Living standards· Inequality & poverty How unequal is the UK – and should we care? 8 November 2017 by David Willetts David Willetts’s slides from the Royal Statistical Society Cathie Marsh Lecture, exploring recent trends in UK living standards and inequality, specifically inequality between generations and between graduates and non-graduates. READ MORE
Pay· Living Wage Calculating a Living Wage for London and the rest of the UK 6 November 2017 by Conor D’Arcy and David Finch 2017/18 saw a rise in the minimum wage rate to £8.75 in the UK. We set out a method for determining the independently-calculated Living Wage rates in London and the UK. This comes at a time when crucial policy changes put upward pressure on the Living Wage rates. READ MORE
Welfare Universal Remedy: ensuring Universal Credit is fit for purpose 31 October 2017 by David Finch and Daniel Tomlinson and Mike Brewer As Universal Credit’s rollout continues, this report sets out ways in which the payment can be reformed to make it fit for purpose. We look both at design problems, such as the six-week wait, and issues with UC’s adequacy compared to the tax credit system it replaces. READ MORE
Low pay· Labour market· Pay· Cities and regions ‘A-typical’ working day in Greater Manchester 25 October 2017 by Stephen Clarke Greater Manchester has experienced a growth in ‘a-typical’ work in recent years, with implications for pay and progression. In this briefing, we explore the labour market performance of Greater Manchester over recent years, comparing it to other city regions over time. READ MORE
Low pay· Pay The Great Escape? Low pay and progression in the UK’s labour market 19 October 2017 by Conor D’Arcy and David Finch For most low-paid workers, poorly-paid positions are not acting as a first rung on the ladder: it is the only rung. Of all those low paid in 2006 by 2016 only one in six people managed to escape low pay. READ MORE
Labour Market Outlook· Labour market· Pay Earnings Outlook Q2 2017 18 October 2017 by Stephen Clarke This Earnings Outlook looks at the second quarter of 2017. This was a period in which we saw the best and worst of the UK labour market. On the one hand, compared to a year earlier real pay fell by 0.5 per cent; yet on the other hand the unemployment rate hit a low not … Continued READ MORE
Brexit & trade· Economy and public finances· Economic growth Changing Lanes: The impact of different post-Brexit trading policies on the cost of living 17 October 2017 by Stephen Clarke and Ilona Serwicka and L. Alan Winters The issue of trade has returned to the frontline of British policy making and politics for the first time in 40 years, but little has been said about what the impact of changes in the UK’s trade regime could be on living standards. This paper aims to fill that gap by looking at what impact two “no deal” Brexit scenarios could have on prices and living standards. READ MORE
Low pay· Pay· Living Wage Low Pay Britain 2017 12 October 2017 by Conor D’Arcy Our annual look at low pay. In 2017 we found that the number in low hourly pay had fallen, driven by the higher minimum wage for those aged 25+. We also held focus groups with people in low pay, who highlighted several non-pay issues they faced at work, including a lack of control over working hours. READ MORE
Living standards· Prices & consumption· Intergenerational Centre Consuming forces: generational living standards measured through household consumption 30 September 2017 by Laura Gardiner and Donald Hirsch and Laura Valadez-Martinez This report sheds further light on living standards across generations by considering levels and patterns of expenditure for working-age households in detail. It explores changes over time for different age and income groups. READ MORE
Housing· Intergenerational Centre Home Affront: housing across the generations 20 September 2017 by Adam Corlett and Lindsay Judge In this, our 9th report for the Intergenerational Commission, we take on the hugely important topic of housing. We compare the housing outcomes achieved by different generations over the life course and assess the extent to which intergenerational inequalities exist when it comes to security, to affordability and to quality. We explore how the housing … Continued READ MORE
Housing· Intergenerational Centre· Political parties and elections The millennial bug: public attitudes on the living standards of different generations 9 September 2017 by Hannah Shrimpton and Gideon Skinner and Suzanne Hall Drawing on a new quantitative survey of over 2,000 British adults and a qualitative workshop involving members of different generations, this report explores the extent to which intergenerational living standards challenges are reflected in public perceptions. READ MORE
Labour market· Pay Get A Move On? The decline in regional job-to-job moves and its impact on productivity and pay 15 August 2017 by Stephen Clarke This briefing note looks at how economically-driven internal migration has changed in the UK over the past two decades. There has been a significant decline in the share of people moving region and employer since it reached a high at the turn of the millennium, partly this is cyclical, but it is also the result … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Inequality & poverty· Social mobility Diverse outcomes: living standards by ethnicity 7 August 2017 by Adam Corlett This briefing note looks at how typical household incomes have differed by ethnicity, given that around one fifth of the population self-report their ethnicity as something other than White British. While not an attempt to offer comprehensive analysis, we also explore some of the causes, including differences in the labour market, pointing to the need for further work. READ MORE
Incomes· Living standards· Inequality & poverty The living standards audit 2017 15 July 2017 by Adam Corlett and Daniel Tomlinson and Stephen Clarke In this report we provide the first comprehensive look at the living standards of UK households in the year leading up to the 2017 general election, as well as a detailed look at the trends in living standards over the previous two decades. The years since the financial crisis have been far from an easy … Continued READ MORE
