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Latest Posts
‘Absurd’ to read significance into today’s GDP revision, says ONS
The UK economy did not enter a double dip recession at the beginning of 2012, according to new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Mixed reaction to Spending Review across the nations
Across the nations the chancellor’s spending review has received a mixed reaction to say the very least.
Osborne’s budget gift to payday lenders
We’ve a gaffe-prone chancellor in George Osborne: before it was the 4×4 in the disabled parking space, then it was the fine for not having a first class ticket. Now he’s caught out by The Sun for eating a “posh burger”.
Health ringfence is not enough to protect the NHS
Health spending has always been a public priority: PwC recently found that 67 per cent of people support protecting the NHS – up from 58 per cent in 2010.
Jobseeker’s Allowance changes will not help more people into work
We were anticipating the announcement about a cap on Annually Managed Expenditure (AME) spending for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). This accounts for a huge lump of government spending overall – much of the rest of the savings are tinkering by comparison.
Channel 4 highlights Osborne’s ‘grossly misleading claims on investment’
Faisal Islam at Channel 4 Factcheck claims to have witnessed “the most egregious statistical chicanery…in a Treasury fiscal event in 13 years of covering economics for newspapers and TV”.
Spending Review: Osborne to take 10 years to simply get back to 2007/08
Considering the government likes to throw every question they are asked in the chamber back at Labour – i.e. “we’re clearing up the mess left by the last government” – it’s strange how, going by the projections released along with today’s spending review, it’s going to take until 2017/18 for the Tories to be back where the Labour government was in 2007-2008.
Spending Review: All in it together? Not according to the data
During his Spending Review speech George Osborne made much of the fairness of his announcements. He also repeated what has now become a cringing cliche: that we are “all in it together”.
Those departmental cuts in full
Those departmental cuts in full
Spending Review: George Osborne’s pensions conundrum
The government – correction, any future government – is facing an increasing conundrum over what to do about pensions. Despite the hoo ha over today’s Spending Review, the announcements the chancellor will make today will only apply to a small proportion of total spending.