Wilfred Beckerman obituary

My father, Wilfred Beckerman, who has died aged 94, was a renowned economist who combined a distinguished academic career, primarily as fellow of Balliol College, Oxford, with equally influential periods as an economic adviser for government. He was highly active (skiing into his 80s), a twinkly-eyed man with a good sense of humour whose love of learning and intellectual debate never left him.

Born in London, the fifth of six children of poor Jewish immigrant parents, Moishe, a tailor, and Mattl, a seamstress, he left school at 15 but continued to study in his spare time. In 1943, aged 18, he joined the Royal Navy and quickly rose to officer rank. Having persuaded the LSE to let him briefly study there before joining up, despite not having the required academic qualifications, he was then eligible for the government's scheme to allow ex-servicemen to complete their tertiary education free after the war had ended.