Firms· Living standards· Productivity & industrial strategy· Cities and regions· Economic growth A rising tide lifts all boats? Advanced industries and their impact upon living standards 10 July 2017 by Stephen Clarke and Neil Lee Policy makers in Westminster, devolved administrations, cities and local authorities struggle with many of the same challenges. Encouraging economic growth is vital but so too is ensuring the prosperity created is evenly shared. After a long absence, industrial strategy is back on the agenda as a way of providing this inclusive growth. The cornerstone of … Continued READ MORE
Public spending· Economy and public finances Ending austerity? The priorities, price tags and practicalities for a government changing course on spending cuts 8 July 2017 by Matthew Whittaker Britain is seven years into a prolonged period of fiscal consolidation, in which constraints on public spending have been the central feature and are set to continue for some years to come. Following the general election there has been a significant debate about the extent to which the result – and the failure of the … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Skills· Brexit & trade· Migration Work in Brexit Britain: reshaping the nation’s labour market 7 July 2017 Almost a year after voting to leave the European Union the negotiations for the UK’s departure began on 19th June 2017. Those negotiations and the exact nature of the agreements they lead to will dominate British politics and policy making for the years ahead, but making a success of Brexit Britain is about far more … Continued READ MORE
Low pay· Labour market The minimum required? Minimum wages and the self-employed 4 July 2017 by Conor D’Arcy The minimum wage revolutionised the lower end of the UK’s labour market, protecting employees from exploitation. But the self-employed – now one in seven of the workforce – are not entitled to the minimum wage. With growing concerns over their earnings and conditions, particularly in the so-called gig economy, extending the minimum wage to some … Continued READ MORE
Labour Market Outlook· Labour market· Pay The RF Earnings Outlook Q1 2017 2 July 2017 by Stephen Clarke This Earnings Outlook looks at the first quarter of labour market data for 2017. This was a period when the pay squeeze returned with average weekly earnings falling by 0.4 per cent. This return is particularly unwelcome as average earnings are still 3.4 per cent below their pre-crisis peak. For Londoners and younger workers in … Continued READ MORE
Pensions & savings· Wealth & assets· Housing· Intergenerational Centre The generation of wealth: asset accumulation across and within cohorts 20 June 2017 by Conor D’Arcy and Laura Gardiner Family wealth in 21st Century Britain is huge and growing, rising from £9.9 trillion before the financial crisis to over £11 trillion in the most recent data – more than six times our national income. Significant increases have come from house price rises in the 1990s and 2000s, followed by major growth in private pension wealth more … Continued READ MORE
Labour market· Pensions & savings· Pay· Intergenerational Centre The pay deficit: measuring the effect of pension deficit payments on workers’ wages 22 May 2017 by Matthew Whittaker and Brian Bell Across the UK economy, the share of overall employee compensation accounted for by non-wage elements such as employer pension contributions has increased substantially since 2000. This increase was driven in no small part by increased payments by employers to plug defined benefit deficits and coincided with a marked pre-crisis slowdown in pay growth, causing speculation … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Welfare· Political parties and elections Still just about managing? Pre-election briefing on the main political parties’ welfare policies 21 May 2017 by David Finch Our pre-election series of briefing notes have so far centred on the main parties’ approaches to deficit reduction and to tax. To complete the fiscal ‘set’ we must also consider their take on welfare. This note explores future welfare challenges for an incoming government and examines the extent to which the differing party commitments might … Continued READ MORE
Tax· Political parties and elections A matter of tax: pre-election briefing on the main parties’ tax policies 16 May 2017 by Adam Corlett There is much that is unusual about the 2017 general election, from its surprise announcement to the dominance of a single issue – Brexit – on which the parties themselves remain split. Particularly remarkable is the extent to which the tax debate has so far focused more on options for tax rises rather than tax … Continued READ MORE
Public spending· Economy and public finances· Political parties and elections The deficit the election forgot? Pre-election briefing on the main parties’ fiscal positions 11 May 2017 by Adam Corlett and Matthew Whittaker While the deficit remains in place, it is heading back to the sort of level relative to the size of the economy that past generations have been comfortable with. With the process of fiscal consolidation dominating so much of the political discourse in recent years it’s unlikely that many voters will be lamenting a dialling … Continued READ MORE
Living standards· Intergenerational Centre A mid-life less ordinary? Characteristics and incomes of low-to-middle income households age 50 to State Pension age 3 May 2017 by David Finch and Helena Rose This report provides an insight into the financial situation of those older low to middle income households highlighting the living standards challenges they face, some unique to this group but others shared by all working-age households. In doing so it aims to provide better understanding of the characteristics of older low to middle income families … Continued READ MORE
