Analysis and action on living standards
Why Britain is stuck in a fiscal funk and how we can break free
This briefing note examines the UK’s public financial institutions – affectionately nicknamed the ‘PuFins’ – and asks whether they could help the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, square his commitment to the existing fiscal rules with his promise of a higher-investment economy. In a little over a decade, successive governments have built – and rebuilt – a set of institutions that use public money to provide loans, equity investments and guarantees to the private sector. These bodies have moved towards the centre of economic policy as demand for a larger government role in boosting investment has grown – driven by the UK’s departure from the European Investment Bank, a renewed focus on industrial policy, and greater recognition of the UK’s chronic underinvestment.
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.
This briefing note – the third in a series on precarious work supported by Unbound Philanthropy – examines the balance of informal power between workers and employers in the cleaning, hospitality and warehousing sectors, drawing on a new survey of 2,000 workers and in-depth interviews.
This briefing note unpacks the UK’s export performance in the decade since the Brexit vote. In the five years since 2019, the period in which Britain formally left the EU, UK exports have tilted from goods towards services about three times faster than before. Worryingly, this reflects weakness in goods – with the UK experiencing the largest fall in goods exports in the G7 – rather than strength in services.
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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