In response to today’s new HMRC figures on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS), which show that 4.7 million workers were furloughed (either fully or partially) at the end of February this year, Daniel Tomlinson, Senior Economist at the Resolution Foundation, said: “4.7 million employees were furloughed at the end of last month, showing just … Continued

A difficult end to 2020 saw employment fall by 148,000, but the Job Retention Scheme has prevented an 7.9 per cent fall in hours worked feeding through into further job losses in early 2021, the Resolution Foundation said (today) in response to the latest labour market statistics. The employment rate fell by 0.3 per cent … Continued

Pay growth was far weaker and more volatile last year than official headline data suggests, with half of workers experiencing a year-on-year real-terms pay cut last Autumn, according to the Resolution Foundation’s latest quarterly Earnings Outlook published today (Monday). The latest Outlook examines what has really happened to pay packets during the pandemic last year, … Continued

The Covid-19 pandemic, twelve months on from the first lockdown on 23 March, has been marked by big successes on income support and vaccines, repeated failures on lockdown that have cost lives and deepened the economic crisis, and a legacy of inequality that needs to be addressed in the recovery, according to new Resolution Foundation … Continued

The Chancellor made the right judgement in yesterday’s bigger than expected Budget, by supporting the recovery in the next two years before turning to raising taxes in the middle of the decade – but he may have more work to do in order to plug gaps in support, tackle the living standards scarring from the … Continued

Businesses were at the centre of the Chancellor’s welcome £67bn extension of economic support over the next two years, but are also being asked to contribute most to bring the public finances into balance by the middle of this decade, with the largest rise in corporation tax for half a century, the Resolution Foundation said … Continued

Freezing the personal tax allowance at £12,500, and the higher rate threshold at £50,000, for the remainder of the parliament would raise £6bn a year by 2024-25, while protecting lower-income households that have been hardest hit by the crisis, the Resolution Foundation says today. With the Chancellor set to signal his commitment to balancing the … Continued

The Chancellor should combine a £30 billion extension of emergency Covid support with £70 billion of additional stimulus as part of a £100 billion Budget package to boost Britain’s economic recovery, according to a major new report published today (Thursday) by the Resolution Foundation. How to throw good money after good assesses the latest economic … Continued

  Firms are learning to live with lockdown restrictions, with payrolled employment actually increasing by 83,000 in January, but the crisis is taking its toll as young workers, who should be a priority for Government support, the Resolution Foundation said (today) in response to the latest labour market statistics. The Job Retention Scheme (JRS), currently estimated to … Continued

Almost two million workers were unemployed or fully furloughed in January – and had been for at least six months – highlighting the scale of lasting damage to the UK’s labour force that will need to be addressed in the Budget, according to major new research published today by the Resolution Foundation. Long Covid in … Continued

Press release from the Resolution Foundation Over 750,000 families are currently in arrears with their housing payments, and over half (450,000) of these families are likely to have fallen behind as a direct result of the Covid-19 crisis, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Tuesday). Getting ahead on falling behind – supported by … Continued

Almost one-in-seven (14 per cent) self-employed workers – equivalent to 700,000 workers across the UK – have stopped working entirely during the current lockdown (January) – a 50 per cent increase from the one-in-eleven (9 per cent) self-employed workers who stopped working during the first lockdown in May – according to a major new Resolution … Continued

Responding to the latest ONS GDP figures today (Friday), which show that the economy grew by 1.2 per cent in December, and by 1 per cent in the final three months of 2020, but fell by 9.9 per cent over 2020 as a whole (making it the biggest annual economic contraction since 1709), James Smith, Research … Continued

Unprecedented Government support has helped firms to increase their cash holdings during the current crisis, but further support will be needed in the Budget to ensure they can drive Britain’s recovery, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Wednesday). On firm ground? – the first of four Recovery Plan papers to be published by … Continued

Over three-in-ten people who have started claiming Universal Credit (UC) during the pandemic have either acquired new debts, or seen their existing debts grow, as the crisis enters its eleventh month, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Sunday). The debts that divide us – which includes analysis of a detailed online YouGov survey, … Continued

The Government looks set to fall far short of its Manifesto commitment on house building, with developers having built fewer than 100,000 homes during the first three quarters of 2020, and the sector facing headwinds in the coming year too, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Wednesday). Housing Outlook Q1 2021 examines the … Continued

Press release from the Resolution Foundation 4 million employees were furloughed in November and December Managing transition out of the furlough scheme will be key to keeping down unemployment The number of employees on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS) increased by 1.7 million between the end of October and mid-November to 4.1 million, according … Continued

Commenting on the public sector finance figures for December 2020, which saw borrowing of £34.1 billion – the highest December since monthly records began in 1993 – and the third-highest borrowing in any month, Charlie McCurdy, Researcher at the Resolution Foundation, said: “The fiscal cost of the Covid-19 crisis, nine months in, has pushed the … Continued

Commenting on the Department for Education’s Further Education white paper published this morning, Kathleen Henehan, Senior Research and Policy Analyst, said: “With unemployment rising, particularly among young people and those in lower-paid roles, now is the right time to ensure workers can boost their skills and gain new qualifications – and today’s announcement is a … Continued

The coming year is set to mark the peak of the pandemic-induced living standards downturn for households, especially those on lower incomes, even as the economy enjoys a vaccine-induced recovery, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Monday). While debate around the current economic crisis and recovery tends to focus on GDP, the annual Living … Continued

Commenting on the latest ONS GDP data for November 2020, which showed that the economic shrank by 2.6 per cent as England entered its second lockdown, leaving the economy 8.5 per cent below its pre-pandemic level, James Smith, Research Director of the Resolution Foundation, said:  “The sharp GDP fall in November as England entered its second … Continued

The extra cost of food, energy, and entertaining, distracting and home-schooling children has meant that low-income families with children are twice as likely to have increased, rather than reduced, their spending during the pandemic so far, according to new research published today (Monday). Pandemic Pressures – a collaboration between the Resolution Foundation and the Nuffield Foundation-funded … Continued

The ONS’ main data on wealth misses almost £800 billion of assets held by the wealthiest 1 per cent of households and correcting for this oversight means UK wealth inequality is higher than previously thought, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Sunday). The Missing Billions examines the scale and distribution of wealth across … Continued

Around 1 in 12 workers from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds work in the hospitality sector, but many of these workers face significant pay penalties compared to White British men, according to new Resolution Foundation research published today (Thursday). Ethnic minorities in the hospitality sector, authored by Sharon Mai, explores the experiences of … Continued

Press release from the Resolution Foundation Embargo – 00.01hrs Wednesday 23rd December 2020   Wealth gaps between different ethnic groups in Britain are large and likely to persist Stark gaps in the amount of wealth held by different ethnic groups in Britain – which have had a serious impact on the financial resilience of households … Continued