Building a better Britain

How cities like Bradford can help to end economic stagnation

UpcomingThursday 16 May 2024

This event is in Bradford. Register to attend in person. A toxic combination of 15 years of low growth, and four decades of high inequality, has left Britain poorer and falling behind its peers. Productivity growth is weak and public investment is low, while wages today are no higher than they were before the financial … Continued

Overcoming stagnation

A new strategy for economic prosperity in Britain?

UpcomingThursday 25 April 2024

This event is in Bath. Register to attend in person. Economic growth in the UK has been sluggish ever since the global financial crisis. More recent large-scale disruptions caused by Brexit and Covid-19 have created additional challenges to growth and the vital public services, institutions, and fiscal measures that underpin it. Productivity and public investment … Continued

Building pressure?

Rising rents, and what to expect in the future

UpcomingMonday 8 April 2024

Register to attend in person or to receive access link for online viewers. The combination of high house prices and stagnating incomes over recent decades, coupled with the decline of social housing, mean that millions more of us are private renters. And they are renting for longer too. Private rents rose swiftly in the wake … Continued

Setting a high bar

Celebrating 25 years of the minimum wage, and plotting its next path

UpcomingWednesday 27 March 2024

Register to attend in person or to receive access link for online viewers. The introduction of the minimum wage back in April 1999 was a controversial policy choice, with businesses warning that it would lead to widespread job losses. But 25 years on, it has proved to be a great policy success that has been … Continued

Demographics
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Living standards

Living life to the full

How can we make our longer lives healthier, happier and more productive?

UpcomingThursday 21 March 2024

Book launch for The Longevity Imperative by Professor Andrew J Scott Register to attend in person or to receive an access link for online viewers. Britain, along with many other countries, is getting older and living longer. This demographic shift has huge health, economic and societal impacts, but too often the debate is limited to … Continued

Boosting prosperity across Britain

How cities like Bristol can help to end economic stagnation

Thursday 7 March 2024

This event was in Bristol. A toxic combination of 15 years of low growth, and four decades of high inequality, has left Britain poorer and falling behind its peers. Wages today are no higher than they were before the financial crisis, and England’s biggest cities beyond London all have productivity levels below the national average. … Continued

Game changer?

Assessing the Budget’s economic, and electoral, impact

Thursday 7 March 2024

The upcoming Spring Budget may be the last big fiscal event before the General Election, one of few chances for the government to set the terms of the economic debate. And with the government trailing heavily in the polls, and the economy entering a mild recession at the end of last year, the pressure is … Continued

Ending stagnation

The role of cities like Nottingham in boosting economic prosperity across Britain

Thursday 29 February 2024

This event was in Nottingham. A toxic combination of 15 years of low growth, and four decades of high inequality, has left Britain poorer and falling behind its peers. Productivity growth is weak and public investment is low, while wages today are no higher than they were before the financial crisis. Britain needs a new … Continued

Working in the think tank sector

Webinar for those interested in working in the sector

Wednesday 28 February 2024

Think tanks are research organisations that develop ideas and suggestions for action on a whole range of subjects affecting society. Using research, analysis and commentary, we aim to inform and influence politicians, policy makers and the public. Given the economic, social and political issues facing the UK, ensuring the world of research and policy-making is … Continued

Healthy starts

How mental ill-health shapes the education and economic prospects of young people

Monday 26 February 2024

The rising prevalence of mental health problems among young people over recent decades is becoming increasingly concerning. While evidently distressing for the young people and their families, periods of poor mental health can also have significant detrimental impacts on their education and job prospects. Increasing support provided in schools and universities has gone some way … Continued

Tax cuts today, spending cuts tomorrow?

How the Budget might shape the General Election and beyond

Wednesday 21 February 2024

An election is coming, and therefore so are tax cuts in the Budget on 6th March. But the size of those tax cuts are dependent on the amount of fiscal room for manoeuvre the Chancellor has. And their shape will reflect where his political and economic priorities lie. Plus tax cuts come in a context … Continued

Trading standards

How exposure to global trade shapes our living standards

Monday 19 February 2024

Britain is an open economy, and has become more open over recent decades – despite the impact of Brexit and ‘slowbalisation’. But the quantity and type of goods and services we trade isn’t the only thing that has shifted. So has what we consume and where we work. All of these shifts affect our exposure … Continued

Saving for today. And tomorrow.

