Thomas Piketty has quit as an adviser to Jeremy Corbyn

Source: City AM

Thomas Piketty, one the world's most famous left-wing economists and inequality campaigners, has left his position as an adviser to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Piketty, who shot to worldwide fame in 2013 with his highly-cited, less-often-read treatise on inequality, "Capital in the Twenty-First Century", was a member of Corbyn's economic advisory council, but has stepped down and attacked the Labour leader over his role in the EU referendum, according to Sky News.

The French economist, who advocated a redistributive wealth tax, told Sky News he was "deeply concerned with the Brexit vote, and with the very weak campaign of Labour."

News of his departure follows calls from another of Corbyn's closest and most loyal economic advisers, Richard Murphy, for Corbyn to step down, and the resignation of Danny Blanchflower, a former member of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee (MPC), from Corbyn's advisory team.

Read more: http://www.cityam.com/244404/thomas-piketty-has-quit-adviser-jeremy

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Sad to see this. I hope Labour and Corbyn can get their act together to challenge the coming Conservative economic firestorm in the UK.

From back in May:

EU referendum: Star economist Thomas Piketty says Brexit would be 'political suicide'

French author and liberal economist Thomas Piketty has urged the British public to vote to remain in the European Union, saying that a Brexit would be "political suicide" for the country. Speaking at the Cannes Film Festival, Piketty stated that voting to leave Europe in the 23 June referendum would be disastrous for Britain's economy and would lead to further fracturing of the United Kingdom.

"I think it will be very sad for Europe. I think it will be, you know, even worse for Britain. I think for Britain it would be like a political suicide because after this happens, very likely, the next step will be Scotland will get out of Britain, which will then become a very small country basically.

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/eu-referendum-star-economist-thomas-piketty-says-brexit-would-be-political-suicide-1560057