Dr Pippa Malmgren: How I Predicted Brexit, Trump And The Financial Crisis
16 October 2018, 17:24 | Updated: 16 October 2018, 17:37
A government advisor who predicted the financial crisis, Brexit and Donald Trump’s victory has explained how everyday signals such as fashion trends can be used to gauge public opinion.
Dr Philippa Malmgren, an advisor to the Department of International Trade, believes politicians can become fixated over polls - when really they should “open their eyes to see what’s right in front of you”.
She joined Eddie Mair in the LBC studio on Tuesday afternoon for a fascinating interview.
Dr Malmgren noted how signals that people would “not tend to take seriously” are being overlooked when trying to read the public’s mood.
“Sometimes fashion trends tell you a lot about how people are feeling,” she said.
“For example, the most popular fashion trend right now is for highly-transparent fabrics, lace, completely see-through jeans.
“To me that is literally a cry for transparency, that is reflecting how people feel.”
Dr Malmgren is notorious for predicting recent global economic and political outcomes.
She explained how Britain’s vote to leave the EU came as no surprise to her.
“With Brexit I spent a fair amount of time outside of London and talking to people who come from very different backgrounds than my own - which I think is essential,” she continued.
“If you’re going to have a view about this world, you need to have a diversity of opinion and a diversity of experience.
“I thought it was perfectly obvious that [Brexit] was the most likely outcome, but for a lot of people they thought ‘that’s just ridiculous’.”
Watch the interview above.
