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The Institute’s key research themes are led by ten academic partners spread across the UK.

Working closely with policymakers

We’re a UK-wide research organisation exploring what productivity means for business

Businesses are crucial to solving the UK’s productivity problems.

Productivity Commission: call for evidence

We are seeking written evidence submissions for the second sitting of The Productivity Commission on the topic of international best practice.

Your submission should be:

  • No more than 3,000 words long
  • Include a short introduction to you and/or your organisation
  • Be a single Word, ODT or RTF document

Please send your submission to productivity@niesr.ac.uk by 17:00 on Friday 14 January 2022

Terms of Reference

  • Which sectors and firms in which countries are at the global frontier of productivity?
  • How can international best practice in relation to productivity be best defined? What are the standards by which we can measure it?
  • What are the main drivers (e.g. capital, labour, technology, institutions) of internationally excellent productivity performance?
  • How does the UK’s productivity performance compare internationally?
  • Is the so-called ‘long-tail problem’ worse in the UK than in other comparable economies?
  • How does the level of capital investment in the UK compare to other countries?
  • How does the quality of the UK workforce compare internationally?
  • How does evidence on R&D investment and spillovers (domestic and international) compare?
  • Which other intangible sources of productivity differentials can be identified?
  • How does the dispersion of firm-level productivity in the UK compare to other countries?
  • What role has the state played in countries that have successfully improved productivity?
  • What specific policies have been implemented around the world to improve productivity that the UK could also implement, and what policies should the UK avoid?
  • What role have organisations like productivity boards and productivity commissions played in different countries?
  • How can the state encourage knowledge diffusion from productive firms to those that are less productive?
  • How does knowledge diffusion in the UK compare to other countries?
  • What can the UK learn from countries with better diffusing outcomes?
  • How have the public and private sectors interacted in countries that have successfully improved productivity?
  • How does public/private interaction in the UK compare to other countries?
  • What has been the role of local/regional institutions/policies, like regional innovation systems and smart specialization policies?
  • What effect can trade have on productivity, and how does the effect of the UK’s trade policy on productivity compare internationally?
  • What effect can migration have on productivity, and how does the effect of the UK’s migration policy on productivity compare internationally?
  • What meso-level institutions do other countries have in place to improve productivity and how do they function?

Date(s)

  • 1 December 2021 - 14 January 2022

Time(s)

  • All Day
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