How to boost households financial resilience now, and living standards in retirement

Monday 12 February 2024

British households aren’t saving enough. Pensions auto-enrolment has got far more of us saving for retirement, but too many of us are not on track for a comfortable old age. More immediately, too few of us have access to rainy-day pots to help us through an unexpected shock. Traditional approaches to encourage people to build … Continued

Demographics
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Intergenerational Centre
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Political parties and elections

New age or age-old appeal

How different generations view the parties and issues that will determine the General Election

Wednesday 7 February 2024

In recent decades age has replaced class as one of the key determinants of a voter’s values and voting behaviour. But these trends never sit still, especially as issues – from Europe to the environment, and the economy – rise and fall in terms of their electoral salience. We know that the next election will … Continued

Living standards
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Economy and public finances
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Political parties and elections

Turning a corner?

The political and economic outlook for a critical election year

Monday 8 January 2024

The worst of the cost of living crisis appears to be behind us, with inflation more than halving since its peak. But 2024 may not be plain sailing economically, and it certainly won’t be politically with an election in store. While wages are at last growing faster than prices, economic growth has flatlined while taxes, … Continued

Rising rents and rebounding wages

Where is Britain’s cost-of-living crisis heading?

Thursday 14 December 2023

Inflation is down, but Britain’s cost-of-living crisis is still very much with us. The legacy of previous price rises for energy and food are now combining with a new pressure: housing. Private rents are rising at their fastest rate in over a decade, while the impact of higher interest rates is still feeding through into … Continued

Ending Stagnation

A New Economic Strategy for Britain

Monday 4 December 2023

The final report of The Economy 2030 Inquiry The UK has great strengths, but is a decade and a half into a period of stagnation. The combination of slow growth and high inequality is proving toxic for low- and middle-income Britain. The result is a country falling behind its peers, where taxes, rather than wages, … Continued

Ventures
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Labour market
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Pay
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Skills

WorkerTech Conference

Exploring the role of technology in creating good work in the UK

Tuesday 21 November 2023

Technology is changing the world of work — from AI to app-based firms and the pandemic-induced surge in remote working. The benefits of these new technologies can often pass low-earners by, or ratchet up insecurity in their working lives. But new technologies also have the potential to improve workers’ pay, skills and career paths — … Continued

Inventing a better Britain

How does R&D fit into a new UK economic strategy?

Wednesday 15 November 2023

Low productivity is the foundational cause of Britain’s recent economic malaise, and raising it is a top priority for policy makers. Public and private investment in research and development is a key route to boosting productivity and future economic growth. But businesses often complain that policy makers are failing to create an environment that encourages … Continued

Perma-crisis people

The divergent economic prospects between generations

Monday 13 November 2023

Advanced economies across the globe have experienced a series of unprecedented economic shocks since the start of the century. But they have not affected all generations equally. The disproportionate impact on the financial wellbeing of younger people has sparked concerns about generational fairness on both sides of the Atlantic. Fifteen years on from the global … Continued

In place of centralisation

Devolution for London, Manchester and Birmingham

Wednesday 8 November 2023

Devolution is essential to both tackle economic inequality across England and drive national economic growth. Significant change has already occurred, with metro mayors and combined authorities taking control over significant areas from transport to housing in areas covering large swathes of the country. But we have not seen fiscal devolution, as responsibility for how money is spent … Continued

Preparing the pitch

What to expect in the upcoming Autumn Statement

Monday 6 November 2023

The Chancellor has two just two more fiscal events in which to prepare the economic pitch for the upcoming General Election. The backdrop is a challenging and uncertain economic environment, alongside huge pressure on both public services and finances. With the Prime Minister making a virtue of the need to take tough decisions, the Chancellor … Continued

Creaking at the seams

Can we bring Britain’s trains, drains and mains into the 21st Century?

Wednesday 1 November 2023

Britain faces a simply huge infrastructure challenge. As well as decarbonising our homes, we need to modernise our water, energy and transport networks, replacing basic infrastructure that often dates back to the Victorian era. Achieving this is likely to require major investment, regulatory reform and new institutions to drive forward change, as well as a … Continued

The wealth of a nation

What the changing size and shape of household wealth means for Scotland

Monday 30 October 2023

This event was in Edinburgh. Record low interest rates over the past 30 years led to a wealth boom, with Scottish households seeing wealth rise by £700 billion since the financial crisis alone. But surging interest rates in 2022 have brought this era to an abrupt end, causing pension valuations to crater, mortgage costs to … Continued

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