Podcasts about Spending Review

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Despite the cuts announced in the Chancellor's Spring Statement, spending on public services is set to be on average £43 billion higher over the years of the upcoming Spending Review, compared with what was set out by the previous Government at the 2024 Spring Budget. But with much of this extra spending front-loaded to this year and next, questions remain about funding pressures in the years after that. These services are vital for families – providing ‘in kind' benefits which provide a huge boost to the living standards of lower-income households. So future provision will make a difference to the outlook for living standards.

2025 is shaping up to be a big year in UK politics, as the Government's ambitions set out across various White Papers start to be turned into deliverable action on the ground. The Spending Review could also set the tone for the rest of the Parliament, as the Chancellor sets out how to invest £100 billion wisely, and Ministers show how they intend to improve public services in the face of severe financial constraints. The living standards outlook is no less challenging. If 2024 was the year of the election, then 2025 looks set to be the year of the post-election squeeze, as real earnings growth falls while taxes go up. The new economic milestone of raising living standards across the UK may feel some way off.

George Parker of the Financial Times analyses the week's political developments at Westminster. Following the Prime Minister's visit to Washington, the former UK Ambassador to the US, Lord Darroch, and Sir Keir Starmer's former director of strategy, Deborah Mattinson, assess the global security situation and what impact the US election will have on Western foreign policy.To discuss the state of the NHS following a damning report from former minister Lord Darzi, George is joined by former Labour Health Secretary, Patricia Hewitt, and former Conservative Chair of the Health Select Committee Steve Brine.Professor Richard Davies of the LSE, presenter of a new radio documentary about the Port Talbot steel works, explains what this week's government announcement about the plant means for the future of steel-making in Britain.And, as the Spending Review gets underway, George brings together two former Treasury ministers, Danny Alexander and David Gauke, to lift the lid on how departments can wring money out of the exchequer.

Director of One Step Financial Planning Lisa Caplan and Charles Stanley Direct's Chief Analyst Rob Morgan digest the recent Spending Review speech from Chancellor Rachel Reeves and considers what it might signal for personal taxes. Meanwhile, the Bank of England has just cut base rate from 5.25% to 5% in reaction to inflation falling. Can we expect more cuts and what does it mean for investors?

