About the journal

Mission

British economic debates—from monetary policy frameworks to regional “levelling up,” from NHS staffing to post-Brexit trade—deserve outlets that reward depth as well as technique. JBE publishes papers that help readers understand why UK outcomes look the way they do and what credible evidence says about reform. We welcome formal theory when it illuminates British applications, and applied work when it respects economic logic.

Publication model

Beginning in 2026 the journal anticipates three issues per year (spring, summer, autumn), each with broadly 6–8 research articles plus occasional shorter policy syntheses and commissioned book reviews. Online publication of accepted articles may precede compilation into an issue; issue-level pagination remains the version of record unless an early-view erratum is filed.

What belongs in JBE

Illustrative topics include:

• Monetary and fiscal interactions in UK macro data and macro models
• Labour markets, migration, unions, and wage-setting institutions in Britain
• Tax design, social insurance, and devolved public spending
• Housing supply, planning, and spatial equilibrium in UK cities
• Firm dynamics, trade, investment, and productivity measurement
• British economic history with lessons for present-day measurement or policy

Purely comparative papers are welcome when the UK is a leading case or when results shift priors about British institutions. Purely global papers without a UK angle will be desk-rejected to save referee time.

What we rarely publish

• Introductory textbook surveys without original claims
• Marketing-style industry case studies lacking generalisable evidence
• Pieces whose main contribution is methodological unless applied to a pressing UK question

Open access & copyright

The society or publisher sponsor (to be announced) is working toward immediate open access without shifting full costs onto authors. Likely licences include CC BY or CC BY-ND for text, with separate terms where third-party material restricts reuse. Final language will appear on the copyright transfer / licence-to-publish form.

Publication ethics

Allegations of plagiarism, figure manipulation, or undisclosed conflicts are investigated by the editor-in-chief and, when warranted, an ethics panel. Corrections clarify honest error; retractions address unreliability or misconduct. Authors must disclose material financial interests, employment relevant to the paper’s conclusions, and funding sources in a standardised cover form.

Human-subject research must show appropriate ethical approval or exemption; restricted administrative data must document access routes (ONS Secure Research Service, Digital Economy Act gateways, etc.).

Diversity & inclusion

The journal commits to broadening reviewer pools, monitoring decision-stage outcomes by observable categories where lawful, and avoiding language that unnecessarily centres a single methodological orthodoxy. Special issue calls should articulate how they will solicit contributors from multiple institutions and career stages.