Persistent Productivity Failure in the UK: Is the EU Really to Blame?

Nicholas Crafts

National Institute Economic Review, 2019, vol. 247, issue 1, R10-R18

Abstract: On average, UK productivity performance in the decades leading up to the financial crisis was quite disappointing. Joining the EU was not to blame. Indeed, EU membership, which was an integral part of the Thatcher reform programme, had a significant positive impact. Over the long run, UK supply-side policies have been badly designed in various different ways. These design faults have not been the result of constraints imposed by EU membership but rather the consequence of domestic government failure. There is no reason to think that EU exit will lead, either directly or indirectly, to improvements in UK productivity outcomes.

Keywords: Brexit; productivity; supply-side policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N14 O47 O52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:niesru:v:247:y:2019:i:1:p:r10-r18

DOI: 10.1177/002795011924700111

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