Economy 2030 A tale of two cities (part 2) A plausible strategy for productivity growth in Greater Manchester and beyond 19 September 2023 by Paul Brandily and Mike Brewer and Nye Cominetti and Adam Corlett and Lindsay Judge and Felicia Odamtten and Henry G. Overman and Cara Pacitti and Krishan Shah and Lalitha Try Few would disagree that the UK has a significant productivity problem, or fail to recognise that the poor performance of the nation’s largest cities outside the capital contribute to that situation. As the Economy 2030 Inquiry has made clear, the productivity of our largest cities lags the UK average, bucking the global trend for bigger … Continued READ MORE
Economy 2030 A tale of two cities (part 1) A plausible strategy for productivity growth in Birmingham and beyond 14 September 2023 by Paul Brandily and Mike Brewer and Nye Cominetti and Adam Corlett and Lindsay Judge and Felicia Odamtten and Henry G. Overman and Cara Pacitti and Krishan Shah and Lalitha Try After the success of the Commonwealth games in 2022, Birmingham is now in the news for the wrong reasons. Financial difficulties facing the City Council culminated in a formal declaration on 5 September 2023 that Britain’s largest local authority was, in effect, bankrupt. But the understandable short-term focus on the council’s financial woes must not … Continued READ MORE
Labour market enforcement· Labour market Enforce for good Effectively enforcing labour market rights in the 2020s and beyond 25 April 2023 by Lindsay Judge and Hannah Slaughter This report concludes a four-year work programme at the Resolution Foundation supported by Unbound Philanthropy exploring the what, why and how of labour market enforcement. We bring together data and qualitative analysis with five cross-country studies to show how we could do better in the UK when it comes to enforcing labour market rights. READ MORE
Economy 2030· Net zero Hitting a brick wall How the UK can upgrade its housing stock to reduce energy bills and cut carbon 12 December 2022 by Asaad Anis-Alavi and Lindsay Judge and Jonathan Marshall and Charlie McCurdy and Daniel Tomlinson This briefing note considers how policy makers should square up to one the hardest part of the net zero challenge: insulating the nation’s homes. It highlights an overlooked problem, the 9 million walls that need insulating at considerable costs, and proposes a series of new regulations to ensure progress is made by 2035, lowering carbon emissions and cutting energy bills in the process. READ MORE
Monetary policy· Housing Interesting times Assessing the impact of rising interest rates on mortgagors’ living standards 15 October 2022 by Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie and Krishan Shah R. I. P. low interest rates: the cost of borrowing is seriously on the rise. Inflationary pressures in the economy have been pushing interest rates up for some time, and events since the Government’s mini-budget in September increased market expectations of how high interest rates will rise, and brought forward the date at which they … Continued READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events· Economy and public finances Blowing the budget Assessing the implications of the September 2022 fiscal statement 24 September 2022 by Torsten Bell and Molly Broome and Nye Cominetti and Adam Corlett and Emily Fry and Karl Handscomb and Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie and Louise Murphy and Krishan Shah and Hannah Slaughter and James Smith and Greg Thwaites and Lalitha Try The Chancellor decided to blow the budget in his first fiscal statement, bringing forward a £45 billion package of tax cuts, the biggest for 50 years. In this briefing note, we show that today’s Government is no longer fiscally conservative nor courting the Red Wall. Instead, debt is on course to rise in each and every year of the forecast period, and the focus has shifted to the South of England, where the beneficiaries of these tax cuts are more likely to be living. READ MORE
Economy 2030 Income outcomes Assessing income gaps between places across the UK 27 June 2022 by Lindsay Judge and Charlie McCurdy This briefing note uses a relatively under-exploited source of data to analyse how average incomes at the local authority level have changed since 1997. It provides a more complete view of income gaps across the country than has been possible to date, a vital input to the Economy 2030 Inquiry as it seeks to answer the question: how can a new economic strategy address the spatial disparities that have beset the UK for so long? READ MORE
Economy 2030· Cities and regions All over the place Perspectives on local economic prosperity 7 June 2022 by Lindsay Judge and Daniel Tomlinson The place where one is born, educated and works can have a profound bearing on one’s living standards. But how do people who live in different types of places experience their local area and want it to change? In April 2022, we ran four focus groups in Yorkshire and the Humber to explore this question. … Continued READ MORE
