Angus Harron @AngusHarron

In London, the average home was not affordable for any household income decile. In three other regions (South East, East of England & South West), the average home was only affordable to the top decile. Read more ➡️ ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulati…

It's shocking how much consensus there is amongst tax policy wonks and economists of Left and Right on the tax reforms the UK needs to boost growth & make the tax system fairer More shocking: they're reforms that are never mentioned by any politicians

Increasingly convinced any internet connection - even news and Google - is bad for concentration and focus so I'm very excited about this. My new (or secondhand) Pomero DM250 e-typewriter. No internet, news, or social media. All it does is word processing.

The entire story of Angela Rayner’s humiliating departure from government is that she failed to follow the recommendation and suggestion of two legal firms that she get expert opinion on the correct amount of stamp duty to pay when purchasing her apartment in Hove

Manchester United’s descent to “Battered” and “Act of Cod” mockery at Blundell Park is rooted in a lack of leadership, on the field and off. Losing to a better motivated and managed Grimsby Town was a shock but not completely unexpected. United’s problem is their culture. There’s…

The @OBR_UK's new fiscal risks report, published today, is the most polite, spreadsheet-filled horror story you will ever read. It is the bureaucratic, non-partisan equivalent of grabbing our politicians by the lapels and screaming in their faces. It is very, very bad.

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What do the changes to the UC & PIP bill do? Until an hour ago, it contained 3 major reforms: ❌Tighten PIP eligibility - saves £2.6bn in 2029-30 ✅Cut health element of UC - saves £1.7bn ✅Raise basic UC - costs £1.8bn If the first goes, the bill COSTS £0.1bn in 2029-30

The underlying discontent among rebellious and even loyal Labour MPs stems from what many would say is a pathetically late discovery: that what’s driving so much government policy is Rachel Reeves’s fiscal rules and the absolute power of the Office for Budget Responsibility in…

Worth keeping this chart in mind when considering NHS resources. Very, very big increases in numbers of hospital doctors and nurses between first half of 2019 and first half of 2024. Much smaller increase in measured activity.

The current yield on 10-year gilts (UK bonds) is 4.65% v peak of 4.42% during the ClusterTruss The current yield on 30-year gilts is 5.25% v peak of 5.12% during the ClusterTruss. So UK government now paying more to borrow (and has been for sometime) than during ClusterTruss.…

Andrew Neil @afneil

4 months ago

The current yield on 10-year gilts (UK bonds) is 4.65% v peak of 4.42% during the ClusterTruss The current yield on 30-year gilts is 5.25% v peak of 5.12% during the ClusterTruss. So UK government now paying more to borrow (and has been for sometime) than during ClusterTruss.…

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This is the swing of Canadian legend Moe Norman. Sam Snead called Norman golf’s greatest striker of the ball. Tiger Woods said Moe Norman and Ben Hogan were the only two golfers in history who truly “owned” their swings. A list of accolades by Moe Norman: • 50 Canadian…

Starmer is correct. We can't tax our way to growth. But we can *tax reform* our way to growth. Some ideas:

Really important to understand this. Talk of “austerity” is way overblown in context of what govt announced in October and by comparison with stated plans of last govt. Had they implemented those plans (unlikely) that really would have looked like austerity.

Ben Zaranko @BenZaranko

6 months ago

Really important to understand this. Talk of “austerity” is way overblown in context of what govt announced in October and by comparison with stated plans of last govt. Had they implemented those plans (unlikely) that really would have looked like austerity.

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I have a few more reflections to share on Reeves’s spring statement that we’ll hear from her on Wednesday. The first is that the Office for Budget Responsibility is bound to make a gloomier forecast for real household disposable income - a proxy for our living standards - than…

The government says it wants to make significant savings on welfare payments to the disabled and help the disabled into work. The point, say all ministers - led Sir Keir Starmer - is not to harm the disabled, but to free them from a life of dependency. That, they claim, is…

It will take ten years for Britain’s armed forces and defence capability to become match fit, to make them a “credible deterrent”, so much have they been hollowed out over the past 25 years. That is the central devastating conclusion of the unpublished Strategic Defence Review…

Dame Emily Thornberry, Labour chair of foreign affairs select committee, tells the PM she is deeply concerned the aid cuts will undermine vital UK humanitarian support in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine

Robert Peston @Peston

7 months ago

Dame Emily Thornberry, Labour chair of foreign affairs select committee, tells the PM she is deeply concerned the aid cuts will undermine vital UK humanitarian support in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine

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These are the opening remarks between Trump and Starmer in the Oval Office Trump: Thank you very much. It's a great honour to have Prime Minister Starmer in the Oval Office. It's a very special place and he's a special man. And the United Kingdom is a is a wonderful, this is a…

📽️ How much have the US and others given in aid to Ukraine? Who's been the most generous? How does it all compare with previous conflicts? And what's with Donald Trump's money-for-minerals deal? All the answers in my primer, this time with bonus extra charts 🤓

Mervyn King, ex Bank of England governor, blasts Rachel Reeves fiscal rules. It’s a debate also happening in private amongst Labour MPs.

Sophy Ridge @SophyRidgeSky

7 months ago

Mervyn King, ex Bank of England governor, blasts Rachel Reeves fiscal rules. It’s a debate also happening in private amongst Labour MPs.

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