The news that net migration to the UK hit a new record of 606,000 last year has understandably rung alarm bells. As Rakib Ehsan discussed here, there is a broad consensus that such high figures are unsustainable and, in some sense, undesirable. Nonetheless, talk of a immigration ‘crisis’ seems overdone. First, it is not obvious … Continue reading Does ‘Brexit Britain’ really have a migration crisis?
Category: Labour markets
Why is the UK short of workers and what should be done about it?
In the good old days, economists could gauge the health of the UK labour market simply by glancing at the unemployment rate. The latest official figure is still just 3.7 per cent, which suggests all is well. Unemployment has not been this low since the early 1970s. Put another way, the vast majority of people … Continue reading Why is the UK short of workers and what should be done about it?
The case for a real-terms benefit cut is weak – and it would be political madness
The reluctance of both the Chancellor and the Prime Minister to confirm that non-pensioner benefits (notably Universal Credit) will be uprated next year in line with inflation has fed speculation that the Government is considering a real-terms cut. My advice would be to squash this idea as soon as possible – mainly because it is … Continue reading The case for a real-terms benefit cut is weak – and it would be political madness
Why the bankers’ bonus cap should be scrapped
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
Plain-speaking Economics 