In this episode we explore how the ONS measures our natural environment and the green economy.        Relevant datasets: ONS Environmental Accounts    Transcript     MILES FLETCHER   Welcome again to Statistically Speaking, the official podcast of the UK's Office for National Statistics. I'm Miles Fletcher and this time we're getting back to nature as we explore the work of the ONS in measuring the economic and social value of the natural environment.   Is classical economic growth - as measured by gross domestic product or GDP - always achieved at the expense of the environment? What price can we put on the amenities our environment provides? What is the green economy and what are green jobs? And what are the key data to watch as policymakers strive for net zero carbon emissions, while also seeking to improve national prosperity?   Our guides through the rich and perhaps under explored landscape of environmental data are ONS's Deputy Director for Environmental Statistics Analysis, Ian Townsend; Head of Natural Capital Accounts, Gemma Thomas; and Sophie Barrand, Monetary Accounts lead in the Environmental Accounts team.   Welcome to you all.  Ian to come to you first. The ONS is mainly known for measuring the economy and the population of the UK. So, what exactly is its role when it comes to the environment? What are we seeking to achieve?  What do we do? What do we publish?   IAN TOWNSEND So the environment is quite a broad topic that links with a lot of other issues and a lot of different national and devolved government departments and other related bodies producing statistics on the environment. And with all that range of statistics, we tend to focus at the ONS on the intersections between our environment and both the economy and society. This includes measuring what we call the Low Carbon and renewable energy economy, how many green jobs there are, the greenhouse gas emissions produced by different economic sectors, and valuing the services that nature provides to us, as well as providing rapid insights into what people and business think about climate change in the environment and their actions or indeed otherwise.    MF And what are the major publications that come out of the ONS that people ought to be looking at to get a sense of what we're saying about the environment and its value?   IT So I mentioned a couple in the introduction there - things like low carbon and renewable energy economy, green jobs, etc... and our emissions figures. But perhaps one that is quite worth bringing to the fore is our natural capital accounts. So, it's something we've done for several years, which basically looks at the value that ecosystems provide to nature and ecosystems provide to us, and the services that provides. So, we bring this out as a report every year - have done so for several years - and that looks beyond the economy, beyond gross domestic product, to look at all those natural resources and we found that in 2021, the total value of all those natural assets was around one and a half trillion pounds. It's such a big figure, I think it can be quite hard for people to grasp. But a useful comparison might be that it's not that far off the 1.7 trillion pounds that homes in the UK were valued at in 2021 as well.   MF It's very difficult to arrive at a financial figure or value like that. Can you just give us a brief explanation of how it's calculated?    IT Sure. So, there are internationally agreed guidelines that we follow around how to measure or indeed account for the current value of what natural capital could provide for us and our current and future generations. And all that process, all those guidelines are aligned with how we measure the GDP in the economy. It's really quite a complex exercise and includes things like the value of trees, rivers, peatlands, and many other habitats and natural resources in them. We've been developing and improving these approaches for probably at least 10 years, and probably have some of the most developed accounts in this form globally. Our estimates have improved over the years. But there are some things that we don't cover. So, in a way, this is probably best seen as a kind of partial and minimum value, even though it's already very large. And it's also part of a wider mission that the ONS has to capture the value of what's called missing capital, things that we don't currently measure so well in gross domestic product. So that's including social capital as well as natural capital. So that's called ‘inclusive wealth' and that's another publication the ONS produces that people might be interested to have a look at.   MF And it's important, I guess, to have this economic value of the environment so that can be compared against the traditional measure of economic progress and prosperity, which of course is GDP. And it's sometimes – and we've heard this in other podcasts - because GDP is like the big beast of the economic statistical world. It's very important, it's very influential, but of course it does have significant weaknesses and omissions, and notably its lack of account for environmental factors being notoriously one of those.   IT Sure. And actually, there's a process going on right now internationally that would bring some of that into the way that we measure some of the key economic indicators. But I think one of the key things you say is putting out there is a measure of how our natural capital assets are doing. But I think the other real benefit of these statistics, and particularly the natural capital accounts, is that it helps literally to account for nature to give an estimate of some of the benefits that the environment does provide. So, when people make decisions, they can take that into account. We're not exactly saying that nature has this given value. It's more that that's the value that we've estimated so far that provides those. It helps people to make sure that when they're taking their decisions, they take into account what would happen if we reduced or depleted that natural capital, and indeed, the benefits we might get in the future if we were to increase that natural capital as well.   MF Because – and this is the other side of the question – high per capita GDP often goes with high carbon emissions in an economy, doesn't it? This way, we can look at the other side of the balance sheet and say, well, yes, you might be achieving this high economic performance in traditional terms, but look at the cost on the other side and, as you say, this is part of a big international movement to recognize that called ‘beyond GDP', which is a topic we've covered in previous podcasts already.     IT Sure.  I think, just getting back to your point around GDP and emissions one of the things that we produce in the ONS is a piece around a different emissions measurements there are, and actually if you look at those, you'll see that over time, all those measures have been reducing. So there is an element to which whilst the economy is expanding, we are actually reducing emissions on all three different measures that are available.    MF And we say the environment is - we're putting it at 1.5 trillion pounds – that's the capital value of the natural environment, broadly equivalent to the value of all the houses in the UK. Some people might say that's a low figure perhaps you can think we measure human capital being much, much greater than that but that's a debate for another time. But explain for us who is using this number, how does it inform decision making at the moment at national and local level? How might it influence policymakers in future do you think?    IT Sure, I think it's not necessarily about the big number at the top although that is one that will get a lot of interest from people and as you say, it might be an underestimate. I mentioned that there are some aspects of nature that we don't currently measure. But in terms of how it's used lots and lots of detail that's available underneath that key figure in the natural capital accounts we publish every year, at kind of macro level. The figures we use are important considerations for decision making by UK and devolved governments. So Defra published a policy paper, for example, on the accounts, I think, a couple of years back, which looked at what the key takeaways for policy there were from there, and we think that some of the figures were used in some of the bids that departments put in for the 2021 Spending Review. I think at the micro level figures are definitely used in the analysis of costs and benefits that are used for judging different government projects. It's part of what Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs call enabling a natural capital approach - it is in that guidance, and that has a lot of impact at kind of micro level. We're also publishing more and more data from the natural capital accounts at a local level. And making that available means that councils and others can use that in their decision making as well. And we're also building our connections and encouraging use where we can and it's also something that's being worked on internationally as well, which we're part of working with other national statistics offices and the UN.   MF Turning to Gemma then, you're the head of natural capital accounts at the ONS. Let's get into the nuts and bolts then of what contributes to this valuation, this figure, because by understanding that we can better understand what it contributes to the economy and what it contributes to our wellbeing. Talk us through those elements if you would.   GEMMA THOMAS Yeah, of course. So as Ian mentioned, there's some international standards that we abide by, but essentially what we do is we say, okay, what services does nature provide to us? And we identify those services, and then we attempt to put a value on them. Now those services can fall into three broad categories. The first would be provisioning services, which might be what you would expect the environment to provide and nature to provide such as things like timber, oil and gas, so it's all the goods that are provided by the Environment, water, renewable energy, and they are what we call provisioning services...    MF How we exploit the environment, to put it coldly.   GT You said that Miles, not me. [Laughing] But yes, it's where we capture the goods that the environment does provide. But the other things that nature does for us is it regulates, so regulated services are another part of services and where nature helps maintain the quality of the environment. And so a sort of obvious example of this can be where vegetation removes pollutants from the air, but also nature can mitigate noise. So if you're in an urban area, and there's lots of trees that can mitigate noise pollution, or heat, it can regulate heat. So that's another example. And the other example that is maybe not so obvious is what we call cultural services and they are the non-material benefits that we obtain, such as recreation. And actually, in many of our publications, we have found that those services provide the greatest asset value, the cultural services, actually almost two thirds in 2021 of all of that 1.5 trillion figure, 950 billion of that was from cultural services.   MF That's why I mentioned exploitation - like it or not it's the traditional economic exploitation of the environment, when we talk about those things that we take out of the environment. But what the ONS has established, certainly when it comes to the UK's environment, it's actually the amenity value of the environment, which contributes more to our economy.    GT Yes, exactly. And actually, when you say about that exploitation, this is one of the benefits of the natural capital accounts because we measure actually the value of 16 different services at this moment in time and it allows us to be able to see things like actually, in terms of value, for example, it is more valuable to the UK to have pollution removal from woodlands than it is to obtain timber or wood fuel, and we put values on that. So yes, as you say, it's cultural and recreation. And that's in a couple of ways. There's expenditure on recreation, and tourism. But there's also, and this is the biggest asset that we've found, is health benefits from recreation that was worth in 2021, nearly half a trillion so 445 billion.   MF Crikey, that is a big number! Can you unpack that for us then, what are the health benefits that we're itemizing there?   GT Research has found, outside of the ONS, that spending time in nature has a positive impact on your health and wellbeing. But interestingly, you need to spend on average two hours a week in nature. So some of our figures, and this is the great thing that you can sort of dig under the hood a little bit, is you can see things like maybe more people are visiting nature, but if they're not doing it for long enough or regularly enough, they can't obtain that health benefit. And that is what our data has found in 2021 and 2022. There was a slight drop in the sort of health benefits gained from nature because people weren't going for long enough. In terms of measurement. We have experts in the team who are excellent and they work with lots of people across government, but essentially it's sort of calculated in the number of years of a life lived in perfect health and then what we do is we say how much would the NHS have to spend to provide the equivalent health benefits and that's how it's done. But yeah, it's just a really good example of how that sort of top figure can sound interesting but when you dig in is a real story and there of nuance.   MF I guess that also reflects the importance of when we're talking about the environment. It's not just the great outdoors, it's not the wide open spaces necessarily. It's about having environmental areas near towns and cities as well where people can get out and feel the benefits of exercise and fresh air and so forth.   GT Exactly. And actually it's really interesting you mentioned that, because some of the things that are found that can be quite difficult to explain to people is that actually nature can have more value in some situations in urban areas than in rural areas. So if you take the example of pollution, there's more pollution in urban areas and there are more people breathing in that pollution. So by having trees and woodlands, etc within them that can absorb that pollution, that means that there's a higher value in that. That's why we have to be careful in how we explain all of our figures because sometimes a higher value - not in general, not for the top level, but for some of them - is not necessarily a good thing. Because if you think about it, if there's absolutely no pollution, then trees wouldn't be removing that pollution, and the value of that would be zero. So it's a challenging thing to communicate and get across to users, yeah.    MF It's a fascinating equation, isn't it? And also in terms of outputs, of course, we can't ignore the growing influence of renewables, which of course is energy from the environment.   GT Yes, exactly. Yes. And that's a service that's actually seen some really big growth in its asset size as we possibly would expect over recent years.   MF  Give us the numbers on that.  GT  The renewable energy was worth 40.7 billion, although I have to say - which will be surprising to some people - the oil and gas asset value is actually still higher than that at 111 billion. So, it shows that although things are changing and renewable energy has seen the biggest growth, at present oil and gas would still have a higher asset value.     MF We'll talk a little about the dash for net zero, or progress towards Net Zero at least, a little bit later. But nonetheless, it can't be ignored that is renewable electricity provision increased by we're saying 275% between 2011 and 2021. The last estimates - that's 21,899 gigawatt hours. So almost a threefold increase and, you know, without being political the drift of policy is to increase that much, much more.   GT Yeah, we have. We have seen that, and you'll see that across all of our figures. Renewable is definitely a growing sector.   MF We've talked about what we get out in a traditional economic sense of course, but historically the biggest example has been agriculture, and farmland. There's a big debate going on about the use of farmland and again, in classical GDP terms, the contribution of agriculture has not been great because it's been maintained by subsidies traditionally - at the risk of upsetting the farming community. Could we say that the decline in closed farmland being reported is because less and less of our natural environment is devoted now to agriculture? Are we saying that we can move away from that as long as the other economic benefits of the environment are being delivered on the other side of the equation?   GT Well, I think with any sort of figures, you need to look at it in the round. So, you could look in isolation within the natural capital accounts, but in reality you'd need to look at, you know, employment and those sorts of things. I mean, the interesting thing about the natural capital accounts is that technically farmed land - we need to look at it in its raw state. I mean, we can't yet separate that with our figures, but it's about what nature provides us. So, for example, we wouldn't include farmed fish, but we would include wild fish catch. So, with the national capital accounts, what we aim to do is separate that out. But in terms of the amount of farmland we can record that and we can publish that and look at it, but I think for anyone making decisions, they probably need to look at the whole.   MF But certainly we're saying that woodland, for example, is contributing more to the economy in terms of its beneficial effects in offsetting carbon and removing pollution, than it actually contributes through the felling of timber.   GT Yes, yes, that is very clear from our figures.   MF And indeed there are some other takeaways from the publication as well as. In cruder financial terms, just living closer to nature can be good for the value of your house.   GT Yes, yes. So, where we don't have a price, we have to look at a way to value it. And so, we know that being close to nature or having a nice view can add value to your house. I think it added around 1.5% To the average house price in 2021, or just under 5000 pounds, 4700. It did vary though by the type of property and flats and maisonettes it added around 4%. So yes, being close to nature and accessing nature, having access to green space is really important and in fact we have publications on our urban accounts, which pull that out, and as well on our house prices, where those interested can look in more detail.    MF Of course this continues to be a big area of ‘work in progress'. What other measures could potentially be included, particularly as the response to global warming continues to be refined and developed?   GT So yes, at the moment, I believe it was mentioned earlier that we cast this almost as an underestimate. We know there are services we're not capturing. So, for example, flood regulating services. So how much nature helps in preventing floods, that is an area that we are hoping to develop, but it is quite challenging. We do look for areas where we can maybe produce more local stats to help the decisions at the local level. Because it's not just our data that's really important. It is also our methods. Our methods get used by sort of local authorities and those who maybe want to produce their own sort of natural capital accounts for their region. So, it's something we're looking to develop.   MF And I guess it's going to be vital if we're looking at an era of increased house building. Once again, we can look at the other side of the balance sheet and say, okay, this is this is going to be the environmental cost of the development before major decisions are taken.    GT Yes, essentially. It's just about making it easier for decision makers to see that actually it does have this value, rather than before when it would be anecdotal. Now by having these figures, you can measure those up and use it in sort of cost benefit analysis. Yeah.    [Music Break]   MF Well, that's a fascinating look under the bonnet of natural capital, a concept that's clearly evolving in stature, in a really fascinating and important way. Another area that the ONS is very much involved in, and a very important set of publications that the ONS produces are the environmental accounts. Sophie Barrand joins us now. Sophie, you're the lead on monetary accounts in that team. Just to start, can you explain for us what's covered in the environmental accounts; what's the publication for?   SOPHIE BARRAND Yeah, so our environmental accounts ultimately looks to measure the contribution of the environment to the economy and the impact of economic activity on the environment. So, when we're thinking about changes in an area that's constantly evolving, it's rather a tricky thing. So, in general, what we consider is how our measures work as different pieces of this net zero puzzle where each informs the other. So, our accounts produce information on UK greenhouse gas emissions, things like economic measures of low carbon activities, government revenue from environmental taxes, and things like the use of different energy types and whether we're moving to more renewable alternatives, just to name a few. So ultimately, we're looking to quantify the flows that impact on the environment through both physical and monetary ways.    MF So natural capital if you like is the stock, and in the Environmental Accounts we're looking at the flows, we're looking at the nature of change.   SB Absolutely, yes. So, we're looking at measures of things that can sometimes be considered as the green economy. So, if we were to try and put a value on things like the environmental goods and services sector, the services and goods that sort of flow within that space, we look to produce annual estimates of that data. And within that we can also draw from different measures from each parts of our accounts. And because we produce our data on what's called a residency basis, that is any activity as part of UK registered businesses, it means that it's aligned with our national accounts data so we can start to compare across our measures, and consider things like how does our data compare to measures such as GDP or GVA and where we sort of fit within that space. So, it's really interesting to uncover some of these trends.   MF  And when we talk about progress towards net zero, this is where the action happens, isn't it? This is where progress towards that is tracked.   SB So within net zero, the measures that typically get used to action net zero is the territorial approach to measuring greenhouse gas emissions. So those are figures produced by DESNZ and what we do is we communicate that information on a residency basis to align with the national accounts side of things.   MF DESNZ being the government department concerned here.    SB Yes, so the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero. And what we can do with our accounts is that we can compare with regards to broader measures such as GDP and GVA, how we can capture some of those trends, but what we're ultimately seeing across all three of the measures of greenhouse gas emissions is that they are falling over time, which we can go into a bit more detail on.    MF Yeah, well let's get stuck into that detail because it's a crucial area of public policy right now. And it's surely going to continue to be over the next few years. What are the data telling us at the moment then, what are the most compelling findings around greenhouse gas emissions and carbon generally?   SB Yeah, so what we've seen is a reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions since 1990. Though we have experienced an increase in recent years that does reflect the economy coming back from the period affected by the Coronavirus pandemic, and what we've seen is that the largest contribution to the decrease across our time series has come from energy industries such as electricity and gas supply, and what we've seen as well is the compositional shift within this space where there's been a shift away from fossil fuel use and a move towards renewable sources. So, for example, in 2022, we saw the energy from renewable sources accounted for nearly 14% of all energy use in the UK. And although that figure has been increasing, we are still seeing a large reliance on fossil fuels, and it remains at 81% in 2022.    MF You talk about the substantial reduction in emissions, what about the suggestion that is sometimes made that countries, like the UK, have effectively exported their emissions simply by closing down their heavy fossil fuel driven industries?   SB Just in terms of exporting emissions, it's a really tricky space.    MF  How so?  SB  So, for example, within our statistics, because we cover a residency basis, we do capture some parts that might sort of deviate into that space. Because we measure UK registered businesses and residents the effect of things like UK tourism and the emissions data for that is going to be captured within that space. But then for example, when we look at the aviation industry within the UK, we do capture some of that so where we have the UK registered businesses such as British Airways, activity from that space across our accounts will be captured, but things like Ryanair wouldn't be captured because I believe it's an Irish registered business.   MF I was going to ask you how flights are accounted for, because we're told constantly, of course, that they are a big contributor to emissions. So if you're a British airline you count towards UK emissions, it's not flights flying over Britain or flights terminating or starting in Britain. It's a much more economic analysis, then, it's aeroplanes that are essentially British owned, is that how we do it?   SB Exactly yeah, so it's UK registered. So if they're a company that are registered as being a UK business, then it will capture that activity, but there's no sort of physical boundaries that you might experience with other measures. It's more of, as you say, an economic term where it's more about the registration of the business.   MF Well that does say something about what a global issue this is really. If it's not measured in that local way, it's an issue for the world to address collectively.   SB Absolutely. And by combining those international comparisons, it should give you that full picture of exactly what's happening there. We can do that across different measures of our accounts as well. And for example, within the environmental taxation space, we put our taxation data in the context of the sort of broader international space where we compare against EU countries for example, so with all of our measures, what we're really looking to do is to sort of piece together this net zero puzzle, and each of our measures look to inform the other, and it is not without that broad picture that you can actually start to understand some of these.   MF Certainly where we are now, it's households that are the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, and previously of course it used to be the industrial sector. So it explains the policy focus doesn't it on households and vehicles as well, because those are the big emitters of greenhouse gases as far as the UK is now concerned.   SB Yes. So you touched on households there, as you say they now emit more greenhouse gas emissions than any other economic sector. And while households do tend to have limited influence over emissions related to things like heating their homes, we have seen that half of all household emissions do come from travel. And as you can imagine, we saw dips in these in the Coronavirus period. Where the biggest emitters used to be energy and manufacturing there has been a switch from oil to gas and things around improved processes. And the more recent increase that we've seen in renewables has seen big declines in greenhouse gas emissions from these two sectors in particular.   MF Have we seen any lasting impacts from the pandemic or have things just reverted back to exactly as they were before?   SB So it depends on which measure you're looking at as to how continuous the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic was with our statistics. So for example, with our environmental taxes, we saw quite a big dip there after a relatively stable annual increase. Since then it's pretty much bounced back to what it was in 2019 and we'll look to future years to see whether this continues. Transport is now responsible for 16% of all UK greenhouse gas emissions and because of its increased importance in our stats when all transport stops during the pandemic greenhouse gas emissions did fall dramatically by about 11% or so, and with the recovering of transport we have seen the greenhouse gas emissions have increased in recent years.    MF So to that extent people have reverted to their same old pre-pandemic ways, which raises a whole question of how policymakers can influence behaviors and of course the classic way for policymakers to stop people doing things is to tax them. And the effectiveness, or otherwise, of environmental taxes Sophie is something we also look into, because that's a very important factor in all this. Tell us what we've found about all that.   SB The intention of those is to create these behavioural shifts and allow people to be making those decisions to move towards more environmentally friendly alternatives. So what we found is that through this taxation we have raised 52 and a half billion pounds in 2023 in the UK, with fuel duty being the single largest tax contributor to this at nearly half the amount. This coincides quite nicely with what we're seeing on the greenhouse gas emissions data where consumer expenditure from car transport is contributing largely to this. In the international space, when we look at our environmental tax figure as a percentage of GDP, this now amounts to 2% of GDP. So that sits a bit lower than the EU average, which currently sits at 2.3%.    MF What other environmental taxes are there then that are included, which again, might be varied or even increased in the years to come?   SB That's a very good question. So we're constantly considering how our statistics might evolve, and how our definitions might evolve. Some examples about environmental taxes include things like energy taxes, so things like your fuel duty and taxes on the type of energy sources that you're using. We then also have things like transport taxes. So these are air passenger duty, and things like that. But then we also have what we call pollution and resource taxes. So one of the most recently introduced ones of those is plastic packaging tax. So we do split up the different tax types in our release.   MF And again, on a local level, there's the whole question of how effective low emission zones are, and the crackdown on old diesel cars and so forth. Is that local picture available if you're a local authority seeking to investigate the effectiveness of measures like that?   SB So we don't currently disaggregate our data into below UK level unfortunately, but we are constantly discussing these things and I believe there's a discussion this year around the low emission zones and how we classify these. We generally follow the national tax list when it comes to categorizing our different taxes. So we're regularly reviewing these and considering which could be considered environmental and which wouldn't.   MF Interesting. Finally then with you Sophie, the whole question of jobs and employment, because if you look at traditional economic measures you want to have lots of people in productive industries making things, creating economic value. When the environmental factor comes in of course, you can see reasons why it's not such a great idea to have lots of people working in high emitting industries, and that's where the whole concept of green jobs - and on the other side of the fence, non-green jobs – is something the ONS has been developing its work around as well.   SB Yes, absolutely. So in looking at employment, which is an area of the economy with high user interest, particularly with regards to the green job space, we can look at things like jobs in high emitting industries as an example. So what we've seen is that five industry sections have accounted for around 82% of total industry greenhouse gas emissions across the UK, and of these five industries they employed around 16%. So that's one in every six or so UK employees.   MF Now there are some quite substantial variations around the UK regionally, when it comes to the numbers of people employed in these non-green jobs, aren't there?   SB Yeah, so what we're seeing is that one in five Midlands workers were in high emissions industries in this time compared with one in 12 workers in London.   MF And Gemma then, this idea of a green job and a non-green job, how do we define those two things?   GT Well Miles, it's really, really challenging, and it's something that ONS has been working on for a long time and it's been a real leader in the field. You'd think, “Oh, green job”, and that term is used a lot. But in reality, it can mean different things to different people. ONS has done a lot of work over the years like with the low carbon economy, measuring that where that is looking at things in the low carbon and renewable energy space. But we realised that people wanted more and they wanted this definition and after a lot of work and discussion, we have agreed a definition where it's as: ‘Employment and activity that contributes to protecting or restoring the environment, including those that mitigate or adapt to climate change.' And I think the key thing is it's wider than net zero. It's also about nature. It's also about jobs that are protecting nature, not just those that are helping to reduce emissions. And then in terms of non-green or brown as it's sometimes called, that is a challenge. And that's where Sophie has talked about, we look at high emitting industries. Because in reality you need to be practical, and those are the industries that maybe we'll see the most change - the industries that have high emissions. The real challenge, though, is that our current classification systems, you know, some of those green jobs will occur in those high emission industries. You think of things like the energy sector, not only does it have oil and gas jobs, but it also has renewable energies, and our way that we currently do economic statistics doesn't allow us to break that down. And that's the big challenge and that's what people are grappling with including us at the ONS.   MF Thank you Gemma. And Ian then, finally from you. This whole question of nailing down precisely what is a green job, what is the green economy - as we've heard from Gemma, it's very dynamic and there is a lot of work going on in this area. But where is this all going internationally? How are we collaborating with other statistical organisations around the world on this, and is there anything we can learn from other countries?   IT I think in many ways we're near the front of the pack on this internationally. So a lot of the work we've been doing is about sharing our experiences, and in the kind of broader space of environment measurement we're very involved with the UN in particular, particularly on natural capital accounts. And we're also looking at some major revisions to some of the systems that underlie how we do these things. So for example, there's a big shift internationally in the way that we measure GDP and there's an element of that which is around the environment, so we're engaged with that too. So quite a lot going on in that space. We also have regular bilaterals with other national stats institutes as well, to share learning and understand what other people are doing. And obviously, the more organisations doing this work, the more mutual learning we can benefit from as well.   MF And how do you see things developing from here on, in terms of ONS's measurement of the environment?   IT I think we've been able to do quite a lot over the last few years, building on great work over a much longer period. And there's a lot that we could be doing- of course the challenge is always about channeling the resources available to the highest impact activity that we can be doing. I think one of the things we're going to be looking at is to move to accredited ‘official statistics' status for the natural capital accounts. It might sound a bit inward looking but it's a real mark of quality that we'd like to have, and it would set it alongside economic statistics that have that kind of accreditation. We're also reflecting on, of course, the new government's priorities following the general election. One of the things that we've been experiencing quite a lot of demand for, and particularly from local and combined authorities across the country is around greater granularity for our environmental data - so data at Local Authority / Combined Authority levels. So that might be in the mix. It's something we've been thinking about and gradually releasing more for. We'll also continue to be working across the ONS and across the wider government statistics service on the topic as well, so do watch out for collaborations in that space. And of course, as we've just talked about, the international aspects as well. And of course, we always welcome interest and feedback in our work, so if people are interested, please do get in touch.   MF I'm sure they will. And it's worth pointing out to our listeners that once a quarter, the ONS publishes key statistics on Wellbeing and Beyond GDP, which can help people understand the environment in the context of the economy. And I think on the same day you can also check out the latest quarterly greenhouse gas emissions data.   That's it for another episode of ‘Statistically Speaking'. Thanks to Gemma Thomas, Sophie Barrand and Ian Townsend for joining us. And of course as ever thanks to you for listening.  You can subscribe to future episodes of this podcast on Spotify, Apple podcasts and all the other major podcast platforms.    You can also follow us on ‘X' - previously known as Twitter - via the @ONSfocus feed.     I'm Miles Fletcher and from myself, and our producer Steve Milne... goodbye.   ENDS 

