Let hydrogen fuel our vehicles to a greener future
Transport is now the single biggest contributing sector to our country’s greenhouse gas emissions, while at the same time being a primary culprit for polluting our air. Worryingly, it’s also a sector which includes parts of the economy that are some of hardest to decarbonise, which might explain why it has barely reduced its emissions… View Article
We calculate the astronomical cost of the virus as double the sum spent each year on healthcare
The tragedy of 2020 will leave deep scars on our country. Thousands of families across the UK have lost loved ones. Hundreds of thousands more have lost their livelihoods. And we have all lost our most basic freedoms. There are, thankfully, tentative signs that we may have reached the virus’s peak. So thoughts must turn… View Article
Coronavirus: UK government borrowing could top £300bn, says think tank
The centre-right CPS think tank today produced a more up-to-date assessment, saying the total could be £301bn. It said the cost of the support schemes themselves could add £127bn on to borrowing, with £119bn lost due to lower tax receipts and higher welfare payments. However, the CPS cautioned that any predictions in the current climate… View Article
Deficit could hit £300bn this year – report
The Centre for Policy Studies predicts the Treasury will spend £127 billion in direct bailout costs, including the employee furlough scheme which launched on Monday. It forecast a further £119 billion will be spent in indirect costs such as lower tax revenues, using the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) scenario of a three-month lockdown followed… View Article
The virus has exposed the urgent need to reform how we treat the self-employed
Over the last two decades, the number of self-employed people has increased by 54 per cent and now stands at five million. Nearly one in three of the net jobs created since 2000 have been people becoming their own boss. Now, for every five employees there is one self-employed person. Senior Researcher, James Heywood, writes… View Article
Getting through the Covid-19 pandemic will require markets as well as strong government
Covid-19 is a major shock to our system. With the UK speeding towards lockdown and much of Europe in similar or worse straits, this crisis — as with most crises — is causing people to look to their governments. This is both understandable and necessary. Rishi Sunak’s excellent pledges (and performances) last week reassured tens… View Article
Our economy is being sacrificed because the NHS was unprepared for a pandemic
In the war with Covid-19, NHS staff are on the front line. The last few weeks have been a stark and sudden reminder that their jobs are not like ours: while the rest of us huddle in our bedrooms, they are risking their own and their families’ lives and health on our collective behalf. Yet… View Article
Carbon offshoring poses competition risk for UK firms
As well as overstating the UK’s performance on climate change, the CPS argues the practice also discriminates against UK companies which are subject to climate levies, planning and regulatory hurdles that their competitors overseas do not have to face, such as the Carbon Price Floor which taxes emissions. The CPS said a new carbon tax… View Article
UK coal-free fortnight claim ‘misleading’
Tony Lodge’s new paper for the CPS, The Great Carbon Swindle, calls for the introduction of a carbon border tax on carbon-intensive imports which would reduce global emissions and better support domestic industries. The tax would be based on the electricity mix of the exporting country, which would incentivise other countries to invest in nuclear… View Article
Matt Hancock asks MPs and peers for views on adult social care reform
Matt Hancock has written to MPs and peers, urging them to help secure a cross-party consensus on reform of the adult social care system, as the government commits to finding an answer to the ongoing problem. James Heywood, a senior researcher at the Centre for Policy Studies, said: “We welcome the government starting the… View Article
Spirits duty cut in the budget would boost the economy, report says
A report by the Centre for Policy Studies identifies the alcohol duty on spirits as a key levy that the Government can cut to “help family finances.” Currently, drinkers can pay more than £10 in alcohol duty and VAT on a £14 bottle of spirit, and charities are lobbying for the tax to be increased… View Article
