Paul Johnson

Director

Paul has been director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies since 2011. He is a columnist for The Times, and is a regular contributor to other broadcast and print media. He is a visiting professor in the UCL Policy Lab and at the UCL department of economics.

He was for 10 years a member of the UK Climate Change Committee, and has served on the council of the ESRC and of the Royal Economic Society. Paul led reviews of pension auto-enrolment and of inflation measurement for the UK government, and of fiscal devolution for the Northern Ireland executive.

Previous roles have included time as chief economist at the Department for Education and as director of public spending at HM Treasury, where he also served as deputy head of the government economic service.

Paul published the Sunday Times bestseller “Follow the Money” in 2023.

He was appointed CBE in the 2018 birthday honours.

Education

MSc Economics, Birkbeck, University of London, 1992

BA (1st Class) Philosophy, Politics and Economics, University of Oxford, 1988

Contact

Email
Email
Twitter
@PJTheEconomist
Orcid number
0000-0003-3342-3504

Paul Johnson: all content

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Showing 161 – 180 of 856 results

Lecture Hall

The future of student loans

Podcast
In this episode, we look at the government's student loan reforms and think about how students, taxpayers and universities will be affected.

4 May 2022

Man in boardroom

Tax and top incomes

Event 7 April 2022 at 14:30
The source of top incomes, who gets them and how they are taxed is important for understanding inequalities. How have top incomes and their source been changing over time? Who is in the top 1% - are they employees, or business owners or rentiers? How much tax do the top pay and should they pay more?
An image of a construction worker

Inequality in the labour market

Event 15 March 2022 at 09:30
The availability of work with good wages and conditions makes a big difference to our material wellbeing and the kinds of lives we lead. At this online event we will look at what has been happening to inequalities in the UK’s labour market, and what the big policy challenges are going forward.
TEST

A look ahead to the Spring Statement

Event 10 March 2022 at 09:30
The Spring Statement will take place against a backdrop of rising inflation, impacting living standards and the government finances alike. At this event, IFS researchers will set out their latest assessment of the economic and fiscal backdrop and some of the challenges that the Chancellor will need to consider.
Skyline of London

Firms, market power, innovation and inequality

Event 3 March 2022 at 09:30
Firms are at the centre of our economy: they make the things we buy, set prices, invent new things and provide jobs. They also differ widely in their size, their productivity, their innovativeness, and the wages and conditions they offer. This event will address a number of key questions regarding firms and inequality.