The new Chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, is said to be considering scrapping the EU’s cap on bonuses in the financial sector. This would be hard to sell to the public, but is still the right thing to do. The ‘bankers bonus cap’ is part of the Capital Requirements Directive IV that was first applied to credit … Continue reading Why the bankers’ bonus cap should be scrapped
Author: julianhjessop
Businesses must not be given a blank cheque for energy bills
Many businesses are rightly worried about the soaring cost of energy and the likely delay before they will be able to access the rescue package being put together by the government. Unfortunately, there are good reasons why they will have to be patient. The new ‘Energy Price Guarantee’ will cap the unit price of energy … Continue reading Businesses must not be given a blank cheque for energy bills
What have we learned from the first week of ‘Trussonomics’?
The old saying that a ‘week is a long time in politics’ can rarely have been more apt. The changes in Westminster have been overshadowed by the transition in the Monarchy. But the new Prime Minister has also begun to tackle the challenges facing the UK economy. The first big policy announcement was a freeze … Continue reading What have we learned from the first week of ‘Trussonomics’?
The pros (and cons) of cutting VAT
Liz Truss is apparently mulling the ‘nuclear’ option of cutting the standard rate of VAT by five percentage points to support the economy. This has triggered a predictable backlash from my fellow policy wonks, led by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). However, in these extraordinary times, every lever may have to be pulled. The … Continue reading The pros (and cons) of cutting VAT
Plain-speaking Economics 