Bryan Hopkin

Sir William Aylsham Bryan Hopkin ( December 7, 1914 - October 10, 2009 ) was a British economist .

biography

Degree and Government Official

After graduating from Barry Grammar School and St John's College , he studied economics with John Maynard Keynes at Cambridge University and later at Manchester University . After completing his studies, he joined the public service in 1938 as an employee of the Ministry of Health , but left it in 1941 when he became a member of the statistical staff of Prime Minister Winston Churchill .

After the Second World War , he first worked for the Royal Commission on Population, then worked for the Economic Secretariat of the Cabinet Office and finally for the Central Statistical Office (CSO). 1952 he was appointed director of the National Institute of Social and Economic Research (National Institute of Social and Economic Research), before he then briefly secretary of the Council for 1957 prices , productivity and income was (Council on Prices, Productivity and Incomes).

In 1958 he stepped back into the Ministerialdienst, when he was appointed Deputy Director of the Economic Department of the Treasury ( Treasury was appointed). However, his career there came to an early end when James Callaghan became Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1964 . He then went to work in the economic planning department of the then colony of Mauritius . After independence in 1968, he was employed as head of the economic planning department in the Ministry of Overseas Development. In 1969 he was appointed General Director of the Department of Economic Affairs there.

Economic crises and Keynesianism

Hopkin returned to the Treasury in 1970, where he was now Deputy Chief Economic Advisor to Iain Macleod , Chancellor of the Exchequer . After Macleod's sudden death in the same year, he also held this position under his successor Anthony Barber . In 1972, however, he left the Treasury again after Prime Minister Edward Heath left the course of free market policy for prices and income control.

In 1972 he accepted the chair as professor of economics at Cardiff University . In the same year he also became chairman of an ad hoc committee on the future of the pound sterling ; This committee ultimately formulated the key steps for the future independence of the British pound from Exchange Rate Mechanism II .

When Denis Healey took over the office of Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labor Party government in 1974 at a time when inflation was approaching 30 percent and an economic crisis caused by the previous oil crisis , Hopkin was appointed by him as head of the government's economic services and chief economic advisor to the treasury. While there until 1977, there was one of the toughest times for the Treasury in recent years. The Chancellor of the Exchequer sought mediation between the government and the unions after the miners' strike destroyed the payment policy of the previous Heath administration.

In the sterling crisis from March to November 1976 , the pound fell to 1.56 US dollars despite high standby loans from the other central banks to the “Bank of England”. Despite the prime minister's best efforts, Britain had to seek help from the IMF and pledge to meet the requirements. While Energy Secretary Tony Benn advocated the introduction of import controls, Hopkin stood alongside Healey for the cooperation with the IMF and the use of its aid. These differing attitudes ultimately led to a division and serious crisis within the government of Prime Minister James Callaghan .

In 1977 he returned to Cardiff University as a professor of economics. When there was a recession and a severe weakening of the British economy under the Conservative government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who ruled from 1979 onwards , Hopkin was one of the most determined opponents of Thatcher's monetarism , as this was in contrast to his represented demand-oriented Keynesianism . In October 1980, he stated that limiting the money supply would hit the economy harder than expanding it. In March 1981 he was part of the group of 364 economists who signed a statement on the change in Thatcher's economic policy ( Thatcherism ).

Hopkin insisted that the economy needed reflation rather than deflation and in August 1981, along with economists William Brian Reddaway and Marcus Miller, called for a cash injection of £ 6.8 billion. The future Chancellor of the Exchequer and then Treasury Secretary and third man in the Treasury, Nigel Lawson , explained:

"The required funds would have to be subjected to a long-term review and will ultimately end in a lack of economic success on a large scale and a constantly growing inflation in particular."

Hopkin retired as emeritus in 1982 , but continued his criticism of monetarism to reduce inflation and pushed for cautious stimuli.

He was in 1961 for his services to British financial and economic policy Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in 1971 as a Knight Commander in the peerage levied.

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