IFS Zooms In: The Economy

Ageing populations, rising care costs and COVID-19 have placed significant strain on an already struggling social care sector. Since assuming office in 2019, the Prime Minister has repeatedly promised to present a comprehensive plan to reform social care, the latest in a long line of governments to promise to tackle the issue.So, how should we think about reforming social care? How should we pay for it? And what can we learn from other countries?This week Paul speaks with Andrew Dilnot, Warden of Nuffield College Oxford and author of the Dilnot Report on Social Care, set up under David Cameron's coalition government, and Natasha Curry, Deputy Director of Policy at the Nuffield Trust and expert on social care.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the pandemic, the Treasury has spent hundreds of billions of pounds, from paying wages via the furlough scheme to funding the testing program. But how does decision-making work at the Treasury? What kinds of evidence do officials use? And as we hopefully exit the pandemic, what will be on the minds of those working there?This week Paul speaks to Jill Rutter, senior research fellow of UK in a Changing Europe, and a former employee of the Treasury and Lord Nick Macpherson, Permanent Secretary to the Treasury from 2005 to 2016.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everybody over the age of 18 who lives in a property in the UK is eligible to pay council tax. It's the fifth largest tax, raising up to £40bn a year in the UK, and it pays for local services such as social care, waste collection and libraries.However, there is a widespread consensus that the implementation of council tax is flawed. The house prices it is based on haven't changed since 1991 despite 30 years of significant change in the housing market and these changes have made the tax regressive.Joining us this week to dissect council tax and work out how we can reform it are David Phillips, Associate Director at IFS and local government expert, and John Stevenson, the Conservative MP for Carlisle who has written extensively about reforming council tax. Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

'Stay home. Protect the NHS. Save lives.'More than ever, the COVID crisis has bought the NHS and the vital role it plays to the fore. However, after more than a year of unprecedented pressure, it faces long waiting lists, staffing shortages and inadequate funding. What challenges will the NHS face in the future? How can it tackle these issues? And what can government do to help? Joining us this week are George Stoye, IFS Associate Director who leads our work on healthcare, and Saffron Cordery, Deputy Chief Executive of NHS Providers, the membership organisation for NHS trusts.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In September 1999, Tony Blair set a goal for 50% of young adults to attend higher education institutions in the UK. In 2019, twenty years after the policy was announced, university attendance tipped over the 50% threshold.However, in a world where many graduates work in non-graduate jobs, and where successive governments seek to develop further education in the UK, many have questioned the wisdom of this policy.This week, we speak with Jack Britton, IFS education expert, and Professor Alison Wolf, Sir Roy Griffiths Professor of Public Sector Management at Kings College London, to find out whether too many people are going to university.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since the start of the COVID pandemic, the government has stepped in to pay the wages of millions of workers through the furlough scheme. As restrictions ease, and economic life begins to recover, we ask what changes COVID brought to the labour market, and what jobs could look like in future.This week, we speak with Sarah O'Connor, Employment Columnist at the Financial Times, and Jonathan Cribb, a Senior Research Economist at IFS who studies the labour market.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Business rates are charged on non-domestic properties, such as shops, offices, pubs, factories and warehouses, and raise around 3% government's revenue.At the start of the COVID pandemic, the government waived business rates for most businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors. But the tax will start again from summer. As the high street reopens, we ask what effect business rates have on our high streets, whether they should be reformed, and whether we need a new tax on online retail to level the playing field.This week, we speak with Helen Miller, IFS tax expert, and Helen Dickinson, CEO of the British Retail Consortium.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The COVID-19 crisis has brought to the fore increasing concerns about inequalities not only between different population groups – such as the gap between the rich and poor, young and old, and different ethnic groups – but also between people living in different places.Even prior to the crisis though, there was a sense that the UK is not only a highly geographically unequal country, but also an increasingly geographically unequal one.This week, we have gone into the archive to bring you an episode from last year exploring geographical inequalities with David Phillips, Associate Director at IFS and an expert on devolved and local government finance.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the past decade, the UK has seen some of the slowest rates of productivity growth of the OECD countries, with output per hour and real wages no higher today than they were prior to the global financial crisis. Why is a high-tech, developed economy like the UK struggling to be more productive? What policies can government implement to get productivity growing again? And how can we spur innovation while also tackling issues like inequality?This week, we speak to John Van Reenen, Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics, and expert on innovation, firms and productivity.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Universal Credit is a benefit for working-age people, which combines six existing benefits payments into one payment. Launched in 2013, there are now about 5 million households claiming Universal Credit in the UK. What was the thinking behind this new policy? Has it been successful? And how has COVID affected the trajectory of Universal Credit?This week, Paul speaks with Charlotte Pickles, Director of Reform and a member of the Social Security Advisory Committee, and Tom Waters, Senior Research Economist at IFS and expert on benefits.Support the IFS: https://www.ifs.org.uk/about/membership/individual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.