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Bankruptcy, Bubbles and Bailouts: The Inside History of the Treasury since 1976

When: Wednesday, October 26, 2022, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Where: PP2 Lecture Theatre, People's Palace, Mile End Campus

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This evening seminar will mark the launch of Professor Aeron Davis's new 'inside history' of the Treasury - Bankruptcy, Bubbles and Bailouts!

The Treasury is one of Britain's oldest, most powerful and secret institutions and one that has played a central role in shaping the United Kingdom's economic system. But all too often it has escaped public scrutiny when it comes to investigating the ups and downs of the UK economy. When portrayed, it is usually as a bedrock of government stability in times of crisis, repeatedly rescuing the nation's finances from the hands of posturing politicians and the combustions of the world financial markets. However, there is another side to the story in between the highs there have been many lows, from botched privatizations to dubious private finance initiatives from failing to spot the great financial crisis to facilitating ever-growing inequalities.

At this event, we are delighted to be marking the launch of Professor Aeron Davis's new book, which seeks to offer an 'inside history' of the Treasury, in the words of the Chancellors, Special Advisers and Civil Servants themselves. Bankruptcy, Bubbles, and Bailouts shows the shortcomings as well as the successes, the personalities and the thinking which have shaped Britain's economy since the mid-1970s. Based on interviews with over 50 key figures, it offers a fascinating alternative insight on how and why the UK economy came to function as it does today, and why reform is long overdue.

As Martin Wolf (Chief Economics Commentator at the Financial Times) has written, 'Aeron Davis tells a somewhat depressing story of institutional continuity in the midst of change over half a century. Institutions matter. The example of Her Majesty's Treasury shows how and why'.

This event is open to all. It will be held in the PP2 Lecture Theatre in the People's Palace, which is number 16 on this map of QMUL's Mile End campus. It will start at 6.30pm.

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