National Productivity Week 27th November 2023 | Visit Website

A diverse community of
leading experts, policymakers
and practitioners

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

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

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

Productivity, skills and devolution are the key to levelling up

Bank of England Chief Economist Andy Haldane discusses how productivity, skills and devolution are key to the levelling up agenda in a blog for the Alliance Manchester Business School, which he has recently joined as an Honorary Professor.

One specific area of public policy that has much vexed Haldane and most economists is the UK’s poor productivity problem, a problem that has accelerated since the global financial crisis of 2008. He is a supporter of The Productivity Institute, which was set up to look at these issues.

“The Institute is a fantastic initiative because it is seeking answers to one of the most pressing public policy issues of the day. If we are to tackle this productivity crisis then we absolutely need to take the brightest and best from academia to first understand the problem and its causes, engage with business, and then craft policy solutions which unlock the barriers,” he writes.

“It is actually a great example of what I describe as the ‘north star’ of my career, namely working at the interface of public policy, business, and civil society to tackle signature societal issues. Magic happens when all three of these players work effectively in partnership, and that is exactly what the Institute is seeking to achieve.”

To find out more about Andy Haldane’s views on what’s caused the UK’s productivity stagnation and how a focus on skills, levelling up and devolution could help it recover, read his blog Productivity, skills and devolution on the AMBS website.

  • Andy Haldane was also a guest on The Productivity Institute’s podcast Productivity Puzzles. You can listen to his episode Why does productivity matter? wherever you get your podcasts.