Professor's fury after Harvard honesty research found to be dishonest
At the time Michael Sanders remembers being embarrassed, even ashamed.
He had convinced the World Bank to fund a study on an entire country to show that one simple trick could drastically increase tax compliance. If you made people pledge their honesty beforehand, research showed, they were more honest. But the one simple trick had proven tricksy.
Despite strong prior evidence it should have had dramatic effects, it had done nothing at all. Clearly, he had screwed up. 'We had let them down.'
Today the emotion is a little different. 'I'm furious,' he said. The former member of the British government-created Behavioural Insights Team believes he has good reason to feel misled about that evidence. 'We need to reflect on why it is that we have so many shysters in our field,' he said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
33 minutes ago
- The Sun
Aldi launches viral La Vieille Ferme dupe but in a box – and it's much cheaper
ALDI has launched a boxed wine version of the viral La Vieille Ferme for a fraction of the price. Made with picnics in mind, the 1.5 litre tub of wine has hit shelves just in time for the warm weather. Arriving in stores today, Le Petit Poulet Rosé Boxed Wine is a pale and citrusy rosé that's straight from the wine region of Provence. And priced at £12.49 it's over £3 cheaper than the original, La Vieille Ferme Rosé Bag in a box, which scans for £15.50 per litre. While traditionally it's been lower grade wines that have been sold in boxes, expert Sam Caporn says boxes now have a much greater variety of wines on offer. He's urged Brits to give boxed wine a go, calling it a more affordable way to drink as the beverage stays fresh for longer. He said: 'Boxed wines have many advantages. For example, boxed wine can stay fresh for considerably longer than bottled. 'There is usually a price advantage too, as you're not paying for heavy or expensive glass. And lastly, boxed wine tastes no different to bottled!' It's not just rosé that Aldi has got on offer but a collection of red and white boxed wines too. White-wine drinkers will be thrilled to know that the Cambala Sauvignon is scanning for just £13.99. Meanwhile, an intense Shiraz is flying off the shelves for as little as £13.99 for 2.25L. This comes just days after Aldi slashed the price of some of its fanciest wine to just £10 as part of a brilliant bargain sale. The retailer is slashing the price as part of a sale to mark English Wine Week. Saving 44 per cent per bottle shoppers will be treated to Aldi's premium Winemaster's Lot English Sparkling Wine for just £9.99. Without the discount the bottle would set back shoppers a massive £17.96. The deal will be available in stores for the duration of English Wine Week from the 19th-25th of June. Julie Ashfield, Chief Commercial Officer at Aldi UK, said: 'English Wine Week is a great moment to showcase the quality of British winemaking. "With a saving of 44% on our Winemaster's Lot English Sparkling Wine, we're making it easier than ever for shoppers to enjoy exceptional, award-winning English wine at unbeatable prices.' English Wine Week is an annual national event that celebrates the English wine industry. Several retailers, restaurants and vineyards participate in the event, offering up cheap English wines to customers. This year Aldi will be serving up multiple bottles from their collection to mark the event. 4
Western Telegraph
34 minutes ago
- Western Telegraph
Farage plans to charge non-doms £250,000 fee which will be given to poor
On Monday, the party leader and MP for Clacton will reveal the policy which he said would 'encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom', according to the Telegraph. The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside the UK. Last year, former Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt revealed plans to scrap the tax status before successor Rachel Reeves sped up the process. Reform UK's policy would mean 'every high-net-worth newcoming (or returning leaver)' would pay a £250,000 one-off fee 'in return for a stable, indefinite remittance-style regime on offshore income and a 20-year inheritance-tax shield', Mr Farage wrote in an article for the Telegraph. All of this fee would be given to Britain's lowest-paid full-time workers through an automatic tax-free dividend via HMRC, the party leader added. In response, Labour said the policy was a 'golden ticket for foreign billionaires to avoid the tax they owe in this country'. Mr Farage wrote: 'Our policy is simple – Britain must be a place where success is celebrated, not punished with excessive taxes, crippling energy costs, or punitive inheritance levies. 'We will actively encourage the return of wealth and talent to the United Kingdom, on the clear condition that those who come here deliver immediate, visible benefits to our workers.' The plan would mean around 2.5 million 'hard-working Britons' would receive an 'annual cash bonus', the Reform UK leader claimed. He added: 'Our policy is not a 'golden visa' or a backdoor to citizenship. 'It is a one-time flat tax paid by newcomers in exchange for the certainty of a favourable tax status. 'Individuals will still be liable for all standard UK taxes on UK-sourced income, property and spending. 'But they won't be taxed on offshore income and gains for the duration of their agreed status.' A Labour spokesperson said: 'Nigel Farage can brand this whatever he wants – the reality is his first proper policy is a golden ticket for foreign billionaires to avoid the tax they owe in this country. 'As ever with Reform, the devil is in the detail. 'This giveaway would reduce revenues raised from the rich that would have to be made up elsewhere – through tax hikes on working families or through Farage's promise to charge them to use the NHS.'
