Politico Ramble

"The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable" the famous economist John Kenneth Galbraith once proclaimed. Indeed, this perception has only ever increased since the profession's failure to anticipate and predict the global financial crisis of 2007/8, as well as underestimating its aftermath. In Britain, the failure of economic forecasting world was once again in the limelight following the EU referendum vote on the 23 June 2016 - principally the surprisingly politicised Treasury prediction that a vote to leave the EU would "push our economy into a recession and lead to an increase in unemployment of around 500,000, GDP would be 3.6% smaller, average real wages would be lower, inflation higher, sterling weaker, house prices would be hit and public borrowing would rise compared with a vote to remain." There was a consensus among economic forecasters that leaving the EU would cause a recession. However, such pessimism surrou...

Today, the 13th of July 2016, David Cameron has finished his last Prime Minister’s Questions, and will no longer be the Prime Minister of the UK after resigning due to the successful Leave vote. The UK will now be in the hands of his Home Secretary, Theresa May. Cameron’s political career started on the 7th of June in 2001, where he assumed office in constituency of Witney. Despite his relatively early arrival, he became leader of the Conservative Party just over four years later in December 2005, replacing Michael Howard. Cameron capitalised on the Great Recession of 2007/8, leading his Party into coalition with Nick Clegg’s Liberal Democrats. As Prime Minister for just over six years, he oversaw a Coalition, a slim-Conservative majority and two referendums. It therefore begs the question: what is David Cameron’s legacy? The Good Theresa May once famously described the Conservative Party as the ‘Nasty Party’ in 2002, and its negative image continued to fester. David Cameron s...