2021 New Year Honours for Professor of Economics

The New Year Honours lists mark the achievements and service of extraordinary people across the UK.

Rachel Griffith is Professor of Economics in the School of Social Sciences and Research Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). Rachel previously won the Birgit Grodal award in 2014 and was awarded a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours 2015 for services to economic policy. She is a Fellow of the Econometric Society, the British Academy, the Academy of Social Sciences and a Research Fellow of CEPR.

Dame Rachel served as President of the Royal Economic Society from 2019-20, becoming the first female President in over 35 years and only the second woman to hold the post in the Society’s 129-year history. Rachel has broken down institutional barriers and has brought together public, private and academic economists in the pursuit of a single national goal. Recently she has used her position to support the development of UK Government Economic Policy in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Professor Griffith also established the Economics Observatory whose purpose is to answer questions from policy-makers and the public about the economics of the Covid-19 crisis and the recovery.

Speaking about her recognition in the New Year’s Honours, Rachel said, "I'm honoured to receive this award. It is a great recognition of the many ways that economics is changing - for the better. I have had the privilege to be able to work with economists from a wide range of institutions and backgrounds to mobilise research to address the many challenges society is currently facing. I am very optimistic about the positive role that sound and robust economic analysis can play in helping the country to recover."