Furloughed workers, self-employed grant schemes, increased unemployment benefits, low interest loans, quantitative easing – governments and central banks are pulling out all the stops to try and offset the economic consequences of COVID-19. So who is doing it well? Phil Dobbie asks Prof Steve Keen to evaluate some of the programs implemented around the world – which ones are effective, which help the finance sector but do little for the broader population, and is there enough of it given the size of the impact? Governments are now trying to pull back on stimulus programs, even though infections continue and unemployment is in danger of rising still higher? Will we have learnt anything at the end of this experience about how the economy really works?

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