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Robert Skidelsky

Robert Skidelsky

Writing for PS since 2003
222 commentaries

Robert Skidelsky is a member of the British House of Lords, Professor Emeritus of Political Economy at Warwick University, and the author of a prize-winning three-volume biography of John Maynard Keynes. He began his political career in the Labour party, was a founding member of the Social Democratic Party, and served as the Conservative Party’s spokesman for Treasury affairs in the House of Lords until he was sacked for his opposition to NATO’s 1999 bombing of Kosovo. Since 2001, he has sat in the House of Lords as an independent. He has also served as a non-executive director of the American mutual fund Janus (2001-11) and the private Russian oil company PJSC Russneft (2016-21). He is the author of The Machine Age: An Idea, a History, a Warning (Allen Lane, 2023).

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  1. The Roots of Europe’s Immigration Problem
    skidelsky_Hasan MradDeFodi Images News via Getty Images)_immigration Hasan Mrad/DeFodi Images News via Getty Images)

    The Roots of Europe’s Immigration Problem

    Oct 17, 2024 Robert Skidelsky calls attention to the conditions that lead African migrants to risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean.

  2. Britain’s Illusory Fiscal Black Hole
    skidelsky205_ BEN STANSALLAFP via Getty Images_starmer BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images

    Britain’s Illusory Fiscal Black Hole

    Sep 18, 2024 Robert Skidelsky makes the case that policymakers should focus on stimulating economic growth rather than on budget cuts.

  3. The Enduring Appeal of Live Performance
    skidelsky204_Hiroyuki ItoGetty Images_live music Hiroyuki Ito/Getty Images

    The Enduring Appeal of Live Performance

    Aug 21, 2024 Robert Skidelsky ponders why people prefer attending a concert or theater production to watching or hearing it at a distance.

  4. Labour’s Economic Plan Lacks Keynesian Ambition
    skidelsky203_Christopher FurlongGetty Images_rachel reeves Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

    Labour’s Economic Plan Lacks Keynesian Ambition

    Jul 24, 2024 Robert Skidelsky explains why the new government’s agenda is more of a gamble on growth than a concrete action plan.

  5. D-Day and the Threat of Total War
    skidelsky202_BettmannGetty Images_d-day Bettmann/Getty Images

    D-Day and the Threat of Total War

    Jun 17, 2024 Robert Skidelsky thinks understanding the causes and consequences of past global conflicts is crucial to preventing another one.

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  1. akufoaddo2_ CRISTINA ALDEHUELAAFP via Getty Images_ghanavaccine Cristina Aldehuela/AFP via Getty Images

    The Key to Africa’s Vaccine Sovereignty

    Nana Akufo-Addo urges donor governments to build on successful efforts to boost immunization across the continent.
  2. gill9_Alet PretoriusGallo Images via Getty Images_africadebt Alet Pretorius/Gallo Images via Getty Images

    For Developing Economies, the Finance Landscape Has Become a Wasteland

    Indermit Gill shows that current conditions give the world's poorest countries no chance to achieve sustained growth.
  3. velasco154_ SAUL LOEBAFP via Getty Images_trump SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

    How Not to React to Donald Trump

    Andrés Velasco calls for more serious thinking by progressives and fewer knee-jerk calls to “abandon neoliberalism.”
  4. acemoglu81_Kent NishimuraGettyImages_capitol_post_protest Kent Nishimura/Getty Images

    The Fall and Rise of American Democracy

    Daron Acemoglu

    Over time, as American democracy has increasingly fallen short of delivering on its core promises, the Democratic Party has contributed to the problem by catering to a narrow, privileged elite. To restore its own prospects and America’s signature form of governance, it must return to its working-class roots.

    is not surprised that so many voters ignored warnings about the threat Donald Trump poses to US institutions.
  5. GettyImages-876226276

    Enrique Krauze on Baruch Spinoza, the US election, Mexican democracy, and more

    Enrique Krauze considers the responsibility of the state to guarantee freedom, heralds the demise of Mexico’s democracy, highlights flaws in higher-education systems, and more.
  6. khrushcheva188_Chris McGrathGetty Images_ukraine Chris McGrath/Getty Images

    Does a Savage War of Partition Await Ukraine?

    Nina L. Khrushcheva traces the grim history of territorial divisions like the one that Donald Trump seems to be envisioning.
  7. varoufakis121_Justin SullivanGettyImages_chinese_conainers_oakland Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    America’s Trade Deficit Is Not Afraid of Donald Trump

    Yanis Varoufakis shows why the incoming US administration can’t eliminate the negative balance – and wouldn’t even if it could.
  8. kuttab60_CHANDAN KHANNAAFP via Getty Images_trumpisrael Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images

    Trump’s Middle East Challenge

    Daoud Kuttab highlights the changes in the region that will complicate the US president-elect's peacemaking efforts.
  9. watkins30_ Stanislav KogikuSOPA ImagesLightRocket via Getty Images_sdgs Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

    Last Chance for the SDGs?

    Kevin Watkins thinks the fate of the 2030 targets hinges on the next International Development Association replenishment.

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