Economy
IMF verdict on the UK economy: the good, the bad, and the ugly
The International Monetary Fund published its long-awaited Ofsted report on the UK economy this afternoon. As usual, the written assessment contains enough to keep everyone on all sides of the… Continue reading
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Unemployment rises… or does it?
Today’s job statistics are, as usual, mixed — and even a touch confusing. Last month, the headline was that the unemployment had risen to 2.56 million. This month, we’re told… Continue reading
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Dominic Raab reveals Britain’s true debt burden
With the Conservative Party continuing to bang on relentlessly about Europe, Boris Johnson issued a timely reminder yesterday that ‘most of our problems are not caused by “Bwussels”’. (Something that… Continue reading
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Maria Miller and Britain’s creative industries need to talk
Everyone seems to like talking about the ‘creative industries’ these days. For arts folk, it gives the impression that what they do is hard-edged and economically viable, it makes geeky… Continue reading
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No triple-dip: GDP up by 0.3%
The UK seems to have avoided a triple-dip recession. According to today’s estimate from the Office for National Statistics, the economy grew by 0.3 per cent in the first three… Continue reading
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Deficit falls by 0.3%… maybe
George Osborne will be breathing a sigh of relief this morning. The boast he made in his Autumn Statement in December — ‘the deficit is coming down this year, and… Continue reading
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No, the Tory Detoxification Project is Not Complete.
There are times, I confess, when I wonder about politicians. They are a rum breed and it still seems possible to rise to quite elevated heights without possessing very much… Continue reading
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Has the jobs recovery stalled?
The number of people in work in December to February was 29.698 million — lower than last month’s 29.732 million and representing a very slight 2,000 quarter-on-quarter fall — according… Continue reading
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Is Andrew Mitchell the right man for Britain in Europe?
It now looks almost certain that Andrew Mitchell will be our next EU Commissioner in 2014. The job was not advertised and the backroom selection process remains a mystery. In… Continue reading
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Is Boris really ready to lead the Tory party?
Boris needs to pay attention. As James Allen said, ‘Circumstances do not make the man, they reveal him.’ Given his colourful character, discussion so far about Boris’s leadership potential has… Continue reading
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George Osborne launches welfare counter-attack
The petition to get Iain Duncan Smith to live on £53/week has amassed more than 122,000 signatures. And counting, quickly. The petition was inspired by IDS remarking, on yesterday’s Today programme,… Continue reading
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Sir Andrew Motion, there’s much more to rural life than housing
Five years of living in squalid parts of London has made me appreciate my rural upbringing. I grew up on a small farm on the borders of West Sussex, Surrey… Continue reading
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Matt Hancock vows to fight low pay, but fails to emphasise the importance of low inflation
Matt Hancock, the business and skills minister, addressed the Resolution Foundation’s low pay debate this morning, an indication of how seriously the Tories are taking the rising cost of living.… Continue reading
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Budget 2013: The public’s verdict
We’ve got the first post-Budget polling from YouGov, and it brings mixed news for George Osborne. Certainly, this Budget doesn’t seem (so far) to have dented the Chancellor’s reputation the… Continue reading
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Interview with a writer: Jaron Lanier
In his new book, Who Owns The Future?, computer scientist, Jaron Lanier, argues that as technology has become more advanced, so too has our dependency on information tools. Lanier believes that… Continue reading
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Cyprus: This isn’t a tax, it’s a bank raid
You know this levy on Cyprus bank deposits? It’s not a levy. A levy is a kind of tax, and what is happening to the people with bank deposits in… Continue reading
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Forget 50p — scrap the 60p tax rate
Imagine if a Chancellor stood up and announced that those earning up to £100,000 would pay a 40p tax rate, those earning £100,000 to £112,950 will pay a 60p rate,… Continue reading
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Cable and Fox tug at the Coalition’s centre
The leaders of both coalition parties are seeing ministerial colleagues and backbenchers trying to push them further way from the centre at present. Nick Clegg has Vince Cable continuing to… Continue reading
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Clegg: the Tories are like a broken shopping trolley – they always veer to the right.
If you want to know what the Liberal Democrat’s message at the next election will be, read Nick Clegg’s speech to the party’s Spring Conference today. He kept to the… Continue reading
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Tories and Lib Dems strike deal on mansion tax vote
Further to Isabel’s post this morning, I understand from a senior coalition source that the two parties have now reached an agreement on how to handle Tuesday’s vote on Labour’s… Continue reading
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