Economy 2030 Listen up Individual experiences of work, consumption and society 11 May 2022 by Karl Handscomb and Lindsay Judge and Hannah Slaughter What economic strategy should the UK pursue over the next decade, in order both to address long-standing problems in the country (stagnating living standards and high inequality) and to navigate ongoing change (Brexit, net zero transition and a post-pandemic world)? The Economy 2030 Inquiry is a two-year collaboration between the Resolution Foundation and the Centre … Continued READ MORE
Net zero· Housing Housing Outlook Q2 2022 30 April 2022 by Lindsay Judge and Jonathan Marshall In this Housing Outlook we investigate what the warming world means for England’s housing stock and for the families living in these homes. READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events· Public spending· Economy and public finances Inflation Nation Putting Spring Statement 2022 in context 24 March 2022 by Torsten Bell and Mike Brewer and Adam Corlett and Sophie Hale and Karl Handscomb and Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie and Jonathan Marshall and Louise Murphy and Krishan Shah and James Smith and Hannah Slaughter and Greg Thwaites This briefing note provides an assessment of the measures announced in the March 2022 Spring Statement. The Chancellor approached this with the highest inflation in 40 years and the worst income squeeze on record lying ahead of us. Against that backdrop, and with plenty of fiscal ammunition (thanks to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR’s) … Continued READ MORE
Public spending· Prices & consumption· Inequality & poverty· Economy and public finances The price is right? The April 2022 energy price rise and the Government’s response 4 February 2022 by Adam Corlett and Karl Handscomb and Lindsay Judge and James Smith The Government has opted for universalism and minimising the hit to the public purse in its response to the energy price rise yesterday. The announced measures take the sting out of Ofgem’s £693 rise in the energy price cap in April with a broad-based package of support. All households will get a £200 discount on … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Prices & consumption Higher and higher Averting a looming energy bill crisis 17 January 2022 by Adam Corlett and Lindsay Judge and Jonathan Marshall The higher energy price cap due to be introduced on April 1 will see energy costs jump by more than 50 per cent overnight. As a result, the share of English households experiencing ‘fuel stress’ (i.e. spending more than 10 per cent of their household budget on energy) will triple from 9 per cent to … Continued READ MORE
Housing Housing Outlook Q4 2021 The impact of higher inflation on social renters’ housing costs 22 December 2021 by Lindsay Judge and Felicia Odamtten and Krishan Shah Welcome to the final Housing Outlook of 2021.1 Times are tough for many at present, as prices rise and Omicron puts the UK’s tentative economic recovery in jeopardy. In this quarter’s spotlight we assess the living standards prospects of social renters, and in particular consider what soaring inflation means for their housing costs as they … Continued READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events· Economy and public finances The Boris Budget Resolution Foundation analysis of Autumn Budget and Spending Review 2021 28 October 2021 by Torsten Bell and Mike Brewer and Nye Cominetti and Karl Handscomb and Kathleen Henehan and Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie and Jonathan Marshall and Krishan Shah and James Smith and Daniel Tomlinson and Lalitha Try This briefing note provides an assessment of the measures announced in the October 2021 Budget and Spending Review. The Chancellor has unveiled a career-defining third Budget against a backdrop of heightened uncertainty and risks. His aim: to draw a line under Covid-19, boost spending in the key priority areas yet also bear down on the … Continued READ MORE
Intergenerational Centre An intergenerational audit for the UK 2021 21 October 2021 by Kathleen Henehan and Maja Gustafsson and Nye Cominetti and Karl Handscomb and Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie and Lalitha Try Our third Intergenerational Audit – supported by the Nuffield Foundation – provides an analysis of economic living standards across generations in Britain. In so doing, it analyses the latest data across four domains: Jobs, skills and pay Housing costs and security Taxes, benefits and household incomes Wealth and assets In each of these domains, we … Continued READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events· Public spending· Economy and public finances Nationally Insured? New taxes and new spending to address key Department for Health and Social Care priorities 8 September 2021 by Torsten Bell and Mike Brewer and Nye Cominetti and Lindsay Judge and Krishan Shah and Daniel Tomlinson and Lalitha Try This note assesses the announcements made by the Government on the suspension of the Triple Lock, National Insurance rises, health and social care funding, and public spending totals for the rest of this Parliament made on 7 September 2021. READ MORE
