Tutor information
Doug Bamford
Doug Bamford is lecturer in Lifelong Learning (Political Philosophy) at OUDCE, teaching courses in philosophy and political economy. His main interest is in political philosophy and its application to public policy, particularly taxation. He obtained his PhD in 2013 and became an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) in 2023. He is author of Rethinking Taxation (Searching Finance, 2014) and several papers (including articles in the Journal of Applied Philosophy, Moral Philosophy and Politics, Problema, and Think). He blogs at Doug Bamford's Tax Appeal.
Courses
Political philosophy contains some of the greatest writings in the Western intellectual tradition. This online course introduces you to the central questions concerning the state, by means of classical and contemporary texts.
All of us are affected by government policies, and governments place particular emphasis on economic policies. This course will equip you to evaluate the economic arguments made about public policy choices.
Are some people ignored, silenced, or limited in their access to knowledge due to their identity? How might this occur? In this short course we consider how some people’s knowledge might be ignored and whose responsibility it is to do something about it.
Explore the ethical and economic issues arising from an unequal world with borders. Should we focus more on the poorest in the world and less on our fellow citizens? What are the implications for various policies such as trade, aid, tax and immigration?
Many people hate capitalism and wish to replace it, but what with? This short course considers prominent alternatives to capitalism and how they could work.
Taxation affects us all, and people often complain about it, but how can the system be improved? This introductory course for the lay person gives you the tools to analyse and assess potential tax system reforms.
Political philosophy contains some of the greatest writings in the Western intellectual tradition. This online course introduces you to the central questions concerning the state, by means of classical and contemporary texts.
This global course analyses one of the most controversial public policy issues of the 21st century: how to regulate international labour migration and the rights of migrant workers.
Explore the ethical and economic issues arising from an unequal world with borders. Consider issues such as how much we owe to people in other states and whether we should we treat immigrants differently from our compatriots.
We think we know, but do we? We think we are free, but are we? We think our actions are moral, but are they? What is this reality we take ourselves to live in? The oldest questions meet the newest technology in this online introduction to philosophy.
All of us are affected by government policies, and governments place particular emphasis on economic policies. This course will equip you to evaluate the economic arguments made about public policy choices.
Political philosophy contains some of the greatest writings in the Western intellectual tradition. This online course introduces you to the central questions concerning the state, by means of classical and contemporary texts.
Economists and politicians mostly assumed that growth was good. In recent years this has been challenged by environmental activists, ecological economists and eco-socialists. Should society no longer aim for economic growth?
Explore the ethical and economic issues arising from an unequal world with borders. Should we focus more on the poorest in the world and less on our fellow citizens? What are the implications for various policies such as trade, aid, tax and immigration?