We all know that politicians, regulators, and the captains of industries in transport, property development, banking, unions, mining, and so forth, all swap places on an endless carousel, looking after their former colleagues with favourable policies and political donations or promises of senior positions.

Economics academics Murray and Frijters call such a phenomenon ‘grey gifts’. They explain how, although corrupt, it’s not technically illegal and is notoriously hard to police or restrict. The dual aim of their book Rigged is to show not just that it happens, but that all that top-end-of-town gift-giving comes at the expense of the rest of us.

Originally self-published in 2017 as Game of Mates, Rigged updates and finesses some of the research. Murray and Frijters frame their book around characters they call ‘James’ (the elite) and ‘Sam’ (the rest of us), making constant references to how the James look after each other while the Sams pay for it. This is obviously intended to humanise an otherwise complicated economic treatise and make it accessible, although I’m not sure this works.

The research and their opinions about it (including solutions they think will help reverse the quagmire) are savvy and seem workable. But it’s hard not to be cynical – when the entire class that holds the reins in business and politics stand to lose out, who’s ever going to back such reforms?

Reviewed by Drew Turney