Labour has returned to power in Westminster for the first time in 14 years. The new Government has a big electoral mandate but faces a momentous task in delivering lasting economic and social change. From kickstarting growth and reducing poverty, to reforming the planning system, energy market and workplace conditions, Labour's agenda is fraught with political and economic risk. Yet it also arrives in office with a commanding majority and the opportunity to set out an ambitious governing agenda. What are the biggest challenges that the new Government faces? How should the new Chancellor approach her first Budget and Spending Review? When should we expect Labour's extensive list of reforms and new strategies to start making a difference to people's lives? And what are the prospects of the Starmer government forging a new political and economic settlement in the country? The Resolution Foundation is hosting an in-person and interactive webinar to debate and answer these questions. Bringing together a panel of Britain's political scientists, commentators, policy experts and economists, we'll discuss the outlook for a new Labour Government. View the election briefings: https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/major-programme/election-2024/  View the event slides: https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/events/times-are-changing/ 

Snag Our Signature Budget Template! Hey there, budgeting besties! Are you ready to dive into the new year with a solid financial plan? If you haven't crafted your January budget yet, you're in the perfect place! Just like nurturing loyal customers after a successful digital course, managing your finances requires engagement, strategy, and a forward-thinking mindset. In this episode, we're going to unfold the secrets to a powerful January budget, setting you up for a prosperous start to the year. Reviewing December Importance: Understanding past spending, especially during the holiday season. Tips: Adjust budgets based on actual expenses, learning from any overspending. January Budget Planning, Five Essential Components: Income: Adjust for any new year changes. Debts: Include any holiday spending and plan for repayment. Bills: Account for new subscriptions and winter utility changes. Spending: Review and adjust discretionary categories. Savings: Update goals and start year-long saving habits. Special January Considerations Debt Management: Tips for addressing holiday debt. New Year Resolutions: Incorporating health and wellness goals into your budget. Tax Preparation: Planning for the upcoming tax season. Savings Goals: Setting targets for the new year. Client Stories & Practical Tips Real-life experiences: Learn from client stories on budget adjustments and savings strategies. Call to Action: Grab the free one-page budget template at myidealbalance.com/budgettemplate to kickstart your January budgeting journey. 4 Ways To Connect With Us: 1️⃣ FREE CALL: Book your FREE 20-Minute Financial Coaching Call now! Get personalized advice and start your financial journey ➡︎ https://www.myidealbalance.com/freecall  2️⃣ FACEBOOK: Become part of our Supportive Facebook Group. Connect, share, and learn with others mastering their budget skills ➡︎ https://www.myidealbalance.com/facebook  3️⃣ BUDGET: Grab our Signature Budget Template! It's your key to organizing and optimizing your finances effectively ➡︎ https://myidealbalance.com/budget  4️⃣ COACHING: Ready to dive deep into your finances? Sign up for our 1-on-1 Financial Coaching. It's the accountability and guidance you need to make real progress ➡︎ https://myidealbalance.com/coaching  "I love Shana & Vanessa and this podcast is amazing!" < If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing our show! It helps us to reach more people – just like you – to help them change their financial future. Don't forget to follow the show so you don't miss any episodes! And, if you're feeling really generous, we'd be SO honored if you would share this podcast with someone.  Click here to view our privacy policy. This description may contain affiliate links, meaning we may get a commission at no cost to you if you click & purchase!   --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/idealbalance/message

⬇⬇⬇APRIMI⬇⬇ Vuoi imparare l'analisi dati partendo da zero? Registrati gratuitamente al nostro corso! Acquisisci le competenze necessarie compilando il form di iscrizione qui: https://forms.gle/aQNDdsjKc33C8o6v8 Non perdere questa opportunità di ampliare le tue conoscenze in analisi dati. Iscriviti ora! Prevendita Guida Terrestre per Autoeconomisti: https://www.aristodemicaedizioni.com/product-page/economiaitalia-guida-terrestre-per-autoeconomisti Presentazione: https://www.umbertobertonelli.it/nel-partito-che-vorrei Abbonati qui: https://www.youtube.com/economiaitalia/join https://www.patreon.com/join/EconomiaItalia? Partito dei Basati - Caro Babbo natale ti scrivo: BASATI DI TUTTO IL MONDO UNITEVI! 00:00 Guida terreste per Autoeconomisti 02:20 Presentiamo il partito dei Basati 07:55 Il Mix energetico bilanciato per i Basati 11:40 Riduzione dei SAD: i basati sono per l'ambiente 14:55 Negative Income Tax: fai emergere il basato che è in te 18:05 Eliminazione del regime forfettario: piccolo non è bello, per il basato 20:25 Tassazione Equa e Responsabile: il basato non evade 26:00 Spending Review per l'Efficienza Pubblica: AFUERA! 27:00 Riduzione Realistica delle Pensioni per una Sostenibilità Equilibrata: il basato pensa alle nuove generazioni 30:00 Salario Minimo ed eliminazione dei CCNL: Il basato non ha paura dei Padroni! 34:00 Riduzione contributi under 30: per i gggiovani Basati 36:00 Asili nido gratuiti: per i pargoletti basati 36:40 Riforma Taxi: i muscoli del Basato 37:53 Riforma Balneari: A Santanchè non piace questo elemento 39:00 Legalizzazione degli stupefacenti e della prostituzione: per il Basato che non deve mai chiedere 42:30 Riforma scolastica sulla base del modello charter school: per lo studente Basato 43:40 Diritti Civili BASATI 45:15 Federalismo: per i Basati del NORD 48:21 Politica Internazionale e Europa: Per un'Europa Basata 49:00 OK MA QUANTO COSTA? 51:43 Perchè questo partito non si farà mai? Qui per segnalare temi: https://tellonym.me/dr.elegantia Podcast (su tutte le piattaforme): https://www.spreaker.com/show/dr-elegantia-podcast COME SOSTENERCI: Il nostro nuovo libro sull'economia: Guida Terrestre per Autoeconomisti https://www.poliniani.com/product-page/guida-terrestre link acquisto Amazon: https://amzn.to/36XTXs8 Acquistando le nostre T-shirt dedicate ai dati stampate in Serigrafia Artigianale con passione e orgoglio dai detenuti del Carcere Lorusso e Cutugno di Torino https://bit.ly/3zNsdkd e HTTPS://urly.it/3nga1 Guida al VOTO 2022: https://amzn.to/3KflXHd DonazionI Paypal: https://paypal.me/appuntiUAB Vuoi sostenermi ma non sborsare nemmeno un euro? Usa questo link per per il tuo prossimo acquisto su Amazon: https://amzn.to/2JGRyGT Qui trovi i libri che consiglio per iniziare a capirne di più sull'economia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEaIk8wQ3z8 Dove ci trovi: https://www.umbertobertonelli.it/info/ https://linktr.ee/economiaitalia La mia postazione: Logitech streamcam https://amzn.to/3HR6xq0 Luci https://amzn.to/3n6qtgP Shure MV7https://amzn.to/3HRh7k1 Asta https://amzn.to/3HSRvzY #economiaitalia #drelegantia #economiaDiventa un supporter di questo podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dr-elegantia-podcast--5692498/support.

⬇⬇⬇APRIMI⬇⬇ Vuoi imparare l'analisi dati partendo da zero? Registrati gratuitamente al nostro corso! Acquisisci le competenze necessarie compilando il form di iscrizione qui: https://forms.gle/aQNDdsjKc33C8o6v8 Non perdere questa opportunità di ampliare le tue conoscenze in analisi dati. Iscriviti ora! Prevendita Guida Terrestre per Autoeconomisti: https://www.aristodemicaedizioni.com/product-page/economiaitalia-guida-terrestre-per-autoeconomisti Presentazione: https://www.umbertobertonelli.it/nel-partito-che-vorrei Abbonati qui: https://www.youtube.com/economiaitalia/join https://www.patreon.com/join/EconomiaItalia? Partito dei Basati - Caro Babbo natale ti scrivo: BASATI DI TUTTO IL MONDO UNITEVI! 00:00 Guida terreste per Autoeconomisti 02:20 Presentiamo il partito dei Basati 07:55 Il Mix energetico bilanciato per i Basati 11:40 Riduzione dei SAD: i basati sono per l'ambiente 14:55 Negative Income Tax: fai emergere il basato che è in te 18:05 Eliminazione del regime forfettario: piccolo non è bello, per il basato 20:25 Tassazione Equa e Responsabile: il basato non evade 26:00 Spending Review per l'Efficienza Pubblica: AFUERA! 27:00 Riduzione Realistica delle Pensioni per una Sostenibilità Equilibrata: il basato pensa alle nuove generazioni 30:00 Salario Minimo ed eliminazione dei CCNL: Il basato non ha paura dei Padroni! 34:00 Riduzione contributi under 30: per i gggiovani Basati 36:00 Asili nido gratuiti: per i pargoletti basati 36:40 Riforma Taxi: i muscoli del Basato 37:53 Riforma Balneari: A Santanchè non piace questo elemento 39:00 Legalizzazione degli stupefacenti e della prostituzione: per il Basato che non deve mai chiedere 42:30 Riforma scolastica sulla base del modello charter school: per lo studente Basato 43:40 Diritti Civili BASATI 45:15 Federalismo: per i Basati del NORD 48:21 Politica Internazionale e Europa: Per un'Europa Basata 49:00 OK MA QUANTO COSTA? 51:43 Perchè questo partito non si farà mai? Qui per segnalare temi: https://tellonym.me/dr.elegantia Podcast (su tutte le piattaforme): https://www.spreaker.com/show/dr-elegantia-podcast COME SOSTENERCI: Il nostro nuovo libro sull'economia: Guida Terrestre per Autoeconomisti https://www.poliniani.com/product-page/guida-terrestre link acquisto Amazon: https://amzn.to/36XTXs8 Acquistando le nostre T-shirt dedicate ai dati stampate in Serigrafia Artigianale con passione e orgoglio dai detenuti del Carcere Lorusso e Cutugno di Torino https://bit.ly/3zNsdkd e HTTPS://urly.it/3nga1 Guida al VOTO 2022: https://amzn.to/3KflXHd DonazionI Paypal: https://paypal.me/appuntiUAB Vuoi sostenermi ma non sborsare nemmeno un euro? Usa questo link per per il tuo prossimo acquisto su Amazon: https://amzn.to/2JGRyGT Qui trovi i libri che consiglio per iniziare a capirne di più sull'economia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEaIk8wQ3z8 Dove ci trovi: https://www.umbertobertonelli.it/info/ https://linktr.ee/economiaitalia La mia postazione: Logitech streamcam https://amzn.to/3HR6xq0 Luci https://amzn.to/3n6qtgP Shure MV7https://amzn.to/3HRh7k1 Asta https://amzn.to/3HSRvzY #economiaitalia #drelegantia #economia

España gasta 14.000 millones de euros al año en subvenciones no auditadas pero no tiene dinero para los enfermos de ELA. Desde el año 2019, dice Javier Cárdenas, España gasta 14 mil millones de euros al año en subvenciones no auditadas gracias al gobierno del Psoe. La Autoridad Independiente de Responsabilidad Fiscal (AIReF) ha constatado que ese dinero no está sujeto a rendición de cuentas ni a procedimientos sancionadores por mal uso.La AIReF ha publicado este lunes el primer estudio dentro de su proceso de revisión del integral gasto público («Spending Review»), que está centrado en la planificación estratégica y los procedimientos en el ámbito de las subvenciones definidas en la Ley General de Subvenciones, que suponen un monto de 14.000 millones (de acuerdo con la base de datos nacional de subvenciones).No es que exista un descontrol, pero sí una falta de estrategia, de transparencia y de trazabilidad, de manera que no se puede asegurar si existen duplicidades o solapamientos, puesto que es imposible hacer el «recorrido» desde que la subvención sale de una administración pública hasta que llega al beneficiario.Las mismas fuentes han explicado que este estudio concreto sobre subvenciones les ha permitido detectar una falta de estrategia en la definición de todas las políticas públicas, ante lo que la AIReF vuelve a insistir en la necesidad de una programación presupuestaria de medio plazo mejor coordinada entre todas las administraciones. Y mientras hay dinero para esto, el Gobierno de Sánchez dice que no tiene dinero para los enfermos de ELA.El Gobierno de Pedro Sánchez ha respondido a Vox en el Congreso de los Diputados que la proposición de ley para aflojar la presión fiscal a unos 66.000 enfermos de Esclerosis Lateral Amiotrófica (ELA) no saldrá adelante. Y no lo hará porque, según asegura el Gobierno, tendría un coste inasumible para las arcas del Estado: 38 millones de euros. Es un millón menos de lo que los Presupuestos Generales del Estado consignan en ayudas a la producción de cine en lenguas cooficiales como el catalán, el vasco o el gallego, de hecho «cambian todo tipo de leyes para hacer lo que les da la gana pero para tramitar una Ley en favor de los enfermos de ELA y grandes dependientes no mueven un solo dedo». «Cuánta miseria»«No hay dinero para quienes de verdad lo necesitan. Es el Gobierno contra la gente»

