Complex ideas, made clear. Agora Explainers breaks down technical concepts in economics, politics and global affairs into short, accessible passages. From commonly confused terms to ideas that can feel intimidating at first, our explainers make it easier to understand the language behind the issues shaping our world.
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Prime Minister Andy Burnham has put electoral reform back on the political agenda, announcing a national commission on the issue and promising that Labour will fight the next election committed to changing Britain’s voting system so that “everyone’s vote counts”. At the centre of the debate is First
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This week's Agora Explainer will focus on the leaders of the main political parties in England. Firstly, what is a political party? Good question. A political party is an organisation which involves a group of people who share similar ideas about how a country should be run. People
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In both inflationary times, and during times of economic downturn, economists look towards the central bank to manipulate interest rates, encouraging either spending or saving. Today, UK inflation is at 3.1%[i], above its 2% target. Ordinarily, in times of inflation, the Bank of England would be expected to
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There are hundreds of trading blocs around the world - the World Trade Organisation (WTO) recognises just under 400 active trade agreements [1]. The European Union (EU) is one of the largest in terms of integration, seen in how they’re often treated as a single entity in trade negotiations. But
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Inflation is the sustained increase in the average price of goods and services in an economy. As price begins to increase, consumers' purchasing power begins to fall - meaning we can no longer buy the same value of goods for the same amount of money. The UK targets a stable
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The Scale of the Problem £550,000 - that is the price of an average London home. The median full-time annual salary is roughly £47,000, meaning that the average home costs approximately 11.7 times yearly earnings. Rent isn’t a much better alternative, absorbing an average of approximately
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You hear it everywhere: a newspaper is "right-wing” or someone’s views are "too far left." But nobody stops to explain what the words actually mean. These terms originated in 1789. During the French Revolution, members of France's new parliament sorted themselves by where
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Central Banks A central bank is a public institution that a nation's currency - or that of a currency union, like the EU - and controls the money supply. It's primary goal is maintaining price stability, though some central banks also carry a mandate to support maximum employment.
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What actually ended Liz Truss’ brief time in office? Why are bond markets having such an effect on UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham's premiership? And what on earth are bond vigilantes - and why do they hold so much power? Government Expenditure When the government wants to spend money,
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100 million dollars. 200 million dollars. 45 million dollars. These are all purported figures on the sum of Elon Musk's extravagant financial investment to his America First super PAC, and the American political system as a whole. However, it is unlikely that newspapers will report of hearing Musk