Weeks, J., (2013), “Unemployment in the Eurozone: Alternatives for α Regional Support Program”, Social Europe Journal, 21 October. A few days ago, the Bertelsmann Stiftung hosted a conference in Brussels on “Automatic Stabilizers for the Eurozone” (October 11), with the focus on an EU-wide system of supplemental unemployment benefits. On superficial inspection the conference agenda appeared to involve a technical assessment of policy alternatives, a conference for “policy wonks” to …Read More

Bordo, M. and James, H., (2013), “The European crisis in the context of historical trilemmas”, VoxEU, 19 October. The Eurozone’s tangle of conflicting goals – a series of ‘trilemmas’ – is not without precedent. This column argues that it is reminiscent of the interwar situation. The interwar slump was so intractable not just due to financial issues, but also a crisis of democracy, of social stability, and of the international …Read More

Hollenbeck, F., (2013), “To Save Europe, Free the Markets”, The Mises Institute, 19 October. The current European economic strategy is to kick the can down the road. Debt levels in almost all European countries continue to rise and growth seems to be a long forgotten memory. The day of reckoning is around the corner, as Rudi Dornbush once warned, “[t]he crisis takes a much longer time coming than you think, …Read More

Blanchard, Ο., Jaumotte, F. and Loungani, P., (2013), “Unemployment, labour-market flexibility and IMF advice: Moving beyond mantras”, VoxEU, 18 October. The state of labour markets in advanced economies remains dismal despite recent signs of growth. This column explains the IMF’s logic behind the advice it provided on labour markets during the Great Recession. It argues that flexibility is crucial both at the micro level, i.e. on worker reallocation, and at …Read More

Jordà,O., Schularick, M. and Taylor, A., (2013), “Sovereigns versus banks: Crises, causes and consequences”, VoxEU, 18 October. In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, few would dispute the risks of excessive borrowing. But which debts should one worry about – public or private? This column presents new research on the interplay of public and private debts since 1870 in 17 advanced economies. History demonstrates that excessive private-sector borrowing plays …Read More