Do you struggle with overspending or find yourself living paycheck to paycheck? One of the most powerful ways to take control of your finances is by conducting regular spending reviews. In this episode, we'll explore how setting aside time each week to review your bank account and expenses can help you become more aware of your spending habits, identify areas for improvement, and ultimately save you money.Discussion Points: The importance of tracking your expenses to gain financial awareness and controlHow to set up a system for regular spending reviews, including what to look for and what tools to useThe benefits of reviewing your expenses on a weekly basis rather than less frequentlyStrategies for identifying and reducing unnecessary expenses, including how to prioritize what to cut back onHow to use spending reviews to identify trends in your spending habits over time, and adjust your budget accordinglyThe impact of consistent spending reviews on overall financial health, including debt reduction and savings growthSound good? Let's rip in. Enjoy the show! Want more Ellen Ave? Head over ellenave.com now and subscribe to the newsletter. It's the best way to get everything. ---Need help with digital marketing? Work with us here. Website & Newsletter: ellenave.comLinkedIn Profile: Finlay BarnettInstagram: @ellenavepodcastYoutube: Ellen Ave MediaTikTok: @ellenavepodcast

Guest host, Lori Turnbull, Deputy Editor, Canadian Government Executive welcomes very special guest Michael Wernick, former clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet, currently Senior Strategic Advisor at MNP. Together, they dig into the hot and stressful topic of Spending Reviews – how they work, how they're designed and their impact over the longer term. Also in this episode: Is the modern Spending Review somehow a different undertaking? How urgent is the challenge from a fiscal perspective? What sort of problems do we have with debt and deficits What are some lessons learned from past reviews? Can the government improve while cutting? What are the positive opportunities of the Spending Review And much, much more! Want to hear even more from Michael Wernick? Check him out at the DX Summit on May 26, 2022 where he will be a keynote speaker!

Have you ever made an emotional spending decision?In this episode of The Australian Finance Podcast Kate Campbell and Owen Rask chat to Emma Edwards from The Broke Generation, who helps people feel better about their finances and strengthen their money habits.Emma shares some practical strategies listeners can use to improve their relationship with money, balance present you vs future you when making spending decisions, tips to bringing fun and happiness back into your budget and outlines how to do a weekly spending review.Episode transcript now available via the show notes page.Take one of our amazing money & investing courses (think ETFs, shares, property and FIRE) on Rask Education and join our wonderful FB community.Score $100 off our premium ASX & US share research service, Rask Invest!If you want to thank us for putting this show together, please give The Australian Finance Podcast a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify - it's a 5 second task which really helps support the show (and puts a big smile on our faces).Full individual disclosures for each guest are available via the show notes page. Owen, Kate and The Rask Group Pty Ltd do NOT receive anything for mentioning Super funds, products, shares, bank accounts, etc.|| We're proudly supported by ETF Securities ||Learn more about ETF Securities: https://bit.ly/fundsETFS |DISCLAIMER: This podcast contains general financial information only. That means the information does not take into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. Because of that, you should consider if the information is appropriate to you and your needs, before acting on it. If you're confused about what that means or what your needs are, you should always consult a licensed and trusted financial planner. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information in this podcast, including any financial, taxation, and/or legal information. Remember, past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The Rask Group is NOT a qualified tax accountant, financial (tax) adviser, or financial adviser.Access The Rask Group's Financial Services Guide (FSG): https://www.rask.com.au/fsgDate recorded: 4th April 2022

Stewart Watts, VP EMEA at D2L – the global learning provider, joins me on Tech Talks Daily in a conversation on the state of digital transformation across HigherEd, and the sectors' recovery plans.   As part of its Outcome Delivery Plan: 2021 to 2022, the Department for Education (DfE) has prioritised improving the sector's digital infrastructure and connectivity. Indeed, DfE has placed ‘innovation, technology and data' front and centre and this has been reflected in the recent Autumn Budget and Spending Review, with a new package of £1.8 in financial support. However, it has acknowledged that it will need to reassess all current staff training initiatives, particularly in the use of digital technologies, in order to facilitate this.   In its latest research, D2L consulted 500 higher education professionals in the UK on their motivations behind their digital transformation strategies, as well their struggles over the last 18 months, and what the drivers behind their post-pandemic recovery plans will be. It found that improving student experience, course quality and digital infrastructure are vital and will play a major role in most institutions future growth plans.  Stewart Watts discusses DfE's recovery plan and how universities should approach DX in the coming months. Drawing upon D2L's research, he also argues that faculties will need to reassess all current online or blended learning programmes. Including: The current state of UK digital learning programmes and how institutions approached DX based on D2L's findings What institutions should be prioritising as part of their recovery plans and how learning must be ‘data-driven' The tools at universities' disposal as they look to cover the gaps in students' learning and improve overall experienceThe need for a flexible online learning environment and contingency plans to guarantee continuity for students

In this latest episode of the 1001 Critical Days podcast, Andrea talks to Dame Rachel de Souza, Children's Commissioner about her role in improving the early years and how she thinks the recent Spending Review settlement will make a difference for early years support and services for families across England.

Fresh of the back of being inaugurated as ICE President, Ed McCann joins NCE editor Claire Smith and head of content & engagement Rob Horgan on the podcast to go over the latest news. Recorded ahead of the Integrated Rail Plan's publication, Ed explains how a year of uncertainty has affected the industry while remaining sympathetic to the difficult position the government found itself in amid the pandemic. Ed also looks over the Spending Review as well as announcements made at COP26 and gives his take alongside Claire and Rob on what it means for civil engineers. The ICE's 157th President then moves on to discuss his upcoming year at the helm of the Institution, mapping out how he plans to take on the good work done by Rachel Skinner in terms of addressing the climate crisis. The trio then wind the clock back and discuss how Ed came to be an engineer, uncover how he ended up studying for a masters in Mexico and reminisce about iconic projects in Ed's past such as Heathrow's Terminal 5 and the Olympic Velodrome. The Engineers Collective is powered by Bentley Systems. Around the world, engineers and architects, constructors and owner-operators are using Bentley's software solutions to accelerate project delivery and improve asset performance for transportation infrastructure that sustains our economy and our environment. Together, we are advancing infrastructure.

The RCSLT news podcast for November 2021 includes:- BuildBackBetterSLT petition response from the Government- What the Spending Review means for speech and language therapy in England- RCSLT health inequalities work recognised by the Royal Society for Public Health www.rcslt.org/learning/diversity…alth-inequalities/- Communication Access birthday communication-access.co.uk/#- and much moreThis interview is conducted by Victoria Harris, Head of Learning at The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and features Derek Munn, RCSLT's Director of Policy and Public Affairs.

Following the UK Government's 2021 Spending Review announcement from Chancellor Rishi Sunak, we speak to to Dr Ed Poole and Guto Ifan of the Wales Fiscal Analysis team at Cardiff University's Wales Governance Centre to find out whether it is good or bad news for Wales. You can find out more from our guests on Twitter: Dr Ed Poole: https://twitter.com/EdGarethPoole Guto Ifan: https://twitter.com/Guto_Ifan The Wales Governance Centre: https://twitter.com/WalesGovernance For the latest pods, blogs and videos, follow us here: https://twitter.com/HiraethBlog And do please leave us a review and subscribe in your podcast app of choice.

In this week's show, Skills World Live presenter Tom Bewick, looks at the impact of the recent Budget and Spending Review for FE and skills. The Department for Education says the three year settlement for FE will result in a 26 per cent real terms increase on levels invested in 2019. However, analysis by the Learning and Work Institute has found that by 2025, spending will still be on average, £750 million less on FE than it was in 2010.There is a special segment looking at the ongoing controversy of the Level 3 qualifications review, including analysis of education questions in the House of Commons on Monday; and later in the week, the appearance of the education secretary and DfE perm sec, at the Education Select Committee. Featuring in this week's episode: Nadhim Zahawi MP, Secretary of State for Education Susan Acland Hood, Perm Sec, DfEVera Hobhouse MP, Liberal Democrat Robert Halfon MP, chair of the Education Select Committee Alun Francis, Principal of Oldham College and Deputy Chair, Social Mobility Commission Stephen Evans, Chief executive, Learning and Work Institute

Alex Cunningham MP, Shadow Justice Minister for Courts and Sentencing and former Chair of the Westminster All-Party Parliamentary Group on Social Work and BASW UK Public and Political Affairs Lead, Kerri Prince join Andy McClenaghan to discuss what the UK Government's Autumn Budget and Spending Review mean for social work, social workers and people who use social work services. They consider the Government's decisions on Universal Credit and the living wage, grant funding for local authorities, funding for youth services, early intervention to tackle youth offending and social housing provision. Kerri's blog, which is referenced during the episode is available here – https://www.basw.co.uk/media/news/2021/oct/budget-2021-what-do-social-workers-need-know See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On 27 October, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced his Autumn Budget and Spending Review. Our expert economics panel will be convened again to discuss the impacts of Brexit and Covid-19 on the announcements. Speakers: Ben Chu, Economics Editor, BBC Newsnight Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist, Institute for Government Professor Meredith Crowley, Senior Fellow, UK in a Changing Europe Professor Jonathan Portes, Senior Fellow, UK in a Changing Europe Chair: Professor Anand Menon, Director, UK in a Changing Europe

On Wednesday, Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered another Budget alongside a Spending Review. Much of what it contained had previously been revealed, including the forthcoming National Insurance hike, frozen income tax bands, triple lock suspension and a flurry of information over the weekend. Georgie Frost, Simon Lambert and Lee Boyce run the rule on the latest Budget and updated figures on inflation and base rate predictions, alongside where the economy is at… and potentially heading. The Chancellor didn't reinstate the Universal Credit uplift, instead lowering the taper while also rising the minimum wage to £9.50 an hour – will that help working families? With a cost of living crisis that seems to be looming with petrol, food and energy prices rising, were there any measures to help combat this? Could base rate really reach 3.5 per cent by 2023, and should homeowners be worried about potentially rising mortgage costs? And what about the threat of rising inflation, now predicted to be plus-4 per cent next year? There was an update about cladding and changes to short haul flight taxes alongside a promise to fix a tax quirk that deprives low-paid workers of pension cash which is paid to better off colleagues – but not until 2025.

This week chancellor Rishi Sunak stood in parliament to deliver his Spending Review and Budget. Speaking on Wednesday he looked to set out a post-pandemic plan for the country, but where does housing fit into this? Today on The Housing Podcast we analyse what the chancellor said and assess the impact it may have for the sector.

The role of forms on contract have played over the last 30 years in moving the construction sector from an adversarial one to a collaborative one is explored in the latest episode. New Engineering Contracts (NEC) Users' Group Chair John Welch, who is also currently deputy director for construction at Crown Commercial Service, and Andrew McNaughton who has recently joined Aczel as infrastructure lead join NCE editor Claire Smith and features editor Nadine Buddoo to talk about the impact NEC has had on the industry. John and Andrew discuss the drivers for the NEC contracts to be used on smaller projects now, as well as major schemes, and look at why the system is gaining ground internationally too. Both guests point to NEC's basis as a simple form of contract that uses plain English as the main reason for widening adoption. They also discuss how evolution of the contracts has set out the principles for collaboration but say that it is really up to the project partners to foster those principles and put them into action. Before the interview, Claire chats with NCE's head of content and engagement Rob Horgan and reporter Catherine Kennedy about what is likely to come out the Spending Review last today (27 October) and what the industry hopes will come out of COP26 in Glasgow. The news team also talk about the stories that have caught the interest of readers in the last month from National Highways' historic rail bridge infilling to the fifth anniversary of construction work starting at Hinkley Point C nuclear power station. The Engineers Collective is powered by Bentley Systems. Around the world, engineers and architects, constructors and owner-operators are using Bentley's software solutions to accelerate project delivery and improve asset performance for transportation infrastructure that sustains our economy and our environment. Together, we are advancing infrastructure.

In this episode of the 1001 Critical Days podcast, Andrea speaks with her parliamentary colleague and fellow early years champion, Tim Loughton MP about their work on the Early Years Healthy Development Review as well as reacting to the announcement of extensive funding for the Start for Life vision in the Spending Review.

Join Mark Morton for his first thoughts as the team here at Mercia HQ work through the detail of the Chancellors Autumn Budget & Spending Review. 

Budgets, booze and The Beatles... Rishi Sunak made some big announcements in his Budget and Spending Review today. His speech included changes to Universal Tax Credit, Business rates and taxation. Adam, Laura and "PJ" from the Institute for Fiscal Studies get into it all. And (because booze is one of the big topics of the day) we hear from the Head Winemaker at The Bolney Wine Estate. How much will a bottle of bubbles set you back now? Today's Newscast was made by Maz Ebtehaj, with Georgia Coan and Ben Cooper. Hannah Montgomery is the studio director. Sam Bonham is the assistant editor.

