Promote home ownership by reserving 50% of new-build homes for UK residents, urges report by Conservative MP
A new report by Croydon South MP Chris Philp, published by the Centre for Policy Studies, proposes further reform of the planning system to increase home building and the promotion of home ownership. With the average first time buyer having to save for 10 years to put together a deposit and home ownership rates falling… View Article
Missed opportunities blight a prudent Budget, says CPS
Daniel Mahoney, Head of Economic Research at the CPS, said: “The headline story from this Budget was the dramatic downgrading of Britain’s productivity forecasts – a minute-long section of Philip Hammond’s speech that will add as much to the deficit as the rest of it put together. In 2019, for example, productivity growth will be… View Article
Fixing Britain’s productivity problem is Hammond’s only option
Low productivity is a crippling problem for the British economy. And it shows little sign of improvement: levels have been virtually flat since 2011. Hourly productivity is now 20% below its pre-crisis trend. This week, the Office for Budget Responsibility is set to slash productivity forecasts. If there is no improvement to productivity levels, Philip… View Article
May and Rudd welcome launch of ‘New Generation’
Last night, the Centre for Policy Studies launched its new flagship New Generation project, designed to harness the talent, energy and enthusiasm of a new breed of policy thinkers, led by MPs from the 2015 and 2017 intakes. Speaking at the launch – held at the London offices of M&C Saatchi – Amber Rudd, the… View Article
CPS says Britain needs more robots
Jeremy Corbyn wants companies that profit from replacing humans with robots to pay more tax, believing that automation presents a threat to workers. This proposed “robot tax” is superficially convincing. However, a new report from the Centre for Policy Studies – Why Britain Needs More Robots – argues that it would impede productivity growth, depress wage growth,… View Article
CPS responds to MPC decision to raise interest rates
Daniel Mahoney, Head of Economic Research at the Centre for Policy Studies, said: “Today’s rate increase is a welcome step in addressing the problems associated with an unprecedented period of rock-bottom interest rates. Years of ultra-loose monetary policy have held back UK productivity by encouraging a misallocation of resources, sustaining zombie firms and helping inflate… View Article
Is Nick Clegg’s triple lock behind the rise of Corbyn?
The Liberal Democrats insisted on the triple-lock for state pensions being part of the Coalition Agreement back in 2010, suggested it would only cost £50m per year. 7 years later, it is costing the government over £8bn and ensuring the necessary task of curtailing the UK’s spiraling welfare budget fell mainly on the working age… View Article
Triple lock on pensions drove young voters to Labour
According to Rupert Harrison, George Osborne’s former special adviser, the triple lock on pensions was a Liberal Democrat demand for the Coalition agreement in 2010, which was accepted by the Conservatives on the basis that it would just cost £50m. The triple lock has meant that the state pension has been increased by the highest… View Article
Robert Halfon to call for a ladder of opportunity
Robert Halfon MP, chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, will call on the Conservative Party to create ‘a ladder of opportunity’ for low-income voters in a speech to the 1900 Club & Centre for Policy Studies on Monday evening, 9 October 2017. He will set out plans to strengthen the Conservative Party’s historic links… View Article
Leadership Change at the Centre for Policy Studies
The Centre for Policy Studies, the leading UK think tank, has announced the departure of Tim Knox as Director and the appointment of Robert Colvile as Acting Director. During his six years as Director, Tim Knox has kept the Centre for Policy Studies at the heart of the British political debate, overseeing pioneering work on… View Article
The Medico-Legal Crisis and How to Solve It
The NHS’ liabilities for medico-legal claims now total £65bn, draining the NHS of much-needed funds and putting patients at risk by driving GPs out of practice concludes Dr Paul Goldsmith, Consultant Neurologist and policy strategist, in his report “The Medico-Legal Crisis and How to Solve It”published Friday 6 October by the Centre for Policy Studies. The… View Article
Strength from Openness: The Australian High Commissioner on the lessons for the UK of Australia’s successful free trade policy
STRENGTH FROM OPENNESS The Australian High Commissioner on the lessons for the UK of Australia’s successful free trade policy The UK is the “ideal place from which to pursue the kind of open, liberal trade and investment policy that has served Australia well in recent decades… As one of the UK’s closest friends, we offer… View Article
Government must do more to protect the public from strikes
Strikes in the essential services are banned in most major Western economies – but not in the UK. With co-ordinated strike action now being threatened by public sector unions, the Government should consider amending the Trade Union Act 2016 to further protect the public from the damage done by strike action writes Nicholas Finney in Strikes… View Article
MPs right to debate Venezuela, there is no room for apologists
The Centre for Policy Studies welcomes the debate on the current instability in Venezuela, held yesterday in Westminster Hall. Jeremy Corbyn has described Venezuela as “a better way of doing things” – pointing to the fall in poverty rates under Hugo Chavez – but “Venezuela – No Room for Apologists”, published by the Centre for Policy Studies… View Article
CPS responds to official figures showing more disadvantaged students are going to university
The Department for Education yesterday, Thursday 3 August 2017, released their annual statistics on young people’s participation in higher education, including their social background. Analysis by the Centre for Policy Studies shows that rather than being put off by higher tuition fees, the number of students from disadvantaged backgrounds going to university has increased. The report further highlights… View Article
Rail competition brings benefits for passengers
Commenting on the publication on the National Rail Passenger Survey, Tony Lodge, research fellow at the Centre for Policy Studies, said: “Today’s national rail passenger survey shows that when train companies compete on the same track they come top on overall satisfaction, value for money, punctuality and getting a seat. On the East Coast Main Line Hull… View Article
