Counting Covid鈥檚 impact on GDP
Does GDP tell us whose economies have suffered most during Covid?
GDP figures for the period covering lockdown appear to show that the UK suffered a catastrophic decline, worse than almost any other country. But as Tim Harford finds out, things aren鈥檛 quite as bad for the UK as they might seem - though they might be worse for everywhere else.
Also, alarming claims have been circulating in the UK about the number of suicides during lockdown. We look at the facts.
There is support for the issues discussed in the programme at help.befrienders.org
Presenter: Tim Harford
Producers: Nathan Gower and Chloe Hadjimatheou
(Robots work on the MINI car production line at the BMW plant in Cowley, Oxford, UK. Credit: Tolga Akmen/ Getty Images)
Podcast
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More or Less: Behind the Stats
Tim Harford investigates numbers in the news: are they always reliable?