The UK’s tax relief bill has grown to a record £164bn in 2018-19 – underlining the need for greater scrutiny of these reliefs – the Resolution Foundation said today (Thursday) in response to the latest annual HMRC tax statistics. Resolution Foundation analysis shows that these reliefs, which amount to significantly more than the entire health … Continued

Home ownership rates rose across England (up 1 percentage point to 64 per cent), and even in London (up slightly to 48 per cent), last year (2017/18) – the Resolution Foundation said today (Thursday) in response to the English Housing Survey headline report. Despite the uptick, ownership rates remain well below their 2003 peak of … Continued

Britain’s labour market tightened further to deliver a record high on employment and a record low on economic inactivity, the Resolution Foundation said today in response to the latest ONS figures. Employment hit a new record high of 75.8 per cent in the three months to November, while economic inactivity hit a joint record low … Continued

Britain’s post-crisis jobs boom has particularly benefited low-income households and disadvantaged groups – though rising employment has been accompanied by higher job insecurity for young people in particular – according to a new report published today (Monday) by the Resolution Foundation. Setting the record straight explores how record employment levels have changed Britain since the … Continued

England has just 825 homes for every 1,000 families, following 20 years of its housing stock not keeping pace with demographic change, according to new analysis published today (Saturday) by the Resolution Foundation. The new findings categorically refute the argument that England does not have a housing shortage by showing that the ratio between housing … Continued

Commenting ahead of Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd’s speech on Universal Credit today (Friday), Torsten Bell, Director of the Resolution Foundation said: “This is a welcome package of reforms. While time will tell on the detail, charting a course of changes to Universal Credit so that it better fits the realities of families’ lives is … Continued

Tightening up five of Britain’s existing wealth taxes and subsidies could raise almost £7bn a year by 2022-23 – and provide a down payment on covering the £36bn a year increase in the cost of public services by 2030 – the Resolution Foundation says today (Thursday) in a new briefing note. The Foundation says that … Continued

Britain’s 1.9 million black, Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi employees are experiencing an annual pay penalty of £3.2bn according to new analysis published today (Thursday) by the Resolution Foundation.   The Foundation says that the scale of pay penalties facing BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) workers should prompt government action, including building on the success … Continued

Fewer than one in five young families own in Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham Home ownership rates for families aged 25-34 are rising for the first time in 30 years, but high barriers to entry facing first-time buyers remain acute, according to new analysis published today (Saturday) by the Resolution Foundation. The Foundation says that eased … Continued

Commenting on the ONS’s decision today (Monday) to change the accounting of student loans, Matt Whittaker, Deputy Director at the Resolution Foundation, said: “Today’s decision by the ONS to bring the cost of student loans onto the books when they are issued could have major implications for the government, despite reflecting an accountancy change rather … Continued

Commenting on the government’s reforms to the workplace announced today (Monday), which build on the recommendations of the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices, Lindsay Judge, Senior Policy Analyst at the Resolution Foundation said:  “With Britain seeing record employment levels the government is right to focus on raising the quality as well as quantity of work. … Continued

The ONS’ decision tomorrow (Monday) on how it treats student loans in the public finances could add £72bn to the government’s borrowing figures over the next five years, and virtually wipe out the Chancellor’s Brexit ‘deal dividend’, the Resolution Foundation says in a new briefing note published today (Sunday). The analysis shows that the result … Continued

Nominal pay growth rose to 3.3 per cent – with growth strongest in hospitality, real estate and ICT – and employment returned to a joint record high of 75.7 per cent as Britain’s labour market continued to shrug off wider uncertainty about the economy this Autumn, the Resolution Foundation said today (Tuesday) in response to … Continued

An improved technical education system has a key role in meeting Britain’s productivity challenge Commenting on the speech today (Thursday) by Secretary of State for Education Damian Hinds setting out his plans to reform Britain’s technical education system, David Willetts, Executive Chair at the Resolution Foundation, said: “The Education Secretary is right to highlight the … Continued

Young people whose parents have property wealth are now almost three times as likely to be homeowners by the age of 30, compared to those whose parents have no property wealth, according to a new report published today (Tuesday) by the Resolution Foundation. With the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ now considered to be a … Continued

Government should close equal pay loophole to help tackle £400 agency worker pay penalty New task-forces are needed in agency worker hotspots such as Barking and Dagenham, Leicester, Sandwell and North East Lincolnshire to target poor practice and shore up the positive aspects of agency employment, the Resolution Foundation says today (Saturday) in the final … Continued

Inflation (CPIH) remained at 2.4 per cent in October, but the underlying trends suggest that price pressures could ease in the coming months, the Resolution Foundation said today (Wednesday) in response to the latest figures. Over the past 20 months, persistently high inflation has eaten into real wages, and put a lid on any building … Continued

The UK labour market is already changing ahead of its exit from the EU as the number of EU migrant workers fell rapidly over the last year, the Resolution Foundation said today (Tuesday) in response to the latest labour market figures. The latest figures show that the number of EU migrant workers in Britain fell … Continued

Britain’s unprecedented pay downturn likely to end first in Scotland   Real average pay in Britain is on course to return to pre-crisis levels by the end of 2024, but could take far longer in parts of the country, according to the Resolution Foundation’s Earnings Outlook published today (Tuesday).   With the latest ONS labour … Continued

The welcome reforms to Universal Credit (UC) announced in the 2018 Budget mean that an additional 200,000 families will be better off under the new benefit system, compared to the old one. However, further changes are needed to prevent people getting stuck in low-paid, short-hours work, according to a new report published today (Monday) by … Continued

Commenting on the regulations laid down in parliament today (Monday) that will govern the final phase of the Universal Credit roll-out, David Finch, Senior Fellow at the Resolution Foundation, said: “The final phase of the Universal Credit roll-out, which will involve around two million families moving from one benefits system to another, is the biggest … Continued

Almost half of Budget 2018 income tax cuts are set to go to the top ten per cent of households The Chancellor set out a significant easing of austerity in a £55bn giveaway Budget yesterday that set out major increases in public service spending, tax cuts and a reversal of cuts to the generosity of … Continued

The Chancellor has used a cumulative £68bn borrowing windfall to significantly ease – but not end – austerity for the UK’s public services and deliver a welcome boost to low-income families on Universal Credit. Tough times still lie ahead however, the Resolution Foundation says in its analysis of the Budget today. The Foundation says that … Continued

In response to today’s ASHE data release from the ONS that showed real pay recovering in 2018, Stephen Clarke, Senior Economic Analyst at the Resolution Foundation said: “Following the squeeze of 2017, real pay growth returned in 2018. After inflation, typical weekly wages for all employees grew by 0.3 percent in the year to April. … Continued

Lower borrowing windfall could make Chancellor’s ‘mission impossible’ next Monday ‘just about plausible’ ‘Ending austerity’ will require £31bn of additional spending by 2022-23. However, a record borrowing forecast upgrade from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) will significantly ease –  though not solve – the Chancellor’s challenge next Monday, according to the Resolution Foundation’s pre-Budget … Continued