Morning all, Another week, another row – this time over whether raising employer National Insurance (NI) would breach the Government’s manifesto. This is a silly row – levying NI on employer’s pension contributions (as we’ve proposed) clearly isn’t a breach, and even raising employer NI is not a direct ‘tax on working people’. It’s also … Continued

Morning all, Parliament was back with a bang this week, as we saw the publication of the most significant legislation improving workers rights in a generation (more on that below). Plus, we’ve inched closer to confirming the leader of the opposition, and every day brings us more fevered Budget speculation. We’ll be discussing the opportunities … Continued

Morning all, After a brief respite from the daily machinations of the Commons, parliament will return next week. You know what that means – 26 sleeps till Budget day! Which also means it’s only 26 sleeps until our post-budget event for the valiant members of the RF research team who will be up all night … Continued

Morning all, It’s been a big week for rain, and thus for those who enjoy complaining about the rain. In selfish news, there was too much river for my kayaking course to go ahead – I can’t believe the organisers didn’t let us take advantage of Bedfordshire’s newest water feature – the A421. I encourage those miffed … Continued

Morning all, An eerie calm will descend over RF towers over the next couple of weeks as politicians up sticks and decamp to their respective conferences. Honourable mention to the Lib Dems, who should have already slept off their hangovers. I’ll be manning the fort in SW1, but we’ll be hosting conversations at both the Labour and … Continued

Afternoon all, This week marks a truly momentous moment in the British policy landscape. What do you mean you haven’t noticed? In this moment, your inbox contains no less than the three-hundredth edition of Top of the Charts. A lot has changed since TOTC first started rolling off the RF assembly line in the halcyon … Continued

Morning all, Well, the new parliamentary session has certainly delivered a serious dose of reality after August’s silly season – and I expect both the stark conclusions of the Grenfell Inquiry and the political row over Winter Fuel Payments are likely to keep rattling around for a while to come. Keep an eye out for … Continued

Afternoon all, It’s time to steel yourself for the end of recess, the return to politics, and the slow run in to what will be a deeply consequential budget. But not just yet. Distract yourself from the imminent hubbub with our mixed bag of reads – ranging from the irritation of online advertising, to the … Continued

Morning all, If the sheer quantity of OoO emails I’ve received this week is any indication, the dog days of summer are in full swing. I think I just spotted an actual tumble weed rolling through the RF offices… But, fear not: this is just the calm before the end-of-recess, and those of us still in RF … Continued

Morning all, Well, from a living standards perspective, this week’s economic data has been confusing. Slower wage growth doesn’t sound great for workers, but it’s probably a good thing if it lets the Bank of England cut interest rates. Rising inflation also seems bad, but it rose by less than expected – and services inflation … Continued

Morning all, Well, after the friendly détente of the opening of parliament last week, politics came roaring back on Monday with the Chancellor’s review of her spending inheritance (tl;dr: she was distinctly unimpressed with her predecessor). Just in time for parliamentary recess! James, one of our Research Directors, has everything you need to know about … Continued

Morning all, If last week was all about the ONS’s data releases, this week the National Audit Office was centre stage. A stream of (mostly) damning reports into the state of public services were published this week. That’s where all the headlines you’ve been seeing about the state of HS2, the NHS, homelessness and potholes have come from. … Continued

Morning all, This week has been full of ups and downs. The football was coming home, then it didn’t. The weather was miserable, then we got a surprise heat wave. A King’s speech in July? It feels like we’re about to go back to school for the new year, not hurtling towards parliamentary recess and … Continued

Morning all, Let’s face it, there’s been some pretty disappointing performances during the election campaign. But the weather at least has finally stepped up to the plate to provide an appropriate backdrop to the SUMMER election. Still, it always pays to have a brolly at hand. While the sun is still out the summer vibes … Continued

Afternoon all, And breathe. The manifestos are out; the serious wonk business can begin. If you have digested the fine detail of the parties’ manifestos – good for you. If you haven’t, then I am shocked and appalled by this dereliction of your democratic duty. Luckily for you, we have. So today’s TOTC special on the … Continued

Morning all, They say a week is a long time in politics. Let me tell you – it can be a long time in think-tanks too. TOTC readers will be familiar with Torsten’s tirades against anti-politics over the years, and those sentiments have followed their logical conclusion as he seeks elected office. We wish him … Continued

Afternoon all, Big news coming on the economic front next week: unless something goes awry inflation should fall to within touching distance of the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target when April’s consumer prices data comes out on Wednesday (the Bank’s own forecast is 2.1 per cent). It’s a big landmark after a long … Continued

Afternoon all, Feeling pretty perky today. There’s the exiting the recession thing, which is good. But better, the weather recovery is at last underway, as we exit 2024’s never ending winter. This week has been genuinely pleasant, so the voters weather gods better not take us back to square one. Especially as I’ve missed most of the fun … Continued

Afternoon all, I for one am shocked that the party that is 20 points ahead in the polls has done well, and the one that is 20 points behind has taken a kicking. No-one could have seen this coming, so it’s lucky thousands of words are now going to get written to help us understand … Continued

Morning all, It’s been an expensive week for HM Treasury. There’s the PM’s pledge to raise defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP, putting the peace dividend that has seen military spending shrink from 7 per cent of GDP in 1948 to a bit over 2 per cent today into partial reverse. That dividend … Continued

Afternoon all, Glad to be back. And dried out from Devon. It might not have been Dubai level sogginess but it wasn’t far off. I’m feeling better disposed towards Hampshire and Sussex which delivered three days of walking/camping along the South Downs Way last weekend without a single drop of rain – luckily, because I … Continued

Morning all, Happy Easter to those of you celebrating consuming chocolate. You know what’s even more exciting than milk chocolate bunnies? Celebrating the start of the new year fiscally speaking. This is what living your best life is really about people. In fact, make that ‘new years’ plural, because next week you get to enjoy the arrival … Continued