On Wednesday, October 27, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak will deliver his next Budget and Spending Review to the House of Commons. In the latest episode of MetCast we hear from Christian Spence, Head of Future Economies Analytics in Manchester Metropolitan's Future Economies Research Centre, about what we can expect to hear from the Chancellor and where the Government's spending priorities may lie. Feedback is always welcome, as are reviews and ratings on iTunes, so please head there to let us know what you think. If you'd like to contact us – or feel you've got a story we should cover – please get in touch via content@mmu.ac.uk.

October Budget 2021 6 Changes That Could Hit Your Pocket UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak will set out the government's tax and spending plans on Wednesday 27 October. The BBC is predicting six tax and budget changes at a time when Rishi Sunak has already announced a £7 billion spending spree on northern transport links and childcare help for families. There is also a possibility of extended loan support, due to end in December for businesses struggling to come out of the recession, or subject to another winter lockdown? This will be the second Budget of the year, after one in March, and will coincide with the conclusions of the 2021 Spending Review, which will give details of how government will fund public services for the next three years. Here are six possible things to watch out for in the Budget that could affect your personal finances. 1. VAT on energy bills cut 2. Alcohol tax hike 3. Capital Gains Tax rates increase 4. Student loan threshold reduction 5. Minimum wage rise increase 6. Pension higher rate allowance cut Financial education in investing is the key to building and keeping wealth. Never stop learning!  Keep watching or listening to my free podcasts on iTunes and subscribe to my YouTube channel for regular financial news and updates. If you would like to learn more about investing and managing your money, become a professional property investor, or would like tobe financially free without working any harder, watch this free on demand training. I will give a special free gift which can help you to immediately transform your finances when you attend the online training. Click on this link to watch the free training now https://bit.ly/3wLWqx2    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the last decade, stagnant real wages have squeezed living standards, wealth has become increasingly concentrated and having a job has been no guarantee of stable, secure or sufficient income. The economy is no longer producing the quality of jobs people need to support their families and opportunities vary depending on where people live and what their background is. The pandemic has exacerbated the UK's longstanding regional inequality and the questions of how to ensure the transition to a green economy - is gaining prominence.As inequality worsens and the capacity for communities around the world to shake off economic challenges is depleted, the case for switching to a new ‘inclusive growth' model is intensifying.At the heart of our work is the belief that inclusive growth can allow individuals, families and communities across the UK to contribute and benefit from shared prosperity. For this to happen, people need access to good jobs and a supportive social infrastructure, including health, skills training and childcare. Economic policy must reflect this and recognise inclusive growth as a driver of productivity, both nationally and locally.In our first podcast, CPP's director Charlotte Alldritt speaks with CPP's Head of Research, Ben Franklin; the Senior Lead of the Inclusive Growth Network hosted by CPP, Annabel Smith; and Ben Lucas, Managing Director at Metro Dynamics.Our guests will be discussing why inclusive growth has never been more important and what they would like to see in the upcoming Spending Review, Budget and Levelling up White Paper - set to be published by the UK Government. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has all you need to know to be ready for Rishi Sunak's Budget and Spending Review at the end of the month. Will taxes go up again? Is there any money left for anyone else after Sajid Javid has got the lion's share? And in what kind of state has Covid left the UK's public finances? Andy Bell speaks to British economist, Paul Johnson CBE to find out. How Did We Get Here? Explaining the News is a podcast from 5 News. Join Andy Bell as he explains the world's biggest news stories through interviews with politicians, experts, and analysts. Produced by Silvia Maresca.

The #SkillsWorldLive Radio Show is back! In this 50-minute special the show's presenter, Tom Bewick, asks the important question “Will the Spending Review deliver for FE?”.After the news, Tom speaks to Rt Anne Milton the Former skills minister, Julian Gravatt from Association of Colleges and Luke Sebiata from the IFS for their views.After an extended length interview Tom speaks to Emily Carver, Head of Media at the Institute of Economic Affairs.

Today, we are focus on starting exactly where we are with a 30 Days of Spending Review. If you are spending $1000 on food right now, only budgeting $100 for next month is going to set you up for failure and frustration. I talk about lowering expenses in an achievable way and setting goals for the next month! You can download the free mini budget workbook here: https://thesavvysagittarius.com/mini-workbook/ Or Check out the full version of the workbook here: https://thesavvysagittarius.com/the-savvy-budget-workbook/ Discount Code PODCAST3 for $3 off any workbook in my store! All transcriptions/captions available for podcast episodes on youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkL1MR7Kj7xEzXGUzv26ZHQ/ There is a new podcast episode every Monday at 8 AM CST! --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Chancellor Rishi Sunak recently published his 2020 Spending Review and kicked off the new £5bn UK Gigabit Broadband Programme. Even though the promise of full-fiber is great for 85% of the population by 2025, it’s imperative it’s delivered, so the whole country has access to it. To help accomplish that, Zen has focused on full-fibre for 2021 and upgraded its core network. Paul Stobart, CEO, Zen Internet, the UK’s largest independent telecommunications and technology service provider, joins me on the Tech Talks Daily Podcast. Paul has been in the technology industry for over 20 years, 16 of those years being in CEO positions at Sage (business software), CPP (financial services), and Tunstall Healthcare (healthcare technology), and has developed a strong belief that having inspired people inside a business will deliver superior financial returns. We discuss why full-fibre is key to the growth of the UK in 2021 for businesses and what other tech investing in full-fibre enables for companies. Paul also shares how Zen is investing in its core network to allow every customer to access full-fibre and why he left a multi-national company like Sage, where he grew the company from £120m turnover to £1.3bn, to join Zen.

What is the impact to Public Sector organisations charged with making these changes & ensuring that the services we all use continue to be delivered?

As we have all now seen, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak presented his ‘Spending Review 2020’ to Parliament...

Listen to highlights from our recent Community Rail event, where we brought together rail user groups and the rail industry in the North to discuss how we can encourage people back onto our railways. We also catch up with CEO of Passenger, Tom Quay, who gives us an update on how industry is improving the availability of information for safer and easier journeys in the North. Gemma and Stephen also discuss what the recent Spending Review means for the North and we hear a preview ahead of our #TfN20 event, which will feature Government Ministers, Northern Leaders and industry experts!

Taking a look at the austerity still being forced on us all by the recent Spending Review, we examine what this might mean for us all, why this keeps happening, the economic illiteracy of the media class that allows it to. T-Shirts are still on sale! Get them at http://teespring.com/stores/praxiscast Cast:David - @SanitaryNaptimeJames - @anarchonburyJamie - @wizardcubesSeb - @PCSocialismBen

