Coronavirus· Living standards Covid-compressed incomes? The past, present and future of crisis-hit living standards UpcomingTuesday 21 July 2020 Live interactive webinar. Register to receive access link The coronavirus public health crisis has prompted the biggest economic downturn in a century, the sharpest rise in benefit claims since records began, and a £190 billion policy response. These are big numbers and stark records, but what do they all amount to for the economic measure … Continued SIGN UP
Where next? Trade wars, class wars and globalisation Thursday 9 July 2020 Live interactive webinar to launch new book ‘Trade Wars are Class Wars’ by Matthew C. Klein. While the first decade of the 21st century was marked by the seemingly unstoppable march of rising trade flows and globalisation, the last decade – and the last few years in particular – have been marked by trade disputes … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Living standards· Budgets & fiscal events· Economy and public finances The real deal A recovery plan for Britain’s economy Tuesday 7 July 2020 Following a quickfire presentation of a major new RF report on how to support the recovery, we will be hearing the views of Shadow Business Secretary Ed Miliband and former Conservative Cabinet Minister Amber Rudd on the critical question of the recovery. READ MORE
Coronavirus· Jobs· Labour market· Job quality and security The full monty Facing up to the scale of the COVID-19 jobs crisis Monday 29 June 2020 The Foundation will present highlights from a major new report into the nature of our jobs crisis and recommendations for how policy makers should respond, before we hear from leading experts on how to tackle high unemployment. READ MORE
Living standards· Household debt· Pensions & savings· Wealth & assets Weathering the storm How wealth shapes the ability of families to face this economic crisis Monday 22 June 2020 Individual wealth has grown significantly in recent decades, increasing from three- to nearly seven-times GDP since the 1980s. However, neither policy nor politics have kept pace with the scale of this change. The Resolution Foundation has joined the Standard Life Foundation to embark on the three-year project which audits wealth in the UK, helping us … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Living standards· Economy and public finances· Economic growth Building a nation to belong to Preparing for a new post-pandemic economy Thursday 11 June 2020 Live interactive webinar to launch new book ‘The economics of belonging’ by Martin Sandbu. Register to receive access link. In just over a decade, the UK has been hit by two major global recessions with, for too many, little recovery in between. This has exposed long building political, economic and cultural divides – divides that … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Low pay· Pay From loud claps to hard cash A new settlement for Britain’s low-paid workers Wednesday 3 June 2020 Low-paid workers have borne the brunt of Britain’s economic crisis. Almost one in three have been furloughed or lost their jobs completely, while many of those continuing to work have risked their lives in doing so. We clap many of our low-paid workers every Thursday. But gratitude alone won’t pay the bills or ensure they … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Universal Credit· Welfare The safety net in action? Universal Credit’s role in the crisis and the recovery Wednesday 27 May 2020 Universal Credit (UC) has been rolled-out very slowly since 2015. But that all changed when coronavirus struck. Since mid-March over two million new claims have been made, a surge far in excess of anything experienced during the financial crisis. UC is the UK’s primary safety-net benefit, but this is the first time it has been … Continued READ MORE
Incomes· Inequality & poverty· Wealth & assets The hidden rise (and fall?) of the Top 1% Live online panel discussion Thursday 21 May 2020 For decades the incomes of the Top 1 per cent pulled away from the rest of society, before crashing back down in the 2008 financial crisis. But what has happened since then? Unfortunately, data on the incomes of the very rich often does a bad job of assessing how much they really receive, with capital … Continued READ MORE
Furloughing vs food stamps Comparing the UK and US responses to the corona crisis Tuesday 12 May 2020 When it comes to the labour market, the UK has long been said to have more in common with its cousin across the Atlantic than its neighbours across the Channel. But by adopting a Job Retention Scheme, in which the state is paying the wages of over six million private sector employees, the UK has … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Intergenerational Centre The corona class of 2020 How to support young people leaving education amid the crisis Monday 11 May 2020 Economic downturns can affect anyone’s job prospects, but history shows that young people are the worst hit. This is especially true for those who have the misfortune to leave education during a crisis – their pay levels and career prospects can remain scarred many years after the storm has passed. What are the challenges facing … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Economy and public finances· Macroeconomic policy An economic battleplan Assessing the design and delivery of Britain’s COVID-19 response Thursday 30 April 2020 Faced with an unprecedented economic crisis, the Government and the Bank of England have announced an unprecedented package of support measures – from business loans and more generous benefits, to paying the wages of a huge proportion of the private sector workforce. This bold action is costly but necessary – and more will be required … Continued READ MORE
Coronavirus· Public spending· Fiscal policy· Economy and public finances The corona crisis The economic impact of COVID-19 Thursday 16 April 2020 The coronavirus public health crisis has quickly turned into an economic crisis. The necessary social distancing measures have closed down huge swathes of the UK economy, while the Government has committed hundreds of billions of pounds to supporting firms and workers through the downturn. Amid huge uncertainty about the scale and duration of the crisis, it is crucial that … Continued READ MORE
