Private rents are soaring: is it time the state stepped in?
Market fundamentalists say to leave the market, it will fix itself – but that experiment has been tried and it has failed. We need more statecraft to fix the problem.
Carl Packman
Website Carl is a health researcher; he writes book reviews for Left Foot Forward. Carl has written for the Guardian, New Statesman, Tribune Magazine, and The Philosopher's Magazine and blogs regularly at Though Cowards Flinch and Liberal Conspiracy. He is currently writing a book on consumer debt.
The video of James Foley is an escalation: what should the UK response be?
With last year’s vote on Syria in mind there will be a lot of attention given to what the Labour response will be – while we need caution and reflection, the response from the Labour party must reflect the severity of the situation now.
What Philip Hammond ought to tell the Ecuadorian foreign minister about Assange
The Ecuadorian foreign minister wants to talk to Philip Hammond about Julian Assange – this is what our foreign minister should tell him.
MPs demand bank explanation over fake letters
The infamous Wonga letters have highlighted similar practices by larger companies.
The FCA cap on payday loans: acting where the market has failed
The proposed cap means that if someone pays back a £100 loan within 30 days they would pay a maximum of £24 in charges.
Complaints against payday lenders double in a year
But it could be just the tip of the iceberg, says Financial Ombudsman Service.
Wonga has been caught out. But why didn’t the regulator act earlier?
If the regulator had been firmer before then some borrowers might not have been treated unfairly.
Training for young people is a good move, but Labour should be asking more of employers
Without reference to how Labour intends to bring about good growth there is little point talking about training.
The criticism of criminalising forced marriage overstates the case
Changes to the law show the UK is serious about calling time on forced marriage.
The number of people in debt to payday lenders continues to grow
Householders are still relying on the most expensive types of loan, new figures suggest.