The lockdown worked and reduced numbers! Hooray! So that's enough of that, back to a regional system of variable quality as we can't have COVID go completely now we've only just got used to it. Plus Rishi Sunak's Spending Review which was about the sort of fairness where you're keen to make sure everyone has an equally terrible time and there's a chat with writer Peter Gumbel (@PeterGumbel) about his new book 'Citizens Of Everywhere'.Check Peter's website and grab his book here: http://www.petergumbel.com/en/the-bookMY ACTUAL LIVE GIGS IN DEC: https://www.tiernandouieb.co.uk/gigs/JOIN PENFOLD AND GET ME MONEY THANKS: www.getpenfold.com/refer/tiernanPLEASE HELP TIERNAN SURVIVE ALL OF THE COMEDY BEING CANCELLED:Donate to the Patreon at www.patreon.com/parpolbroBuy me a coffee at https://ko-fi.com/parpolbroOR FIND THE ACAST SUPPORTER BUTTON WHEREVER IT ISUSUAL PODCAST BLABBER:LOOK AT TIERNAN'S FANCY NEW WEBSITE AND SIGN UP TO THE MAILING LIST: www.tiernandouieb.co.uk/Follow us on Twitter @parpolbro, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/ParPolBro/ and the fancy webpage at http://www.partlypoliticalbroadcast.co.ukMusic by The Last Skeptik (@thelastskeptik) - https://www.thelastskeptik.com/ - Subscribe to his podcast Thanks For Trying here.SIGN UP TO NEXT UP COMEDY AT: www.nextupcomedy.com/tiernanisgreat Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/partlypoliticalbroadcast. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hello and welcome to the Alcohol Alert, brought to you by The Institute of Alcohol Studies. In this edition:Home drinking increasingly becomes the new normal during lockdownEconomics think tank study says a reformed duty system would improve MUP’s effectivenessAlcohol Health Alliance UK pricing survey finds that alcohol is still being sold at pocket money pricesScottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems call for all MSP candidates to promise a total ban on alcohol advertising ahead of the 2021 electionsIAS to hold an online event presenting new findings on alcohol policy and nudge theory 🎵 Podcast feature 🎵The Scottish Government launches a free FASD eLearning resourceWe hope you enjoy our roundup of stories below: please feel free to share. Thank you.Lockdown: home drinking becomes the new normalNovember saw the UK enter into a second lockdown, as ministers realised that the tier system for controlling the virus could no longer contain the rising R rates throughout the UK. As a result, all pubs were forced to close from 05 November until 02 December (Morning Advertiser, 31 Oct), and anticipated bans such as that of alcohol consumed on ScotRail trains came into force (STV News, 16 Nov).The penultimate month of the calendar year was also a time for reflecting on how people’s drinking habits had changed since the first lockdown.A study from alcohol industry-funded body Drinkaware found that women were a bigger influence than men out of the 26% of people whose alcohol intake increased between March and June (Daily Mail, 02 Nov), the primary reason for doing so being that they had ‘more free time available’.The Royal College of Psychiatrists observed that nearly half (45%) of its psychiatrists had seen a rise in patients whose alcohol or drug use had contributed to a deterioration in their mental health during the pandemic (The Telegraph, 15 Nov), Dr Katherine Severi, IAS chief executive, explained that ‘the closure of bars and restaurants had driven people into drinking at home, which meant it was not only cheaper than buying in a restaurant but also that people were consuming more.’Data from Public Health England (PHE) also showed that older age groups all significantly increased their alcohol intake during lockdown, with a fifth of those aged 45 to 74 years drinking more than 21 units a week. Those aged 55 to 64 who drank at least a pint a day (three units) jumped from 17·4% to 20·6% with one in 20 consuming more than 50 units weekly, almost three pints a day.And an Opinion Matters poll of more than 1,000 people aged over 50 years, commissioned by We Are With You found that: 20% were drinking more since March; 10% earlier in the day; and more than half drink at a level that could cause health problems now or in the future, a cause of great concern for 35% of those surveyed who are children of those parents. Projected tax receipts and sales data appeared to confirm that off-licence vendors of alcohol have profited substantially from the pandemic. The Office for Budget Responsibility’s economic and fiscal outlook revised alcohol duties upward by an average £1 billion a year, as receipts in 2020/21 held up much better than assumed (24 Nov):The loss in receipts from closures of pubs and restaurants has been more than offset by higher sales in supermarkets and other shops. Alcohol consumption has therefore been one of the few tax bases left relatively unscathed by the virus.The 2020 British Lifestyles Report from consumer research group Mintel estimated that annual retail value sales of alcoholic drinks will grow at its fastest rate for at least a decade – 16% – to reach £25.5 billion in 2020, ‘as people trade nights out for evenings in’ (20 Nov). Spending per household on alcohol is expected to average £129 in 2020.Jack Duckett, Mintel associate director of consumer lifestyles research, also wrote of the potential for further growth from drinks makers appealing to the mature drinker:The growth in the size of the older population over the next five years, and the fact that they are most likely to be insulated from the financial impact of the pandemic, makes targeting the ‘grey pound’ particularly timely for all brands including alcoholic drinks.In Ireland, the Revenue discovered a slump in drinking outside the home, as their sales data recorded a 4.5% fall in alcohol consumption since the start of the year, mainly because of pubs forced to close for lockdowns. Alcohol Action Ireland warned that drinkers ‘had largely substituted their on-trade activity with unregulated home drinking’, a sentiment echoed by the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland chief Padraig Cribben. He told the Irish Sun it was ‘obvious that because of the pandemic a massive volume of alcohol is now consumed at home’ (03 Nov).And where drinking patterns have moved indoors, so have increased risks of alcohol-related harm. Consultant psychiatrist Rebecca Lawrence wrote in The Guardian that although it is difficult to determine the exact picture of British drinking habits during lockdown, we can ‘intuit’ some things (18 Nov):I worry about those who were drinking just a bit too much before who have now tipped into problem drinking. It doesn’t take a lot, and there are many on this uncertain edge. Stress levels are high, with fears about infection or economic insecurity taking their toll.Many of my patients who are already alcohol-dependent tell me they have relapsed due to boredom, and, even more importantly, lack of any human contact. When we talk about relapse prevention, we talk about seeing people, talking to people, going to groups, and all this is up the spout at present. There are groups online, but not everyone can access these. In any case, it’s not the same, as those of us who are all Zoomed out will testify to.Sometimes too much contact is the problem: families are forced together, something that can be hard even for the most loving partners or parents. Alcohol can be a form of mental, if not physical, escape.Whether newly dependent or relapsed, what’s clear is that people need help to get through this.Funding public health: Winter plans and ‘Spending Reviews’In the final week of lockdown, Prime Minister Boris Johnson revealed the government’s post-lockdown winter plan to the House of Commons: a return to the tier system, with the added detail of businesses to be permitted to serve alcohol ‘only as part of a substantial meal’ in designated tier 2 zones of the country, a move unlikely to curb increasingly routinised home drinking habits and their potential harms (23 Nov).Furthermore, the lack of sufficient services for the rising numbers of people struggling with alcohol dependency and other substance misuse problems led to calls from the Local Government Association (LGA) – which represents councils responsible for public health – for the chancellor to invest in vital public health services ahead of the Spending Review (LGA, 21 Nov):COVID-19 [has] exposed existing health inequalities which need to be levelled up if we are to protect our communities in future, and so to address this divide, the Spending Review ought to have reversed the £700 million of public health funding reductions experienced by councils over the previous five years.Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak authorised the provision of £254 million of additional resource funding in 2021/22, to ‘bolster’ substance misuse and frontline support services, for tackling homelessness and rough sleeping (HM Treasury, 25 Nov).As we head into the winter, with alcohol-related health outcomes worsen for many drinkers across the UK because of the drastic change to consumption habits induced by the pandemic, the calls of local authorities to support public health services may yet grow louder.Reformed duty system would improve MUP’s effectivenessEconomics think tank the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) have published new research showing that while minimum unit prices for alcohol (MUP) are reasonably well targeted at heavy drinkers, they may come at the cost of reducing tax revenues (20 Nov).Using data on millions of alcohol purchases made by Scottish and English households, the analysis shows that:Prior to the introduction of the minimum unit price, half of all transactions for alcohol bought in shops in Scotland were below 50p per unit. The minimum unit price led to a 5% increase in the average price per unit, but some very cheap products saw their prices double, while more expensive products were unaffected.This led to an 11% fall in units purchased per adult per week, with larger falls for more heavily drinking households.However, the IFS fear that MUP creates windfall revenues for the alcohol industry, while reducing revenue for HM Treasury:The analysis finds that if the 50p minimum unit price were extended to the whole of the UK under the existing system of alcohol taxes, then tax revenue would fall by around £390 million per year.This is in addition to projected annual losses from recent changes to alcohol duties averaging £200m to 2024/25.The report’s authors conclude that ‘a minimum unit price, combined with a more coherent set of taxes on alcohol, would be just as well targeted at heavy drinkers and would limit the fall in revenue for the exchequer’.Alternatively, they propose replacing the current system of duties with ‘a two-rate structure that taxes alcohol in proportion to its alcohol content, with a higher rate on strong spirits’, which would lead to an increase in tax revenue of over £70 million.One of the report’s authors, associate director Kate Smith, said:The current system of alcohol duties is incoherent – for example, if you prefer a pint of beer to cider, you may currently pay more than twice as much tax for a drink with the same alcohol content. Brexit offers a valuable opportunity to improve the way we tax alcohol. A simple reform that taxes drinks in proportion to their alcohol content, with a higher rate on strong spirits, targets the purchases of heavy drinkers while raising tax revenue.Public health experts from Alcohol Health Alliance UK, the Foundation for Liver Research, the House of Lords, and the pro-vice-chancellor of health and life sciences at the University of Bristol, welcomed the report, stating that the measures proposed by the IFS could save more than 5,000 lives over the next decade.In a letter to The Times (23 Nov), they wrote:Although the money from minimum unit pricing alone stays with the retailer, the saving of costs to the NHS of reduced drinking outweighs that loss. Also, if combined with a scaled and consistent alcohol duty system to offset some of the wider costs of alcohol harm to society, these measures could save more than 5,000 lives in the next decade.Alcohol prices are ‘small change’ to drinkers, survey findsAdapted from the Alcohol Health Alliance UK press releaseAlcohol continues to be sold at pocket money prices in England, with it being possible to drink the weekly low-risk drinking guideline of 14 units of alcohol for less than the price of a cup of high street coffee, according to a new report from the Alcohol Health Alliance (AHA) UK, a coalition of more than 55 organisations including medical royal colleges and health charities (10 Nov).Comparing the prices of alcoholic drinks sold in shops and supermarkets across England, Scotland and Wales, researchers found the cheapest products were all sold in England, the only nation of the three not to have a minimum unit price of 50 pence.Cider is the cheapest available product in England and is being sold for as little as 19p per unit of alcohol, meaning that consumers can reach the weekly low-risk drinking guideline of 14 units of alcohol for just £2·68 – about the price of a large coffee in high street coffee chains. A single bottle of the cheapest cider also contains more alcohol than eight pints of beer – and costs 8 pence less than a single pint in a pub.For the price of a standard cinema ticket (£7·11), you could buy two bottles of wine, containing 19·5 units and have 13 pence change leftover, and a one-litre bottle of vodka, which contains 37·5 units, is cheaper than a large pizza at Dominos (£14·99).In light of the findings, the AHA calls on the government to commit to tackling cheap, high-strength alcohol in its review of the alcohol duty system and through introducing minimum unit pricing in England. AHA chair, professor Sir Ian Gilmore, said:The low price of high strength alcohol continues to cause immeasurable damage to the health of our nation. Alcohol is linked to 80 deaths in the UK every day, as well as seven types of cancer and stroke.To tackle the harm alcohol causes, we need to urgently address its price. Alcohol duty is currently too low to cover the costs of alcohol harm to the NHS and other public services. Public Health England estimates that alcohol costs the UK at least £27 billion a year. Yet over the past five years, alcohol duty has raised just £10·5-£12·1 billion annually. To pay for the costs to society that alcohol imposes, stronger drinks should be taxed more. Reforming alcohol duty will help create a fairer system for everyone as well as improving our nation’s health.With alcohol-related hospital admissions at record highs, and liver disease rates on the rise, we can’t afford for alcohol to remain at such low prices.In other researchNew annual mortality and morbidity statistics for Scotland showed a mixed outlook: there was a substantial improvement for the former, but not so for the latter.The number of alcohol-specific deaths was 1,020 deaths in 2019, 10% down on the previous year’s tally of 1,136 (National Records of Scotland (NRS), 24 Nov).2019 represents the first substantial decrease in recent years, after a period of generalincrease since 2012, and is only the fourth occasion when there has been a reduction in alcohol-specific deaths of around 10% or more in a single year (in 2007, 2009 and 2012) since records began. However, the NRS was quick to note that ‘although an annual decrease of this magnitude is notable, further years will be required to see if this reduction continues and conclude that this is a sustained shift in alcohol-specific deaths in Scotland.’In comparison, annual alcohol-related hospital statistics show incremental changes in admissions (35,781) and patient (23,685) numbers to general acute hospitals in 2019/20 compared with the previous year (Public Health Scotland, 17 Nov). There has been no significant improvement in numbers since 2012/13.Researchers from the Behaviour and Health Research Unit at the University of Cambridge have developed a preliminary typology of drinking behaviours from existing evidence of the impact of glassware design on those behaviours, as a basis for reducing alcohol consumption to improve population health (Health Psychology Review, 18 Nov).Despite the ‘paucity of evidence’ over the issue, the team were able to cut a distinction between macro (measures of drinking outcomes involving consumption, or proxies for consumption) and micro (a form of short-term influence on drinking) -drinking behaviours. They also explored the roles of two sets of possible underlying mechanisms – perception and affordance – in determining a drinker’s actions.The study’s authors concluded that using this typology as a framework and starting point for understanding the micro-structure of a drinking episode may harness important insights for developing interventions aimed at reducing consumption, such as how an intervention works to reduce intake, plus other important effects on drinking behaviours ‘that may not be captured by a “macro” measure of drinking in a given study’.Almost three quarters of 15 and 16-year-olds in Ireland have tried alcohol, with around half of these using alcohol 'to make social gatherings more fun', according to the new iteration of the European Schools Project for Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) (Irish Health, 17 Nov). The survey of almost 2,000 secondary schoolchildren found that 73% of respondents had tried alcohol, while 41% had drunk alcohol in the previous 30 days. 49% said drinking made social gatherings more fun, while almost as many (48%) did so to enjoy a party. The most common age that teenagers began drinking alcohol was 15 (52%), and a sixth (16%) said they had been drunk in the previous 30 days.The survey also found that increased alcohol use among the teens was associated with lower parental education levels and lower parental monitoring, truancy and lower school grades.Nearly two in three people feel the current ‘drink responsibly’ message on bottles is too vague and should be replaced with specific health warnings, specialists at the Priory Group addiction and mental health service found (LBC, 18 Nov).In a poll of 1,000 adults for Alcohol Awareness Week, 59% said beverages should display a cancer warning and eight in ten feel the UK ‘has a problem’ with binge drinking.The 2019/20 adult substance misuse treatment statistics report published by Public Health England suggests that an estimated 82% of adults in need of specialist treatment for alcohol do not receive it (26 Nov).Alongside small year-on-year changes to the numbers of adults in treatment, the figures showed that people in treatment for alcohol only are the second largest group (28%) of all adults in treatment, the majority of people (59%) who started treatment for drug and alcohol problems in 2019/20, said they had a problem with alcohol, with 65% (50,957) reporting that it was their only problem substance, and although still relatively high, the proportion of people with alcohol only problems leaving treatment free of dependence has fallen three percentage points since 2015/2016 (from 62%), hinting at the start of a declining trend.SHAAP manifesto calls for total ban on alcohol advertisingAlcohol control campaign group Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP) have urged every candidate in next year’s Holyrood election to support a ‘total ban’ on alcohol advertising (STV News, 19 Nov).Publishing their manifesto ahead of the vote in May, they list four ‘focus areas’ aimed at reducing alcohol-related harms that all parties should support:Affordability, availability and attractivenessInvesting in and improving treatment and support servicesSupporting recovery and reducing health inequalitiesProtecting children and young peopleThe manifesto states that ‘as we approach the Scottish parliament election of 2021, it is more important than ever that we do not lose sight of long-term public health measures that can improve the health and wellbeing of everyone in Scotland, build the resilience of our NHS and local care services, and benefit the economy’.SHAAP chair Dr Peter Rice said: Covid-19 has shone a light on the patchy and often disjointed nature of alcohol treatment service provision, even prior to lockdown, and we do not yet know what long-term impact the pandemic will have on people’s drinking behaviours, though research so far indicates that heavier drinkers have increased their consumption.Our 2021 manifesto highlights cost-effective, evidence-based policies that, if properly implemented, will work to ensure that Covid-19 does not exacerbate alcohol-related harm and health inequalities in Scotland and that we are able to meet long-term public health goals that are essential if we are to build a healthier, fairer future.Online event on alcohol policy and nudge theory🎵 Podcast feature 🎵The Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS) is holding a seminar exploring the latest evidence on nudge theory in alcohol policy, in conjunction with a new report (02 Dec).Using a case study of UK Government alcohol policy since 2017, IAS research and policy officer Lucy Bryant examined the framing of individuals and alcohol industry actors within public health nudge policy interventions, revealing ways in which nudge theories risked undermining support for better evidenced public health alcohol measures such as pricing interventions in practice. Bryant’s findings will be presented alongside new research from Professor Mark Petticrew (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine), as well as insights from the gambling field from Philip Newall PhD (postdoctoral researcher at CQUniversity's Experimental Gambling Research Laboratory).Dr Gillian Shorter of Queen's University Belfast, who is chairing the event, said:With alcohol implemented in over half the Sustainable Development Goals, now really is a good time to act with responsible policies to preserve health… so we posit to you: to what extent can we use nudge policies for effective behaviour change, and to what extent do they crowd out other potentially more effective policy options? We invite you to come along, have your say, and tell us what you think.For more details of the event and to register your attendance, please view the image below, or click on this link.FASD: Invisible, Not InconsequentialAdapted from the Queen's Nursing Institute Scotland websiteThe Scottish Government has launched a free FASD eLearning resource on the NHS Education for Scotland (NES) website, a move that could have significant benefits for professionals and the individuals/families affected if widely used and shared.Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is both the most common and the most overlooked neurodevelopmental condition in Scotland. The Scottish Government estimates that approximately 172,000 children, young people and adults across the country have their lives and life chances adversely affected by FASD. And yet, only a small proportion of people with FASD have been diagnosed, actively assisted or effectively supported.Created by a Scottish Government Expert Group, the eLearning resource aims to help overcome the longstanding misdiagnosis, misunderstanding and mistreatment of people with this life-altering condition. For further information, please contact one of the members of the group, Dr Jonathan Sher, at jonathan.sher@qnis.org.uk or on 0744 333 1953.The UK Alcohol Alert (incorporating Alliance News) is designed and produced by The Institute of Alcohol Studies. Please click the image below to visit our website and find out more about us and what we do, or the ‘Contact us’ button. Thank you. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit instalcstud.substack.com

Blackstock Consulting's managing director, Andrew Teacher, is joined by Bruce Dear, partner, head of London real estate and institutional investment at Eversheds Sutherland for the first ever MondayWeek podcast - our weekly series digesting the big issues for the week ahead as well as the major stories from over the weekend. Eversheds Sutherland works with many of the biggest players in the City as well as some of the world's leading tech firms. As Bruce succinctly puts it, "the cloud is really a big warehouse". Indeed, one of this weekend's more upbeat stories is the potential to build data centres under water to use less energy. Together with analysis of Arcadia and Debenhams and a response to the Spending Review, please have a listen and let us know what you'd like to hear on our early morning podcasts every MondayWeek.

Guests: Emma Congreve, FAIMairi Spowage, FAIDavid Eiser, FAITimestamps:(0:26) Headlines from the Spending Review(04:22) What choices will need to be made by the Scottish Government(08:55) Future outlook for public finances and the economy(13:35) No announcement on Universal Credit and implications(14:41) Scottish GDP statistics and challenges over the next few months(19:49) Look ahead to the next Quarterly Economic Commentary

Thank you so much for tuning into episode 22. In this week's episode we tackle the Spending Review what is it? How it differs from a traditional budget, and ultimately what kind of an effect this year's edition will have on you and me, all things considered. All of this and much more, coming up! #financefridays to join the conversation. Also follow us on Instagram @financefridayspod & on Twitter @FinanceFridayz

On today's New Statesman Podcast, Stephen Bush, Anoosh Chakelian and Ailbhe Rea discuss the Spending Review and whether we are heading for the long-awaited next level, or slipping back into austerity. Then, in You Ask Us, they look at the options facing Keir Starmer's Labour party ahead of a prospective Brexit vote.If you are a New Statesman digital subscriber you can get advert free access to this podcast by visiting newstatesman.com/nssubscribers.Send us your You Ask Us questions at youaskus.co.uk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the latest episode of the ADS Winging It Podcast, we talk to ADS Chief Executive Paul Everitt about this week's Spending Review and recent funding announcements from the Government and what that means for our sectors. Hosted by Jonathan Hawkings, Director of Policy at ADS.