Housing Housing Outlook Q3 2021 The effect of transaction tax holidays on house prices 21 August 2021 by Lindsay Judge and Felicia Odamtten and Krishan Shah Welcome to Housing Outlook Q3 2021. In this spotlight we turn our attention once again to the uncanny performance of house prices over the past year. In particular, we focus on the effect of transaction tax holidays across the UK. Introduced to stimulate the housing market in July last year, the Scottish and Welsh transaction … Continued READ MORE
Wealth & assets· Housing· Intergenerational Centre Stakes and ladders The costs and benefits of buying a first home over the generations 26 June 2021 by Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie Today’s young people often point bitterly to the lower house prices their parents and grandparents paid, while those from older generations look jealously at the low interest rates that first-time buyers now enjoy. So, who has really had the better deal? In this briefing note we assess the costs and benefits of buying one’s first home over the generations. READ MORE
Housing Housing Outlook Q2 2021 The impact of Covid-19 on housing demand across the UK 1 May 2021 by Lindsay Judge and Cara Pacitti In Housing Outlook this quarter, we consider how Covid-19 has affected housing demand across the UK. In the absence of good rental data, we look below the surface of rising house prices, and consider the impact of home working and lockdowns, as well as Government policy, on housing preferences. Studies for the US suggest that … Continued READ MORE
Budgets & fiscal events· Economy and public finances Spending fast, taxing slow Resolution Foundation analysis of Budget 2021 4 March 2021 by Torsten Bell and Mike Brewer and Nye Cominetti and Karl Handscomb and Kathleen Henehan and Lindsay Judge and Jack Leslie and Charlie McCurdy and Cara Pacitti and Hannah Slaughter and James Smith and Greg Thwaites and Daniel Tomlinson This briefing note provides an assessment of the measures announced in the March 2021 Budget. The context for this Budget was an intensification of the Covid-19 pandemic, creating a need for further policy measures to support families and firms in the months before the completion of the vaccine rollout. In response, the Chancellor announced significant … Continued READ MORE
Covid-19· Housing Getting ahead on falling behind Tackling the UK’s building arrears crisis 16 February 2021 by Lindsay Judge This briefing note examines how families have managed their housing costs over the Covid-19 period. Although the Government has done much to support families over the past year (not least via the furlough scheme and the £20 per week uplift to UC), it is clear that financial strain has grown as the pandemic has worn … Continued READ MORE
Housing Housing Outlook Q1 2021 The Impact of Covid-19 on Housing Supply 2 February 2021 by Lindsay Judge and Cara Pacitti Welcome to Housing Outlook Q1 2021. In this Spotlight we consider the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on the supply of new housing. While construction sites have generally been allowed to operate throughout the pandemic, output was still severely constrained in the first half of 2020. While there was some pick up at the back … Continued READ MORE
Covid-19 Lockdown lessons What 2020 has to teach us about the difficult weeks ahead 5 January 2021 by Torsten Bell and Lindsay Judge 2021 begins with England and Scotland heading into new lockdowns, and tough ones at that. Lasting until at least late February, England’s new restrictions are more comparable to those of spring 2020 than the more relaxed autumn affairs. In this short note we focus on the experience of that first lockdown, and what it can … Continued READ MORE
Covid-19· Labour market enforcement· Labour market· Brexit & trade· Migration Home and away The UK labour market in a post-Brexit world 16 December 2020 by Kathleen Henehan and Lindsay Judge This briefing note considers a number of ways in which the labour market could be affected as the UK moves to a tighter, post-Brexit immigration regime in January 2021. Under the new rules, legal avenues for low-skilled migrant workers to enter the UK will be more restrictively drawn, with implications for firms, resident foreign-born workers … Continued READ MORE
