Economic Growth in the UK: Rolling with the Punches

Abstract

Economic growth transformed the world. Its measurement via GDP has risen to prominence as the pre-eminent metric of economic prowess and political success. How better to tell its story than through the lens of the world’s first growing economy?

Britain's experience with economic growth has been a rocky path of tremendous highs and despairing lows, but despite crises and shifts in industry, growth has rolled with the punches. Our work presents an analysis of growth and crisis in the UK, surveying key ideas from academic literature in an engaging and informative manner, accessible to readers with or without a background in Economics.

Our paper studies defining events in Britain’s past relationship with growth, whilst engaging with pertinent contemporary debates surrounding its future. We explore the drivers of growth, the restructuring effects of crisis on productivity and employment, and the socioeconomic impacts of restricted access to the growing economy. We hope that our work provides context and depth to modern discussions, enabling readers to evaluate growth and crisis in a new light and to inform their perspectives on future growth.

Keywords: Introduction to economic growth, history of growth, crises and growth, UK growth

JEL Classification: O1