UK Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, painted a dire picture for the UK economy as a result of the pandemic, in the government’s Spending Review, with an expected contraction of 11.3% this year. We speak to Patrick Diamond, public policy expert, on what the Spending Review says about the government’s priorities for the coming year. Image Credit: EPA-EFE

Our chief executive, John O'Connell, and our chairman, Mike Denham, break down the Spending Review in the first-ever live broadcast episode of TPA Talks!

There was help for jobs and some controversial cuts as the Chancellor tries to dig us out of a crisis he says has only just begun. Was there enough in Rishi Sunak's Spending Review to help the economy recover? And how long have you had your phone? Big companies like Apple and Amazon need to do more to help customers hold onto their devices for longer and recycle them properly at the end of their lives. That's according to a committee of MPs concerned about the UK's mountain of so called e-waste. With Mark Syred #wakeuptomoney

What impact will the Spending Review have on employment in the UK? (Image: Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak leaves 11 Downing Street, London, ahead of delivering his one-year Spending Review in the House of Commons. Credit: Press Association)

Andy Preston, Mayor of Middlesbrough joins Julia to discuss todays tier announcment and hopes his city is in Tier 2. Mark Harper, Chair of the Covid Recovery Group and Tory MP discusses the Spending Review. Julia is also joined by Jimmy Burns OBE, Journalist and Author of Hand of God: a biography of Diego Maradona on the death of footballing ledgend Diego Maradona aged 60. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week’s guest is Stuart Widdowson, fund manager of Odyssean Investment, who talks to Dan about how four stocks from his portfolio have attracted takeover bids in the past year. He also runs through the attractions of Clinigen, Volution and RWS/SDL. The podcast looks at the key points from the UK Chancellor’s Spending Review and what it means for the economy, jobs and the impact on savers and investors. Tom answers a listener’s question on weighing up which savings wrapper to use: Lifetime ISA or SIPP. And there is also the usual look at stock market movements over the past week, including a chat about Future’s bid for GoCompare, US markets hitting a new high and the reaction to the latest vaccine news.  Presented by Shares’ Editor Dan Coatsworth and AJ Bell’s Senior Analyst Tom Selby

Chris is joined by ACS Government Relations Director Ed Woodall to talk through the big announcements in the Spending Review, what they mean for retailers, and what all of this means for the future.

Adam Boulton and guests assess the Chancellor's Spending Review with a particular focus on the decision to cut the international budget from 0.7 to 0.5 percent.The move breaks a Conservative manifesto commitment and causes the Prime Minister some political discomfort with the threat of a backbench rebellion.And what of the Brexit endgame? No mention of the 'B' word in Rishi Sunak's statement but plenty of discussion among the panel as they ponder what this week's events mean for 'Global Britain.'Joining Adam this week are:Contributing editor at The Mail on Sunday and former speech writer for David Cameron, Ian Birrell; the author of 'Deepfakes' Nina Schick and Sky's chief political correspondent Jon Craig

Tier rebellion brews: Boris Johnson defends new tier system amid Tory backlashWhich tier am I in?: Use our postcode checker for the latest Covid rulesEverything you need to know: How do the new Covid tier rules affect me?Spending Review analysis: Homeowners braced for possible £70 council tax hikeBoat Race: Next year's clash moved from River Thames to CambridgeshireSimon Heffer: BBC’s 'yoof' obsession is repelling viewers with brainsTried and tested: The best mince pies for this ChristmasRead all these articles with a Telegraph subscription. Try a free one-month trial - then save 50pc on your first three months. Sign up here: http://bit.ly/2WRuvh9.

As England is reduced to tiers, Robert and Shehab chat through the week's coronavirus developments: Rishi Sunak's Spending Review, the prospect of a new national lockdown and the new face in Number 10.We also have special guest Konnie Huq, who tells us about her new set of political fairy tales and working on Black Mirror episodes with her husband Charlie Brooker.Remember to like, subscribe, and rate us five stars!

The economic battle after the Covid shock has only just begun. Richard Hughes from the Office for Budget Responsibility joins Laura and Adam to discuss the Spending Review. And after the death of Diego Maradona, we mourn the footballing legend with Mark Chapman and ex-England international Trevor Steven. Studio Manager: Emma Close Producers: Rick Kelsey, Ben Weisz, Sej Asar, Jo Deahl Assistant Editor: Sam Bonham Editor: Dino Sofos

Chancellor Rishi Sunak forecasts a huge plunge in economic output in his Spending Review.

UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak has warned that unemployment will hit 7-and- a-half percent as the country's grapples with its worst recession in 300 years. He made the grim forecast while delivering his annual Spending Review in the UK parliament. He's promised extra money for re-training the rising numbers of unemployed, for the health service and for defence. But foreign aid has been slashed for the first time in over a decade, and although no tax increases have been announced, everyone knows they're coming, as the full scale of government debt and extra borrowing becomes clear. Simon McGregor-Wood has more. Rajneesh Narula joined us from London. He's a Professor of International Business Regulation at the University of Reading's Henley Business School. #UKeconomy #UKspendingplan #Coronavirus

As the government lay out their financial plans for the next year, Paul Lewis and our panel discuss how they will affect your money. From pay and benefits to housing and tax, the Chancellor's announcements could have a big impact on personal finances. Here to translate and dissect the Spending Review are our expert panel: Anita Monteith - Technical Lead & Senior Policy Adviser, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales Helen Barnard - Director, Joseph Rowntree Foundation Heather Self - Partner, Blick Rothenberg Email in your questions and comments on the Spending Review to moneybox@bbc.co.uk Producer: Beth Sagar-Fenton Production Co-ordinator: Janet Staples Editor: Emma Rippon

Sean and Fran dissect the Chancellor's Spending Review. When might the economy recover? What alternatives are there to a public sector pay freeze? And, was there anything for those who say they've been excluded from the various Covid-19 support schemes?

Diego Maradona dead at 60: Tributes around the world to one of football’s greatest playersTelegraph obituary: Diego Maradona, most talented footballer of the 1980s but tainted by scandalsSpending Review: Sunak to borrow £965bn over six years as economy suffers - in graphsBig borrowing: Spending Review key pointsForeign aid: Baroness Sugg resigns as minister after budget slashed by £5bnMeghan's pain: Duchess of Sussex reveals she had a miscarriage in JulyJudith Woods: I understand Meghan's miscarriage grief – even guiltWall of heat: Having visited half the world, I think I've found the greatest country of allEngland vs Wales: Our writers select their XVs for Autumn Nations Cup showdownRead all these articles with a Telegraph subscription. Try a free one-month trial - then save 50pc on your first three months. Sign up here: http://bit.ly/2WRuvh9.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who has already pledged over 200 billion pounds to fight the COVID-19 crisis, will free up more cash today against the backdrop of the heaviest public borrowing since World War Two. Sunak will announce extra investment to ease a backlog in the health system, counter a surge in unemployment and build new infrastructure in a one-year Spending Review that he is due to deliver to parliament at around 1230 GMT.

“Our economic emergency has only just begun”. That was how the Chancellor Rishi Sunak kicked off his 2020 Spending Review.There were some sobering forecasts from the Treasury’s independent forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility - the worst hit to GDP this year since 1709 - a deficit of £394bn of GDP this year (almost 20% of the entire economy).Plus some very politically controversial decisions - a cash freeze in the pay of many public sector workers - a cut in the foreign aid budget.Economics Editor Bn Chu is joined by Political Editor Andrew Woodcock and Business Reporter Ben Chapman to break down what the Chancellor announced.Tap the link to support original reporting from The Independent: independent.co.uk/support Subscribe to this series so you never miss an episode. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this special episode, Andy McClenaghan is joined by BASW's Public and Political Affairs Lead, Kerri Prince and and Rosanne Palmer, BASW’s Policy and Research Lead Officer to discuss the implications of the Government's Spending Review for social workers & the families & individuals who use social work services.

In this episode of the Daily Briefing, we discuss the Spending Review that was announced to the Commons by Chancellor Rishi Sunak today; the new Chrismas rules (complete with Johnson's call to Santa); and a story about someone who crashed into Merkel's gate. 100th Episode Live: https://youtu.be/UyZG8mDIKFg

Chancellor Rishi Sunak says we "will not see austerity next week" when he lays out his Spending Review. He also discusses government plans to let families see each other at Christmas, and doesn't rule out a pay freeze for public sector workers.

5 Things You Need To Know, Today, on Friday 20th November 2020 5. Online news and lifestyle site Buzzfeed is taking over HuffPost in a deal that brings together two of the most high-profile digital media firms. The price was not discolsed. (Click here to read more) 4. Fashion chains Peacocks and Jaeger have fallen into administration, putting more than 4,700 jobs and almost 500 shops at risk. It comes after owner Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group failed to find a buyer for both businesses. (Click here to read more) 3. Cineworld is looking to arrange a rescue deal that could mean UK cinema closures.  One option being discussed with bank lenders is a company voluntary arrangement, an insolvency process that could help Cineworld cut its rent bill. (Click here to read more) 2. Millions of public sector workers face a pay freeze in next week's Spending Review. It comes as Chancellor Rishi Sunak makes the case for pay restraint to reflect a fall in private sector earnings this year. (Click here to read more) 1. Britain is on course for a double-dip recession as renewed lockdown measures deliver another hammer blow to economic activity, a Reuters poll found. With much of the country's dominant service industry forced to close for most of November the economy was expected to contract by 2.5% this quarter, a stark reversal from the 2.6% growth predicted last month. (Click here to read more)

The COVID-19 outbreak has thrown into sharp relief the importance of community, collaboration, and acting with purpose. As we start to think about the economic recovery, we have a unique opportunity to build on this positive trend for purpose-driven action. In this episode, guest host Heather Melville is joined by two of PwC's Government and Health Industries experts, Quentin Cole and Dan Burke, to explore how government and business can collaborate to make the UK fairer and better positioned for the future.

On SkillsWorld this week, Tom Bewick speaks to Professor Martin Doel OBE CBE of University College London. Many listeners will be familiar with Martin’s work when he was chief executive of the Association of Colleges — a role he held between 2008 and 2015. Tom caught up with Martin before he gave a major keynote speech to the Federation of Awarding Bodies annual conference in October 2019. During the podcast interview, Professor Doel confides: “There were times at the AOC when it felt like we were there to make the world less worse…. It was at the time of the worst financial entrenchment in our nation’s [peacetime] history, since the mid-1930s. Despite this, by the time I walked away from it in 2015, the Spending Review had help stabilise the sector, albeit at a funding level that is too low." Looking ahead to the challenges of FE and technical education, he says:“We ensured a focus on technical and professional education that had not been in the system hitherto…. There will be more money and attention on FE in the future…. [But] there will need to be a more interventionist approach to skills development because of external factors like Brexit, and the shift from fixed assets in the economy to more intangible assets…. In a post-market economy in FE, you do need to liberate both innovation and enterprise at the delivery level.”

Martin, Akash and Steve talk about Boris Johnson's decision to suspend Parliament and the reaction to it. We also discuss the upcoming Spending Review and the end of austerity politics.(We're sorry, we had a few problems with the audio, which will be fixed for next time, turning up the volume helps).  