Big bangs for big bucks Making a success of the Budget’s £100bn infrastructure plan Wednesday 4 March 2020 Wednesday 4 March, 9.30-10.45am, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster The government wants to make ‘levelling up’ the country its defining mission – and it’s first big tool for making that happen will come at the Budget with the Chancellor expected to announce up to £100 billion of new capital spending. Our national infrastructure needs updating, our … Continued READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events Blowing the Budget? The Resolution Foundation's pre-Budget report Monday 24 February 2020 The first Budget of a new parliament is always important as it frames the government’s economic agenda for the rest of the term. And the upcoming Budget is set to be big not just in political strategy terms, but in hard cash too – with £100bn of new capital spending expected to support the government’s … Continued READ MORE
Patrolling a ‘tight’ labour market The future of enforcing employment protections Thursday 13 February 2020 Thursday 13 February, 9.30-10.45am, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster A successful labour market needs to deliver on quantity and quality, creating a virtuous circle of better work and pay for everyone. The task facing policy makers is to set the rules of the labour market to make that a reality – and to ensure those rules … Continued READ MORE
New Decade, New Politics How should the Conservatives and Labour navigate the 2020s? Thursday 6 February 2020 Wednesday 29 January, 9.30-10.45am and Thursday 6 February, 9.30-10.45am, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster The 2010s was a tumultuous decade for politics, featuring four elections and three referendums, all under the long shadow of the global financial crisis. As we begin a new decade, the political landscape has completely changed – with the first strong government … Continued READ MORE
Working for your poverty Does work provide a reliable escape route from poverty? Tuesday 4 February 2020 Tuesday 4 February, 9.30-10.45am, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster Employment is at a record high, but working poverty has also risen across the UK – with two in three children living in poverty living in working households. Understanding why this is the case – and how it can be changed – is a critical question for … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Housing Round the houses Will the new decade have any answers to the old question of Britain’s housing crisis? Thursday 30 January 2020 To mark the first edition of its new quarterly housing report, the Resolution Foundation will present new research on a decade of changes in housing, and the consequences for living standards today. An expert panel will join to discuss the issues. READ MORE
Right here, right now Assessing Universal Credit in policy and practice Tuesday 21 January 2020 Tuesday 21 January 10-11.15am, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster The decade-long roll-out of Universal Credit (UC) is at a critical juncture. This parliament, rather than the last one, will see the majority of people moving onto the benefit. Around seven million families across the UK will be receiving UC by 2024, following the final stage of … Continued READ MORE
Jobs· Labour market· Job quality and security· Low pay· Pay· Economic growth Working Britain What does 2020 have in store for job prospects and pay packets? Friday 10 January 2020 Friday 10 January 2019, 9.30-10.45am, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster 2019 was a good year for the labour market – the area of the economy that matters most to households. Employment reached a new record high, while pay growth finally approached pre-crisis levels. The strong performance of the UK labour market is all the more remarkable … Continued READ MORE
Public spending· Economy and public finances· Economic growth The Economic Outlook for 2020 and beyond Speech by MPC member Jonathan Haskel Friday 20 December 2019 Friday 20 December, 11am-12pm, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster The UK is about enter a new year, and a new decade, amid widespread economic uncertainty at home and abroad. Understanding the unique pressures facing the UK, and how our economy is influenced by wider economic trends, will be cruciall for policy makers as we enter a … Continued READ MORE
Political parties and elections Election dissection Analysing General Election 2019 Friday 13 December 2019 Friday 13 December, 12.15-1.30pm, Resolution Foundation offices, Westminster On 12 December 2019 the UK had its third General Election in four years. After weeks and months of speculation, by lunchtime on Friday 13 December we had the results. But big questions remained. How – and where – was the election won and lost? What does … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Tax· Welfare· Political parties and elections The choice facing Britain: What the manifestos reveal Thursday 28 November 2019 The manifestos have been published and the soundbites crafted – now the parties have only a few weeks left to make them land with voters. A few common themes have emerged: austerity is off and the spending taps are on, but there are big differences between the parties in terms of the size and role … Continued READ MORE
Economy and public finances· Welfare· Political parties and elections Beveridge mark II? The future of social security Tuesday 26 November 2019 From a new ‘triple-locked’ state pension to big welfare cuts for young families and the roll-out of the Universal Credit, no area of the state has undergone such a radical transformation over the past decade as social security. That transformation is set to continue in the next parliament too, as Universal Credit is extended to … Continued READ MORE
