Giles Wilkes
Senior Fellow
Giles's recent work
Four things we learned from Rachel Reeves’ Mais lecture
What is the shadow chancellor’s vision for the economy?
'Orthodoxy' is not the issue: the Treasury’s outsized power creates problems for government
Excessive power, rather than ‘orthodox’ thinking, is the main problem with the Treasury.
Treasury ‘orthodoxy’
The Treasury wields too much influence across government and dominates strategic thinking at the centre.
All work
Sunak's Plan for Growth resembles a shopping list not a balanced prospectus
Giles Wilkes is left unimpressed by the chancellor's Plan for Growth
Don’t believe the rhetoric – this is a supremely industrial-strategy minded government
Giles Wilkes looks beyond a shift in Treasury rhetoric and says this government is still one with an industrial strategy-led agenda at its heart
Brexit is not the point any more – there are other difficult questions to answer
The new year should bring an end to the old arguments about Brexit and instead usher in a steadier resolve to answer long-term policy problems
How to design a successful industrial strategy
The Johnson government has failed to explain how it will deploy the economic freedoms promised by Brexit to build a stronger UK economy.
The doubtful case for an impossible Covid-19 cost-benefit analysis
It would not improve decision-making o publish a cost-benefit analysis of the Covid tier restrictions
The point of industrial strategy is not to build a massive tech champion
The government's aspiration to drive Britain's creation of a trillion dollar tech company is deeply problematic
The business bailout dilemma still awaits Rishi Sunak and the government
A growing debt overhang means the difficult decisions are still all in the future for the Treasury
Bailout for business after coronavirus
The government's corporate bailout plan will have to shift from loans and debt-guarantees to equity and direct grants.
The furlough scheme was the right response to coronavirus – but it must not outstay its welcome
Further tweaks may yet be needed to the chancellor’s gradualist approach to ending the government's furlough scheme
The government’s coronavirus bailout should not be built on unaffordable loans
Direct grants and equity-style injections would provide a better model of support for small companies