This report from UK think tank the Resolution Foundation puts the Spring Forecast in context. This briefing note sets out how a mix of benign fiscal developments and concerning economic trends leaves the Government on track to meet its fiscal rules following the 2026 Spring Forecast, but with little resilience to shocks. The OBR’s numbers...

This report from UK think tank IPPR outlines the pros and cons of various policy options for student loan reform. Millions of graduates are paying more for longer as frozen thresholds and high interest rates bite, leaving ministers with tough choices on how to deliver meaningful, targeted relief. This report outlines the pros and cons...

This report from UK think tank PBE evaluates the impact of nature-based therapy on veterans. Veterans have some of the lowest levels of wellbeing, with around 160,000 self-reporting deep dissatisfaction with their lives. They may struggle with chronic health conditions, common mental health disorders and the anxiety which can come with unemployment and the feeling that their lives lack purpose....

This report from UK think tank the Resolution Foundation assesses the economic and fiscal outlook based on news since the Autumn Budget. In this slide pack we preview the upcoming Spring Forecast, assessing the economic and fiscal outlook based on news since the Autumn Budget. Stepping back, growth remains weak, households cautious, and the labour...

This report from UK think tank IPPR argues for a shift to a system that asks how we can build more of what already works. The ability to deliver transformative public transport is not constrained by a lack of ideas, public support or local ambition. It is constrained by the way decisions are taken at...

This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities looks at how cities around the world operate their visitor levies and what England can learn from their experiences. Using examples drawn from a range of countries and cities from major visitor destinations such as Barcelona and Amsterdam to smaller places such as Essen, Germany and...

This report from UK think tank City-REDI examines what makes place based research partnerships work effectively. This evidence review brings together academic and practice based literature to understand what makes place based research partnerships work effectively. It identifies the outcomes these partnerships can deliver, the infrastructure and systems that support success, the skills and expertise...

This report from UK think tank the Resolution Foundation paints a portrait of the poorer half of the country's population. The 13 million working-age families across the poorer half of the country are widely courted by politicians. No party can win elections without their votes, and the country cannot succeed without their needs being met....

This report from UK think tank the Adam Smith Institute examines the effects of the new union access regime on SMEs. This report examines the economic impact of the Employment Rights Act 2025 on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The core of the report argues that the Act’s new provisions—which allow trade unions to demand...

This report from UK think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs examines the costs and benefits of flexible working. The costs of flexible working requirements have rarely been properly assessed and could extend to undermining growth, increasing unemployment and the rise in post-Covid withdrawal from the workforce. Employers and employees, negotiating in the ‘particular circumstances...

This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government Labour sets out how the government can be better equipped to take tough choices on growth. The government needs to sharpen up its strategy for raising the rate of growth, led by a stronger more economically capable No.10. This report, in partnership with Imperial College...

This report from UK think tank Centre for Cities looks at the lessons learnt from rules-based planning conducted in Croydon. This briefing analyses data from when the ‘Suburban Design Guide’ (SDG), a successful ‘experiment’ in rules-based planning conducted in Croydon from 2019 to 2022, was in place. It explains the SDG's success in raising housebuilding...

This report from UK think tank Onward calls for a fundamental rationalisation of passported benefits as the UC rollout nears completion. The Hidden Benefits Bill argues that the true cost of the UK’s working-age welfare system is significantly higher than headline Universal Credit (UC) spending figures suggest, because of a large and growing set of...

This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation looks at improving retirement saving outcomes with a pensions dashboard health check. Widespread disengagement with pensions is contributing to the UK’s retirement savings crisis. With the transition to defined contribution pensions increasing the individual responsibility to save enough for retirement, this report sets out how a ‘pensions dashboard health check’ could improve citizens’ ability to effectively prepare...

This report from UK think tank the Jobs Foundation looks at both the effect of government policy on the energy sector and on jobs and communities. The Jobs Foundation’s first report on the connection between energy and job creation/retention, Jobs and Energy: The effect of high energy costs on the UK jobs market was published...

Ahead of the Spring Budget we asked a range of think tanks what would be the one thing they would focus on and include. Don't overcomplicate the cost of living response, just give people cash By Dr Aveek Bhattacharya (Social Market Foundation) In January, with inflation growing and the energy price cap set to rise,...

'Levelling up' has become one of the big agenda items for this government but how can it be helped by industrial strategy? Use the Spending Review and R&D Place Strategy to increase support for business innovation in lagging regions By James Blagden (Onward) In recent decades the UK’s regions have diverged so much that we...