Policy Matters: Live from lockdown #2 – what have we learnt since April?

In the midst of the second COVID-related national lockdown for England, this episode of Policy Matters sees hosts Franz Buscha and Matt Dickson revisit some of the questions that were being asked in the first episode recorded under lockdown restrictions back in April. The discussion starts with some personal reflections on what life has been like juggling working-from-home and home-schooling over the months since the pandemic began and thinking about the impact that the disruptions to education will have on school-aged children and inequality. Franz and Matt then look at how different policy responses from governments around the world have played out in recent months, and consider what we have learnt that we didn’t know back in April. The discussion then moves on to some of the academic research related to the pandemic, highlighting in particular the unintended consequences of policies like the ‘Eat out to help out’ scheme, and considering the different ways in which the pandemic has affected the self-employed. The programme ends with a look ahead at some of the longer-term effects we might see on birth-rates and the implications these may have, and also considers what positive policy lessons we hope will be taken forward and acted upon in the future.