...able to chart the consequences (perhaps long-term consequences) of alternative policies. Secondly, they value those consequences so as to be able to judge the relative desirabilities of the alternative policies. The former set of exercises involves description, while the latter involves evaluation. Disagreements over the desirability of alternative public policies arise when people don't agree on facts (e.g., the economic effects of doubling of carbon concentration in the atmosphere) or when they don't agree on values (e.g., the way our well-being ought to be balanced against the well-being of all those future thems). Usually, of course, both facts and values are subject to dispute.

Reading the many reports on the Stern Review (henceforth the Review) that have been published in newspapers and magazines since its launch--interestingly, reading the Review itself--would give one the impression that the case that has been built by the authors for strong, immediate action in the form of an annual expenditure of about I per cent of global GDP in order to thwart the possibility of damages amounting to as much as "20 per cent of GDP" (the Review's wording) under business as usual, rests exclusively on insights drawn from the new and more refined global circulation models of climate scientists. The Review will hopefully be scrutinised by peers in due course. My comments will be particularly inexpert, because I have had only a few days to study it. But the conclusion I have reached is that the strong, immediate action on climate change advocated by the authors is an implication of their views on intergenerational equity; it isn't driven so much by the new climatic facts the authors have stressed. In what follows I explain what I mean by that.

It needs saying at once that the ethical framework within which the authors have chosen to work is standard in modern economics. The authors conduct a Cook's tour of contemporary ethical theories, but pretty soon get down to the framework modern economists have adopted for their ethical reasoning. A particular version of that framework, amounting to Classical Utilitarianism, was proposed by Frank Ramsey in his great 1928 paper in the Economic Journal ('A...

NOTE: All illustrations and photos have been removed from this article.



More articles from National Institute Economic Review
Global growth differentials.(THE WORLD ECONOMY)(Statistical data), January 01, 2007
Inflation dynamics in North America.(THE WORLD ECONOMY)(Statistical da..., January 01, 2007
Growth rebalancing toward consumption in Asia.(The World Economy)(Stat..., January 01, 2007
Euro area: slowing down in 2007.(The World Economy)(Statistical data), January 01, 2007
Monetary policy and global imbalances*., January 01, 2007

Looking for additional articles?
Search our database of over 3 million articles.

Looking for more in-depth information on this industry?
Search our complete database of Industry & Market reports by text, subject, publication name or publication date.

About Goliath
Whether you're looking for sales prospects, competitive information, company analysis or best practices in managing your organization, Goliath can help you meet your business needs.

Our extensive business information databases empower business professionals with both the breadth and depth of credible, authoritative information they need to support their business goals. Whether it be strategic planning, sales prospecting, company research or defining management best practices - Goliath is your leading source for accurate information.