Key changes to benefits in welfare shake-up
The Government has announced major welfare reforms aimed at cutting costs and encouraging work. The changes include stricter eligibility for Personal Independence Payments (PIP), reduced incapacity benefits, and new work incentives. From November…
Business rates will more than double, ‘final blow’ to retailers
UK high street businesses face a dire challenge as business rates are set to increase by over 140% in April. The temporary 75% relief introduced during the pandemic will drop to 40%, causing…
Unemployment rate jumps as jobs market cools
The UK's unemployment rate surged unexpectedly to 4.2% in the three months to February, up from 3.9% in January, the highest level in nearly six months. This increase, alongside a slowdown in earnings…
Councils call for rethink over ‘failing’ support for economically inactive
The Local Government Association (LGA) has warned that the various schemes designed to support economically inactive individuals back into work are failing to meet their needs. A study commissioned by the LGA revealed…
Unemployment and Recruitment in Job market
Microsoft will cut 10,000 jobs in the latest round of staff redundancies to hit the tech industry. It will affect 5% of its global workforce and cost £972m in severance and reorganisation costs.…
Kickstart - churches and charities working together
A new government scheme is enabling churches and charities to support some of the most vulnerable in the job market. The pandemic has disproportionately impacted those aged 18-24. Between March and August there…
Pandemic legacy: serious household debt
Data from the Bank of England released on 1 September show an increase in mortgage and household borrowing. StepChange debt charity says this may point to the financial pressures many households face, which…
Italy: unrest in the south
Lockdown is the only solution to ending the pandemic, and Italy’s government has extended it beyond 3 April with no new deadline. In the south, hunger and hardship threaten to be even bigger…
Iran: poverty rising
The World Bank reported that after sanctions were removed in 2016 there were many positive economic developments in Iran. In November 2018 the US reimposed sanctions and requested India, China and EU countries,…
Britain and Albania’s children
One in eight young people seeking asylum in the UK are from the impoverished Balkan state of Albania. There is little to do in Skenderbeu, a remote town in the mountains where jobs…
