Future Economic Debates

By Kristina Manalo, ERC Blogger

“I’m not an economist”, Steve Baker declared before an audience of what one would rightly presume was a room full of seasoned and influential economists.

During his lecture, “Political Economy and The Crisis” (the PDF presentation for which is available to members), Steve then continued by stating that the first of his three focal points was centred on the question of whether or not economics is a positive applied science; he is, after all, inherently and through academic and military qualifications, a Chartered Engineer. He showed no hesitation in stating that the pure science of mechanical physics is much more reliable than the fuzzy applied science of statistics, of anticipating the collective behaviour of public choice; in short, of economics.

Reading the audience, I detected agreement that this was a slightly risky opening for the Economic Research Council. But then again, Steve Baker is known to be undeterred by risk; he is an avid enthusiast of skydiving and motorcycling, has enjoyed fast catamaran sailing, crewing a tall ship, piloting a light aircraft, driving a rescue RHIB...

Reading the ‘About Steve’ page on his web site, I suddenly understood what it must be like for prospective employers to read my CV; you have full confidence in his capabilities, breadth and depth of thinking, but are left with the lingering questions - what does he want? Where is he going?

As Steve continued with his lecture, the richness and complexity of his views became apparent. He declared himself to be in the Extreme Centre, a Classical Liberal, an advocate of morality and of the Austrian school of Methodical Individualism. He made bold statements such as, “...the state is a territorial monopoly on the use of force...”

Something to Declare

The beauty of it all, is that there was no evidence that Steve was afraid of being corrected. His lecture was as much a declaration of his passions for social progress through honest money, free trade and peace, as it was a surrender to be publicly questioned and challenged. He is a modern-day paradox – a politician with an open mind.

Attempting to distil the message of Steve’s lecture with fellow audience members Andrew and Tristan, we were in complete agreement that yes, if this man’s lecture didn’t end a conversation with definitive answers, it most certainly captivated us as the start of a series of very poignant and relevant conversations - the conversations which will feature prominently in the agenda of forthcoming generations, of our successors whose stake in the future is an order of magnitude greater than our own...

As it happens, on the Jubilee line platform where I later ran into Steve and briefly exchanged as many views as can be between Green Park and Westminster, he asked, “Kristina, are you an economist?”

With a distant memory of an advert in Heathrow directing travellers towards one of two queues - either ‘Nothing to declare’, or ‘Readers of The Economist’, I answered yes, I am an economist. And not so much because I read The Economist, but because having now returned to London in earnest, I most certainly do have something to declare.