innovation division of labour, writes Mazzucato.