Political parties have been told to wake up to a looming crisis in local government that could see a swathe of councils face financial collapse over the next five years.
Real-terms increases in health spending have failed to reach the levels promised by the government five years ago, despite the pandemic, growing ill health and record waiting lists, analysis has...
The UK will be forced to raise taxes if its public spending levels continue to match those of other developed nations, according to the latest international analysis.
Researchers have warned that despite some economic good news the chancellor might have “less fiscal room for manoeuvre” in the upcoming Budget than it appears.
As the government lurched through prime ministers, Carl Emmerson of the IFS was among those warning of trouble ahead. He tells PF how making things better could start now.
Kwasi Kwarteng’s hastily rewritten speech at the Conservative Party conference was packed with mentions of growth and the need to bring down the UK tax burden, but commentators have expressed concern...
Tax cuts in Friday’s ‘fiscal event’ are set to raise UK government borrowing by more than £30bn – more than half of the total increase in borrowing since the Office for Budget Responsibility last...
Plans for permanent tax cuts set out by Conservative Party leadership candidates will be “difficult” to implement given the economic environment the promises are being made in, Institute for Fiscal...
The government is “playing catch up with inflation” and will need to rapidly step up its support package for households just to keep pace, although many people will still be much worse off, the...
CIPFA chief economist Jeffrey Matsu explains how the new Local Government Finance Model, produced by the institute alongside the IFS and District Councils’ Network, can help authorities plan their...
Collectively, councils were over-compensated by central government for the financial impact of Covid-19. But the withdrawal of support means tougher times lie ahead, says David Phillips from the...
English council’s finances were not as badly affected by Covid-19 as had been expected, according to new research – but the authors warned against government complacency in the coming years amid the...
Spending available to “unprotected” government departments will be tight over the next three years, and could lead to some areas receiving cuts, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Manifestos from Scotland’s largest parties do not honestly reckon with the devolved government’s likely financial situation in the coming years, according to Institute for Fiscal Studies researchers.
Scottish Government’s income tax rates are progressive, but unnecessarily complicated by taxation bands that are too similar, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Funding for the Scottish Government’s day-to-day spending in 2021-22 is nearly a third higher per person than in England, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Departmental spending reductions implied by the Budget are more severe than first thought, and could see funding 8% lower than pre-Covid plans in some areas, according to the Institute for Fiscal...
Medium-term cuts to public sector spending outlined in the Budget could see a return to austerity for some departments including justice and local government, an economist has warned.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced planned tax measures – phased in over the next four years – which will see the UK’s tax burden rise to the highest level since the late 1960s.
The UK government might have to raise up to £60bn in taxes to offset Covid-19 expenses, though tax changes should be avoided in next month’s Budget, an economist has warned.
Councils expect to collect £1.3bn less council tax in 2020-21 than they forecast before Covid-19 hit, after the crisis damaged some households’ ability to pay bills, according to the Institute for...
The loss of teaching resulting from Covid-19 school closures could see a £100bn long-term hit to taxation on reduced lifetime earnings for affected children, according to the Institute for Fiscal...