Sky News
35 minutes ago
- Sky News
Iranian threat to UK could increase after US strikes, says cabinet minister
The threat to the UK from Iran is already at a "significant level" and could increase following the US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, a cabinet minister has told Sky News. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said that "not a week goes by" without an Iranian cyberattack on the country's critical national infrastructure. Speaking on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Mr Reynolds said: "There is Iranian activity on the streets of the UK, which is wholly unacceptable." And he said it would be "naive" to think the threat will not escalate as Tehran could seek to retaliate against the US, Israel and their allies. Early on Sunday, the American military struck three sites as it joined Israel 's effort to destroy Iran 's nuclear programme. B-2 bombers dropped 14 bunker-busting GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrators, each weighing 30,000lbs. Iran has maintained its programme is for peaceful purposes only. He called on Iran not to retaliate, saying the government "must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier". Mr Reynolds said Iran had a choice - "Do they want to continue being an agent of instability in the region and the wider world? Where has that got them? Where has it got the Iranian people? "There's a better course of action for Iran to take here, and I think they should consider that." Last October, MI5 chief Ken McCallum said authorities had stopped 20 state-backed plots hatched by Iran in the UK since 2022. In February 2023, a London-based Iranian news station said it was forced to shut its UK headquarters over alleged threats from Tehran and fears for the safety of its journalists. Iran International TV said it "reluctantly" closed its west London studios and moved the operation to its offices in Washington DC. The broadcaster said the move followed warnings from the Metropolitan Police that there were "serious" and "grave" concerns about "hostile intentions of foreign states". In December 2023, a Chechen-born man was sentenced to three years and six months in prison after being found guilty of spying on the London-based dissident Iranian TV station to help terror plotters. Magomed-Husejn Dovtaev, 31, was accused of conducting surveillance on the west London headquarters of Iran International as part of a plan by others to carry out a terror attack. He was found guilty of one charge of attempting to collect information useful for terrorism. Meanwhile a British-Iranian journalist, who was told by the Metropolitan Police to leave her UK home for her own safety last year after Iran International presenter Pouria Zeraati was stabbed in the leg in London, has warned of the "dangers" if the "regime survives". Sima Sabet, who also worked for the Persian-language television news channel, told Sky's Emma Birchley: "What I want, and what I hope, is this Islamic Republic is gone, because the more this regime survives, the more danger to the world it would be, the more danger to international peace, and also… the more danger to the Iranian people." She added: "There has to be a way that this transition is going to be peaceful. Iran cannot be bombed and then left on its own. So there must be an answer for it. There must be an international effort for us. So Iranian people can have a very smooth transition into democracy." Ms Sabet also spoke of her life being under threat in the UK. She said she is not "back to my normal life", adding: "I have to still cover my face. I have to still be very mindful of where I go, who I see." Two men will face trial next year accused of attacking Mr Zeraati in Wimbledon in March 2024. The defendants are charged with wounding him with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and wounding. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz have called on Iran's leaders to enter negotiations and "not to take any further action that could destabilise the region". Sir Keir urged Britons in Israel and Palestinian territories to make contact with the Foreign Office as it prepares for an evacuation flight early next week. Speaking to Sky News, the prime minister said: "I urge all citizens to make contact with the Foreign Office so that we can facilitate whatever support is needed." The Israeli government said about 22,000 tourists are seeking to board evacuation flights but it is unclear how many of those are from the UK.
