Pension or property: Which is the better option for your retirement? August 31, 2016 The Bank of England’s chief economist Andy Haldane drew ire from the pensions industry for the second time this year, when he claimed that property was a better investment option for retirement than a pension in an interview with The Sunday Times this weekend. “It ought to be pensions but it’s almost certainly property,” Haldane said. [...]
Housing benefit going to private landlords has doubled to £9.3bn over a decade August 20, 2016 The amount of housing benefits being paid to private landlords has doubled over the last 10 years, with the cost to taxpayers greatest in London and the South East, and housing associations blaming a shortfall in social housing. According to figures from the National Housing Federation, almost one in three housing benefit recipients now live in a privately rented [...]
Three ways life has actually improved for millennials since last year August 15, 2016 Millennials… they might get a bad rap for being lazy, whiney and selfishly obsessed with selfies among other things, but it's a generation that's been saddled with debt, spiralling living costs and lower wages than any previous generation. And the socio-economic situation of young people has remained largely unchanged over the last year, new research reveals, while the bad news is, some areas [...]
With controversy surrounding the Rio Games, was it a mistake to hold the Olympics in an emerging market? August 2, 2016 Sam Dumitriu, head of projects at the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. It’s bad enough when wealthy countries are plunged into debt to fund sporting events that offer, at best, a short-term boost to tourism. It’s much, much worse when those countries are grappling with high levels of poverty and a public health crisis. Supposed economic [...]
Iceland’s reticence to unwind financial crisis capital controls will prove costly in the long term August 1, 2016 Whether because of the enthusiasm of its football commentators or interest in its EEA arrangement as a model for post-Brexit UK, Iceland has been in the news frequently recently. Its economy has been growing fairly rapidly in recent years, up around 30 per cent from its 2009 trough, though still more than 20 per cent below [...]
As the chancellor plans a policy “reset”, would jettisoning austerity be grossly irresponsible? July 25, 2016 Dr Madsen Pirie, president of the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. The economies that have emerged best from the financial crisis are those that have combined curbing spending with having a looser monetary policy. Those that have sought to cut back spending while also providing a stimulus have prospered, and have bounced back faster than those [...]
I lost my job over the Iraq War: Chilcot has restored my faith in democracy July 6, 2016 “In the name of God, go!” – Oliver Cromwell, On The Dissolution of the Long Parliament, 1653 The Iraq war presented me with the most profound moral crisis of my life. I was working in Washington, immersed in two major efforts offering advice on post-war Iraq planning. Yet I could see there was none. The [...]
This is no new financial crisis – but Britain needs to show the world that it’s open for business July 6, 2016 The UK economy was on a reasonably firm footing going into the referendum, though growth had lost some of its momentum from last year. While uncertainty was already affecting business confidence, household spending was supported by stable job creation in a low inflation environment. Since then, the falls in financial markets partly reflect expectations of [...]
Conservative peer Lord Heseltine has launched a blistering attack on former London mayor Boris Johnson, accusing the MP of “ripping the party apart” June 30, 2016 Boris Johnson's decision not to stand for the leadership of the Conservative Party has been savaged by Tory grandee Lord Heseltine. In a blistering attack, the avidly pro-Europe Heseltine accused Johnson of “ripping the [Conservative] party apart”, and slammed the former London mayor's refusal to run for Tory leader, and therefore prime minister, as both “contemptible” [...]
What’s behind the rise of anti-establishment politics? From Brexit to Trump and Bernie Sanders, frustration at inequality is rising – and some experts think central bank policies are to blame June 28, 2016 Anti-establishment sentiment is growing, with political leaders seen as “alternative” drawing support across the Western world – from the rise of Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump in the US, to France’s National Front, Germany’s AfD, Italy’s Lega Nord and Syriza in Greece. The surprise triumph of the Brexit movement falls into this camp too. And a [...]