Views

As we enter the stage where monetary policy is to be replaced by fiscal policy as a way to right the world’s post-crisis ailments, tax policy is one of the key tools. But it is how much to tax (and whom) that is going to drive the global political agenda.

As Fashion Week draws to a close, the $2.4 trillion industry that employs some 60 million people and creates 100 billion garments a year is embracing a new trend. From Green Carpet Awards to a G7 Fashion Pact, fashion is minimising its carbon footprint.

Pea protein shrimp, lab grown burgers and cricket flour pancakes: sci-fi menu or the future of food? Population projections heading to 10 billion, meat demand increasing yet food production is not sustainable even if farmers are already growing enough.

Janis Joplin never got a Mercedes Benz, but she did pay $3,500 for a used Porsche 356 in 1968 that sold at auction for $1.76 million in 2015. A return on investment of more than 50,000% over 47 years. But are we at the start of a long-term reversal?

Efficient high-speed French TGV trains with posters showing how to help an old lady with her bags. But arrive in Paris and scooters and pushbikes whizz towards the same old lady. No signs saying it is not permitted, so the assumption is that it’s OK.

Inequality, migration, odd banking system, populist politics and apocalyptic climate change, sound familiar? Replacing zombies with humans surgically attached to smart-phones and Game of Thrones could be an archetypal portrayal of today’s world.