The Augar Post 18 Review is a review of post-18 education and funding in England. The independent panel was led by Dr. Philip Augar (the official report can be found here). This has been a highly anticipated review and is a massive 216 page document, chocked full of recommendations and findings. So we thought it could be helpful to break up the relevant sections and highlight the key recommendations from the Augar review findings for you. The Post 18 Review is split into eight sections, Chapter 2 was dedicated to Skills, Chapter 4 to Further Education and Chapter 5 to Apprenticeships. The recommendations from the Augar review are listed below: Chapter 2 was dedicated to Skills:Recommendation 2.1The government should introduce a single lifelong learning loan allowance for tuition loans at Levels 4, 5 and 6, available for adults aged 18 or over, without a publicly funded degree. This should be set, as it is now, as a financial amount equivalent to four years’ full-time undergraduate degree funding.Recommendation 2.2Learners should be able to access student finance for tuition fee and maintenance support for modules of credit-based Level 4, 5 and 6 qualifications.Recommendation 2.3ELQ rules should be scrapped for those taking out loans for Levels 4, 5 and 6.Recommendation 2.4Institutions should award at least one interim qualification to all students who are following a Level 6 course successfully.Recommendation 2.5Streamline the number and improve the status of Level 4/5 qualifications.Recommendation 2.6The OfS should become the national regulator of all non-apprenticeship provision at Levels 4 and above.Recommendation 2.7Government should provide additional support and capital funding to specific FE colleges in order to ensure a national network of high quality technical provision is available. Government should work with the OfS to determine how best to allocate this using, for example, quality indicators and analysis of geographic coverage.Recommendation 2.8From 2021-22 the fee cap for Level 4 and 5 qualifications currently prescribed by the OfS should be £7,500 – the same as that proposed for Level 6 qualifications and in line with current arrangements for prescribed HE qualifications. Longer term, only kitemarked Level 4 and 5 qualifications that meet the new employer-led national standards should be able to charge fees up to the Level 6 cap and be eligible for teaching grant. From that point, any other Level 4 and 5 courses should have a lower fee cap.The current age cap should be removed so that a first ‘full’ Level 3 is available free to all learners whether they are in work or not.Recommendation 2.10Full funding for the first ‘full’ Level 2 qualification, for those who are 24 and over and who are employed should be restored.Recommendation 2.11The careers strategy should be rolled out nationally so that every secondary school is able to be part of a careers hub, that training is available to all careers leaders and that more young people have access to meaningful careers activities and encounters with employers.Chapter 4 is the Further Education section of the report:The Augar review gave a vision for England’s FE colleges in the future:A national network of collaborative FECs that provide high quality technical and professional education with a clear focus on Levels 3, 4 and 5, delivered flexibly and aligned to the needs of local economies. FECs will maintain strong relationships with employers and assist in driving productivity. As engines of social mobility and inclusion, FECs will also provide community learning, reskilling and upskilling opportunities for adults leading to sustainable career opportunities.Recommendation 4.1The unit funding rate for economically valuable adult education courses should be increasedRecommendation 4.2The reduction in the core funding rate for 18 year-olds should be reversed.Recommendation 4.3ESFA funding rules should be simplified for FE colleges, allowing colleges to respond more flexibly and immediately to the particular needs of their local labour market.Recommendation 4.4Government should commit to providing an indicative AEB that enables individual FE colleges to plan on the basis of income over a three-year period. Government should also explore introducing additional flexibility to transfer a proportion of AEB allocations between years on the same basis.Recommendation 4.54.5.1 Government should provide FE colleges with a dedicated capital investment of at least £1 billion over the next Spending Review period. This should be in addition to funding for T levels and should be allocated primarily on a strategic national basis in-line with Industrial Strategy priorities.4.5.2 Government should use the additional capital funding primarily to augment existing FE colleges to create a strong national network of high quality provision of technical and professional education, including growing capacity for higher technical provision in specific FE colleges.4.5.3 Government should also consider redirecting the HE capital grant to further education.Recommendation 4.64.6.1 The structure of the FE college network, particularly in large cities, should be further modified to minimise duplication in reasonable travel to learn areas.4.6.2 In rural and semi-rural areas, small FE colleges should be strongly encouraged to form or join groups in order to ensure sustainable quality provision in the long term.Recommendation 4.7Government should develop procedures to ensure that – as part of a collaborative national network of FE colleges – there is an efficient distribution of Level 3, 4 and 5 provision within reasonable travel-to-learn areas, to enable strategic investment and avoid counterproductive competition between providers.Recommendation 4.8Investment in the FE workforce should be a priority, allowing improvements in recruitment and retention, drawing in more expertise from industry, and strengthening professional development.Recommendation 4.9The panel recommends that government improve data collection, collation, analysis and publication across the whole further education sector (including independent training providers).Recommendation 4.10The OfS and the ESFA should establish a joint working party, co-chaired by the OfS and ESFA chairs, to align the requirements they place on providers and improve the interactions and exchange of information between these bodies. The working party should report to the Secretary of State for Education by March 2020.Recommendation 4.11FE colleges should be more clearly distinguished from other types of training provider in the FE sector with a protected title similar to that conferred on universities.Chapter 5 is dedicated to Apprenticeships:The report highlights some interesting details, such as in 2017/18, 70% of Apprenticeships started by people aged 25 and over:Subjects studied 155,500 (41 per cent) of the apprenticeships started in 2017/18 were by people aged 25 or over. A further 113,700 (30 per cent) were started by those aged between 19 and 24, meaning that over 70 per cent of apprenticeships were started by people aged 19 or over. The remaining 106,600 (28 per cent) apprenticeships were started by those aged under 19.33 Younger apprentices were far more likely to be new recruits, with 90 per cent of those aged under 19 recruited specifically to an apprenticeship. The comparable figures for older people are 70 per cent of those aged 19-24 and only 20 per cent of those aged 25 and over.34 CVER research has also found that the earnings returns to apprenticeships for those aged 19-24 is around twice that of those aged 25+.35 We understand that older workers are more likely to be ‘rebadged’ as apprentices and we question whether this always represents good value in the programme.Here are the key recommendations:Recommendation 5.1The government should monitor closely the extent to which apprenticeship take up reflects the priorities of the Industrial Strategy, both in content – including the need for specific skills at Levels 3 through 5 – and in geographic spread. If funding is inadequate for demand, apprenticeships should be prioritised in line with Industrial Strategy requirements.Recommendation 5.2The government should use data on apprenticeships wage returns to provide accessible system wide information for learners with a potential interest in apprenticeships.Recommendation 5.3Funding for Level 6 and above apprenticeships should normally be available only for apprentices who have not previously undertaken a publicly-supported degree.Recommendation 5.4Ofsted become the lead responsible body for the inspection of the quality of apprenticeships at all levels.Recommendation 5.5No provider without an acceptable Ofsted rating should receive a contract to deliver training in their own right (although a provider who has not yet been inspected could subcontract from a high-quality provider pending their own inspection).Recommendation 5.6The IfATE and the DfE (through the ESFA) should undertake a programme of work to better understand the barriers that SMEs face in engaging with the apprenticeship system and put in place mechanisms to address these, including raising awareness of the programme and making the system easier to navigat

The May 2019 report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse sets out some alarming facts regarding the impact of childhood sexual abuse, access to essential services, the demand for essential services and the gap in funding which allows many survivors to languish without proper treatment or support. At the outset it is important to note the magnitude of this problem – 7% of people aged between 16 and 59 report they were sexually abused as a child. This tells us many things, but most importantly, the impact of childhood sexual abuse is on a scale many would never imagine and it is not a vestige of a less civilised past, which many would consider the case. This is a 2019 report with recent data. The youngest persons surveyed are 16 years old and the oldest are 59. You would be forgiven for thinking that recent awareness of this issue and great leaps being taken in safeguarding techniques, laws and procedures would reduce the incidence of childhood sexual abuse, but this data suggests otherwise.     So this is something that can no longer be ignored, there is a human cost and an economic cost to society.  Taking this into account, the report asks a pivotal question – can adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse access justice and support? In doing so 365 survivors of child hood sexual abuse were surveyed and the following alarming statistics were revealed: The average wait time for disclosure of sexual abuse is 26 years; 90% of respondents told the inquiry that the abuse has negatively impacted their intimate relationships; 89% of respondents told the inquiry their mental health was affected by the abuse; 81% of respondents told the inquiry their family life was adversely affected by the abuse; 72% of respondents told the inquiry their career was negatively affected; and 65% of respondents told the inquiry their education was negatively affected by the abuse. Whilst these results are startling at first blush, it is not at all surprising.  One only needs to search the internet for similar studies conducted across the world to see the devastating and insidious impact of childhood sexual abuse. Sexual abuse is pervasive, it invades the lives of those affected and can sit dormant for many years. We must then ask why this is the case? It was been the position of society for decades that such things are best left unsaid, it was a secret which many institutions and organisations didn’t want let out of hiding.  The Catholic Church is a perfect example, it can now be said with some degree of certainty that this problem of epic proportions was known about, and covered up, for decades. Survivors were conditioned to feel it was their fault, to feel guilty, to hide it deep inside. This served one purpose – the protection of the institution and the abuser. Now we know this is not specific to the Catholic Church, but a problem which has touched nearly all facets of religion and government. The effect is what we see in clear terms in the report – survivors take decades to report. This is not at all surprising given what they were conditioned to feel. Moreover, the individual survivor disclosures in the report evidence a culture which surrounds childhood sexual abuse – often the people around you just want you to get over it.  A monumental task and one which those who haven’t been affected are ill equipped to understand.  It is this mentality which contributes to the 90% of survivors who report their intimate relationships being negatively impacted and the 81% of survivors whose family life was negatively impacted by the abuse. Again, this is hardly surprising. The report details many survivors are unable to access good quality information about the impact of childhood sexual abuse – if the survivor is unable to access this information then how is a loved one or friend able to properly understand the devastating impact? This misunderstanding of how childhood sexual abuse pervades many aspects of a survivor’s life leads to a clear impact on relationships, a downward spiral, leading to further depression and less likely prospects of successful treatment. This is the human cost.  It is undeniable.  But how is this treated and what can be done?  Whilst 47% of survivors found that the most important support to recovery is specialist voluntary sector counselling, the report demonstrates glaring holes in access to support and services due to a distinct lack of adequate government funding. For example, SurvivorsUK which provides support and services for survivors has reported that in each of the past three years demand for services has increased by 30% year on year – a 90% increase – and their staff has grown by 300% but is still unable to meet demand. So what does the report recommend to address this issue?  The key recommendations are as follows: The Home Office should commission and publish research on the economic and social costs of child sexual abuse. The upcoming Spending Review for 2020-2023 should create a discrete, cross-departmental strategic fund to transform Government response to child sexual abuse. This should fund core services to meet demand and recognise the value of the specialist voluntary sector. NHS England should collect data on Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) expenditure on long-term therapeutic care for survivors, and consider ring-fenced funding as a way to ensure CCGs commission specialist voluntary sector services to meet demand. Government departments should issue guidance to frontline professionals on how to respond in a trauma-informed way, developed in collaboration with specialist sexual violence and abuse voluntary sector umbrella agencies. The Government should fund a nationwide public health campaign to raise awareness of the issues around childhood sexual abuse, highlight the potential impact on survivors, tackle social myths and stereotypes about sexual abuse and direct survivors and professionals to sources of support and information. Whilst this is all welcome data and impactful advocacy – the question remains, what will the government do about this?  If there is a benefit to society, this may garner more support for change and funding. Whilst an unpalatable thought, it is likely to be the best shot we have to ensure survivors of childhood sexual abuse can access appropriate service and get on the road to recovery.

The Institute for Government (IfG) and Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) hosted a briefing on the issues for government in the upcoming Spring Statement and this year’s Spending Review. After nine years of austerity, the Spending Review could be among the most important non-Brexit decisions made during this parliament. We looked at the squeeze on public spending since 2010, the consequences of sticking with the 2018 Autumn Budget indicative spending plans, and assessed the options open to the Chancellor. Carl Emmerson, Deputy Director of the IFS, and Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist at the IfG, discussed: How the spending plan set out in the Autumn 2018 Budget affects departmental budgets How any deviation from the spending plan affects government’s fiscal targets What the £20 billion announced for the NHS means for other areas of spending How different departments are coping with spending cuts How fiscal policy might adjust in response to an economically bad Brexit What the Government needs to do in the Spring Statement and Spending Review to produce a set of spending plans that are consistent with its aspirations for public services. This event was chaired by Bronwen Maddox, Director, Institute for Government.

Whitehall needs strong financial skills to prepare for the 2019 Spending Review. This event asked how the Government’s finance profession is helping government to make better decisions. Our panel included: Mike Driver, Chief Financial Officer at the Ministry of Justice and Head of the Government Finance Function Anne-Marie Vine-Lott, Key Account Director, NHS at Oracle Martin Wheatley, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government This event was chaired by Jill Rutter, Programme Director at the Institute for Government. There was an opportunity for audience questions. This event forms part of a series sponsored by Oracle – find out more about their work with the public sector.

Carlo Cottarelli, direttore Osservatorio sui conti pubblici dell'Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano già commissario della Spending Review ; Emiliano Brancaccio, docente di politica economica all'Università degli Studi del Sannio.

Carlo Cottarelli, direttore Osservatorio sui conti pubblici dell'Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano già commissario della Spending Review ; Emiliano Brancaccio, docente di politica economica all'Università degli Studi del Sannio.

Carlo Cottarelli, direttore Osservatorio sui conti pubblici dell'Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano già commissario della Spending Review ; Dino Pesole, giornalista del Sole 24 Ore.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies and the Institute for Government held a briefing on the tax and spending challenges facing government over the coming Parliament and the options open to the new Government. The purported 'Brexit election' was in fact dominated by differences between the parties on public spending. Debates about social care, policing, tuition fees and pensioner benefits played vital roles in the campaign. Compared to recent elections however, the outlook for government borrowing and debt received much less focus. This briefing covered the state of the UK public finances; the potential to raise spending, taxes or borrowing; how to approach the pressures in public services and on benefits; and the process leading up to the Autumn Budget and, indeed, a potential Spending Review. The speakers were: Carl Emmerson, Deputy Director, Institute for Fiscal Studies Julian McCrae, Deputy Director, Institute for Government This event was chaired by Jill Rutter, Programme Director, Institute for Government.

On this episode of the Fresh Brew Podcast, we talk about the Spending Review, Air Strikes on ISIS, plus the LGBT news. And in Tech News Producer Matt chats about Blackberry leaving Pakistan, and Peter Jackson Directing Dr Who? Get in touch with the show, tweet your message to @LennieAuckland. Host: Lennie Auckland. Producer: Matt Auckland.

Pavia: il CNAO, struttura di eccellenza fra le prime 4 al mondo per la cura di tumori sta per chiudere per la Spending Review. Erminio Borloni, presidente del CNAO, Vincenzo Montaldo, paziente guarito.

This week Mark Thompson and Emma Burnell are joined by Bright Blue's Kate Maltby to discuss the spending review and the related fortunes of the parties in its wake, the double dip that never was, royal spending, ministerial no shows and violent porn.

The Chancellor's Spending Review may have been politically significant, but in cutting £11.5 billion from the Government's managed expenditure, what did it achieve? Nothing, says an irate Peter Oborne. "Useful idiots" who are "economically illiterate" have got completely the wrong end of the stick. They don't seem to realise that everything is different nowEND ITALS. Mary Riddell counters will equal force. It's typical of Right-wingers, she says, to forget that these cuts will have a dramatic real-world effect, often on the poorest in society. Please be aware this podcast contains heated exchanges.

Prime Minister David Cameron's podcast on the Spending Review.

Mary Ann Sieghart profiles Iain Duncan Smith whose Work and Pensions Department will be hit during next week's Spending Review. His proposed welfare reforms have been described as 'the biggest since the war-time work of Beveridge' and a white paper is expected after the Spending Review.Iain Duncan Smith started out briefly in industry after leaving the army where he served twice in Northern Ireland. His father was a famous World War II flying ace & his mother a ballerina. In the 1990s, he was best-known as one of the Tory party's most strident euro-sceptic MPs. His short two year leadership of the Conservative party was mostly unsuccessful. The "quiet man" was unable to unite his party. But it was during this time that Iain Duncan Smith began to see the need for welfare reform. After he was ousted from the leadership he set up the Centre for Social Justice and is credited with forming much of David Cameron's social agenda. Mary Ann Sieghart talks to his political allies & foes, long-standing friends and the people who began to change his political direction. Producer : Rosamund Jones.