Jacques Rueff
Encyclopedia
Jacques Rueff was a French
economist
and adviser to the French Government.
An influential French conservative
and free market
thinker, Rueff was born the son of a well known Parisian physician and studied economics and mathematics at the École Polytechnique
. An important economic advisor to French President Charles de Gaulle
, Rueff was also a major figure in the management of the French economy during the Great Depression
. In 1941 Rueff was dismissed from his office as the deputy governor of the Bank of France
as a result of the Vichy regime
's new anti-semitic laws. Rueff published several works of political economy and philosophy during his lifetime, including L'Ordre Social which appeared shortly after Liberation
.
After the war Rueff became one of the leading French members of the classical liberal Mont Pelerin Society
, the president of the Inter-Allied Reparations Agency (IARA), and the minister of state of Monaco
. Rueff was strongly in favour of European integration
and served from 1952 to 1962 as a judge on the European High Court of Justice
.
He advised General de Gaulle after de Gaulle became French President in 1958. The 1958 Rueff Plan (also known as the Rueff-Pinay Plan) balanced the budget and secured the convertibility of the franc, which had been endangered by the strains of decolonization
.
In the 1960s, Rueff became a major proponent of a return to the gold standard
and critical of the use of the dollar
as a unit of reserve, which he warned would cause a worldwide inflation
. A member of the Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques, Rueff was elected to the Académie Française
in 1964. Foreseeing the emerging European Community Common Market, Rueff recommended cutting barriers to competition in his second report. Along with co-writer Louis Armand and helped by an ad-hoc committee of experts, the "plan Rueff-Armand" - as the press would call it - is published in 1960. The full title of the report is "Rapport du Comité pour la suppression des obstacles à l'expansion économique", which translates as "Report on suppressing barriers to economic growth".
Jacques Rueff always remained a firm opponent of Lord Keynes' ideas. His first critique appeared in the Economics Journal, on the issue of transfers; specifically, German war reparations. Jacques Rueff refused such transfers in the late 30's. In 1947, he critiqued Keynes' magnum opus, The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. In 1958, U.S. economist James Tobin
became his main critic in the Quarterly Journal of Economics. Almost thirty years later, he explained his beliefs once more in "The End of the Keynesian Era", first published in the authoritative French newspaper "Le Monde".
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
and adviser to the French Government.
An influential French conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
and free market
Free market
A free market is a competitive market where prices are determined by supply and demand. However, the term is also commonly used for markets in which economic intervention and regulation by the state is limited to tax collection, and enforcement of private ownership and contracts...
thinker, Rueff was born the son of a well known Parisian physician and studied economics and mathematics at the École Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
. An important economic advisor to French President Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
, Rueff was also a major figure in the management of the French economy during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. In 1941 Rueff was dismissed from his office as the deputy governor of the Bank of France
Banque de France
The Banque de France is the central bank of France; it is linked to the European Central Bank . Its main charge is to implement the interest rate policy of the European System of Central Banks...
as a result of the Vichy regime
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
's new anti-semitic laws. Rueff published several works of political economy and philosophy during his lifetime, including L'Ordre Social which appeared shortly after Liberation
Liberty
Liberty is a moral and political principle, or Right, that identifies the condition in which human beings are able to govern themselves, to behave according to their own free will, and take responsibility for their actions...
.
After the war Rueff became one of the leading French members of the classical liberal Mont Pelerin Society
Mont Pelerin Society
The Mont Pelerin Society is an international organization composed of economists , philosophers, historians, intellectuals, business leaders, and others who favour classical liberalism...
, the president of the Inter-Allied Reparations Agency (IARA), and the minister of state of Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
. Rueff was strongly in favour of European integration
European integration
European integration is the process of industrial, political, legal, economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe...
and served from 1952 to 1962 as a judge on the European High Court of Justice
European Court of Justice
The Court can sit in plenary session, as a Grand Chamber of 13 judges, or in chambers of three or five judges. Plenary sitting are now very rare, and the court mostly sits in chambers of three or five judges...
.
He advised General de Gaulle after de Gaulle became French President in 1958. The 1958 Rueff Plan (also known as the Rueff-Pinay Plan) balanced the budget and secured the convertibility of the franc, which had been endangered by the strains of decolonization
Decolonization
Decolonization refers to the undoing of colonialism, the unequal relation of polities whereby one people or nation establishes and maintains dependent Territory over another...
.
In the 1960s, Rueff became a major proponent of a return to the gold standard
Gold standard
The gold standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed mass of gold. There are distinct kinds of gold standard...
and critical of the use of the dollar
Dollar
The dollar is the name of the official currency of many countries, including Australia, Belize, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States.-Etymology:...
as a unit of reserve, which he warned would cause a worldwide inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
. A member of the Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques, Rueff was elected to the Académie Française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
in 1964. Foreseeing the emerging European Community Common Market, Rueff recommended cutting barriers to competition in his second report. Along with co-writer Louis Armand and helped by an ad-hoc committee of experts, the "plan Rueff-Armand" - as the press would call it - is published in 1960. The full title of the report is "Rapport du Comité pour la suppression des obstacles à l'expansion économique", which translates as "Report on suppressing barriers to economic growth".
Jacques Rueff always remained a firm opponent of Lord Keynes' ideas. His first critique appeared in the Economics Journal, on the issue of transfers; specifically, German war reparations. Jacques Rueff refused such transfers in the late 30's. In 1947, he critiqued Keynes' magnum opus, The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. In 1958, U.S. economist James Tobin
James Tobin
James Tobin was an American economist who, in his lifetime, served on the Council of Economic Advisors and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and taught at Harvard and Yale Universities. He developed the ideas of Keynesian economics, and advocated government intervention to...
became his main critic in the Quarterly Journal of Economics. Almost thirty years later, he explained his beliefs once more in "The End of the Keynesian Era", first published in the authoritative French newspaper "Le Monde".