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Public Debt Consolidation under Risky Human Capital

How should governments deleverage public debt, and who gains or loses under alternative fiscal packages? We study this question in a heterogeneous-agent general-equilibrium model with endogenous assets, labour supply, and human-capital accumulation, calibrated to the pre-pandemic United Kingdom. The government reduces the public-debt stock by an amount equal to 10 percent of initial output over 25 years. We compare front-loaded, linear, and back-loaded schedules; labour-tax, returns-tax, and transfer closures; and four uses of the fiscal capacity created by lower debt service: Government Spending, Fiscal Discipline, Additional Transfers, and Public Investment.  […]