Analysis and action on living standards
The impact of five years of high inflation on living standards
This briefing note examines how England taxes residential property and sets out a roadmap for replacing Council Tax and Stamp Duty with a system that is fairer, more efficient, and does not penalise the parts of the country where house prices have risen least. Housing taxes matter. The UK raises more from property taxes than any other OECD country: 3.7 per cent of GDP in 2023 against an OECD average of 2 per cent. But we raise that money badly
The Resolution Foundation is an independent think-tank dedicated to lifting living standards in the UK. We focus particularly on households with low and middle incomes; those on low pay or in precarious work; and those vulnerable to financial shocks.
Local Housing Allowance (LHA), which caps how much support is provided through the social security system to low-income private renters, was last relinked to the 30th percentile of rents in April 2024, and has been frozen in cash terms ever since. But private rents have risen considerably since then.
This report assesses the potential for clean industries to deliver local economic growth by zooming in on two areas with a genuine reason for thinking they can benefit from the transition to green energy: Aberdeen and Grimsby.
The Resolution Foundation calculates the real Living Wage – a voluntary hourly pay rate that is based on what families need to get by. The current national rate is:
Explore our interactive housing indicators or read about our alternative estimate of UK employment.
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Resolution Ventures exists to back innovative start-ups seeking to change the world of work for the better, and early-stage ventures seeking to improve the prospects of low-to-middle income Britain.
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