A Conservative manifesto, adjusted to UK inflation January 24, 2023 As prices keep going up, Elena Siniscalco looks at what happens to the Conservative manifesto pledges from 2019 when we adjust them in line with inflation Inflation is at 10.5 per cent in the UK. This isolated number can feel quite difficult to quantify, but we see it everywhere around us – in the price [...]
Explainer: The case for a social energy tariff January 23, 2023 As a cold snap hits the UK, people are being paid conserve energy in case we (say it quietly) face blackouts. But it has also reignited a debate on social tariffs, with gas prices set to stay high for years to come. It’s freezing. In London last night, it was -5 degrees and you can [...]
Britain needs to run in circles, especially when we buy new clothes and other goods January 23, 2023 It might not make a dent in the cost-of-living crisis, but soon people will be able to get a small cash sum for every plastic bottle they recycle. The scheme, lauded by environmental campaigners, was finally approved last Friday. A rare slice of positive news, however, was overshadowed by a familiar problem in this Broken [...]
Explainer: Why are the super rich leaving London? January 20, 2023 And why did the extra-rich settle down in London in the first place?
Analysis: Sunak ruffles some feathers with levelling up cash going to the South January 19, 2023 Today the government announced more cash for communities in need of investment - levelling up in action. But Red Wall MPs lament their constituencies aren't getting enough, writes Elena Siniscalco
Why exactly is Keir Starmer in Davos today? January 19, 2023 As part of the new business-friendly dawn of the Labour Party, Keir Starmer and shadow Chancellor Racheel Reeves are in Davos today. It’s the last in a string of strategic moves to charm businesses and convince them that Labour is serious about what it wants to achieve with the help of the private sector. And [...]
A crypto scam nightmare January 19, 2023 People around the world are losing millions through a "pig butchering" scam - but it's got more to do with crypto than it does our porcine pals, writes Elena Siniscalco
Explainer-in-brief: A crisis of affordability stretching to social housing January 18, 2023 Why on earth is housing so expensive in this country? This is a question that everyone in the rental market – especially in London – has asked themselves more than once. In both the private and social sectors, rent is the highest it’s been for decades as a share of tenants’ income. Understanding how we’ve [...]
Explainer-in-brief: The gender reform fight between Westminster and Holyrood January 17, 2023 Did you think you would get a month without the culture wars? Think again. This week, Holyrood and Westminster went head to head over Scotland’s gender recognition legislation. The Scottish parliament voted in favour of a bill that would lower the age at which individuals can change gender to sixteen. It would also make it [...]
Britain’s forty-something-year-olds are in the sweet spot of working adults January 17, 2023 As young workers struggle with low pay and high rent, and over-50s jump out of the workforce en masse, those in the sweet spot of work in the UK seem to be those in their forties, writes Elena Siniscalco