Britain’s economic inactivity problem misdiagnosed, says new report
Tomorrow’s Budget is widely expected to focus on economic inactivity, which is now one of Britain’s biggest economic challenges The UK has 516,000 more economically inactive people aged 16-64 than pre-pandemic. Only three OECD countries have seen inactivity increase more than the UK A new Centre for Policy Studies report tempers two common explanations for… View Article
Britain will be ‘significantly worse place to do business’ following corporation tax rise
Britain is about to become a significantly worse place to do business, as corporation tax rises and the super-deduction expires. Modelling by the CPS and US-based Tax Foundation suggests that the corporation tax rise will reduce long-run GDP by 1.2%. The combination of the two will be even worse, seeing us fall from 10th to… View Article
RSE review “makes complete sense” says CPS Head of Education
Commenting on news the Prime Minister has asked the Department for Education to bring forward a review into relationships and sex education in schools, CPS Head of Education Mark Lehain said: “Bringing forward the review of RSE is great news and makes complete sense. There were questions from teachers about how far they should or… View Article
Government immigration announcement ‘welcome steps towards tacking back control’, says CPS
In response to the Home Secretary’s Illegal Migration Bill statement in the House of Commons, Karl Williams, CPS Senior Researcher and co-author of ‘Stopping the Crossings’, said: ‘While the Home Secretary did not go into detail, the measures reported to be included in the Illegal Migration Bill, many of which were outlined in our ‘Stopping… View Article
Record asylum backlog shows need to stop the crossings, says CPS
Figures published today by the Home Office show that, in the final quarter of 2022, the backlog of cases awaiting an initial asylum decision reached the highest level since current records began – and that while the number of caseworkers has doubled in the past year, more progress needs to be made. The speed with… View Article
UK can support semiconductors without subsidy arms race, says new report
A secure supply of high-end semiconductor chips underpins the modern world. Ahead of the Government’s long awaited semiconductor strategy, a new CPS report ‘Cashing in our Chips’ sets out how the UK can support the industry without entering into a subsidy arms race. While the UK develops its policy, the US, the EU and Taiwan… View Article
Sir Michael Heller
All of us at the Centre for Policy Studies would like to share our sorrow at the passing of Sir Michael Heller, who served on our Board for 25 years. Sir Michael, who died aged 86, is survived by his wife, Lady Morven, and their children, Andrew, John and Nicola. As well as his work… View Article
CPS responds to Chancellor’s speech on growth
Robert Colvile, Centre for Policy Studies Director, said: ‘The Chancellor’s speech struck all the right notes. It is clear he understands both the economic challenges we face, and the opportunities we could capitalise on with the right policy approach. ‘Mr Hunt is right that we need to focus on our strategic advantages, prioritising investment and… View Article
Former ministers endorse CPS paper demolishing housing market myths
In recent months, housing has become an increasingly contentious issue A major new CPS report, ‘The Case for Housebuilding’, takes on and demolishes many of the most common myths about Britain’s housing crisis It shows that we have a massive shortfall in homes, especially compared to our neighbours, and that this has played a key… View Article
CPS responds to Online Safety Bill votes
Following last night’s votes in the House of Commons, Matthew Feeney, Head of Technology and Innovation at the Centre for Policy Studies, said: ‘Now the House of Commons is on the brink of passing the Online Safety Bill to the House of Lords, it is there we need to focus our hopes and efforts to… View Article
CPS Response: NEU Strike Ballot
In response to the NEU voting for strike action, Mark Lehain, CPS Head of Education, said: “The NEU result is disappointing – strikes would be the wrong action, for the wrong reason, at the wrong time. After everything pupils have been through in recent years, further disruption to their education is the last thing they… View Article
CPS Response to NASUWT Strike Ballot
Mark Lehain, Head of Education at the Center for Policy Studies said: ‘This news will bring huge relief to pupils and their families. A strike would have achieved little but cause huge disruption for children and the country as a whole. ‘The result shows how divisive the issue is among teachers too, with fewer than… View Article
Politicians have a ‘moral duty’ to support growth, says CPS Director
The economic turmoil of recent years has seen a renewed focus on Britain’s failure to grow. A new essay by CPS Director Robert Colvile sets out how this is a much longer-term problem than we think – that the growth ceiling of the British economy has been getting lower and lower for decades, driven in… View Article
Renting is up and home ownership down since 2011, according to latest Census data
Responding to a Big Issue article highlighting census data showing the fall of home ownership in the UK ,Samuel Hughes, Head of Housing at the Centre for Policy Studies said it was “dismaying but unsurprising.” “Britain has an intense housing shortage because we don’t permit enough new homes to be built. This shortage makes it… View Article
