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Articles by Sam Tims
Building the homes we need
Publications The economic and social value of investing in a new generation of social housing Download the report Everybody needs an affordable, safe, secure home to build a foundation for themselves and their families. But our housing system is broken, failing to deliver these fundamentals and leading to rising housing insecurity, unaffordability, record levels of homelessness, and surging costs to local government providing temporary accommodation.
Capping ambitions
Publications Recognising the economic benefits of reducing child poverty by scrapping the two-child limit and benefit cap Download the report The introduction of a cross-departmental taskforce dedicated to reducing child poverty is a positive signal of intent from the new government. The drivers of poverty are wide-ranging, and a serious government response must be as well.
Switching to social rent
Publications Delivering the homes we need through the Affordable Homes Programme Download the report The housing emergency in England has become so deeply entrenched that it has soared up the political agenda and is now playing an important role in the general election debate. Nothing short of wholesale restructuring of our housing system is needed to deliver the high-quality, affordable, secure homes we all need.
Benefits debt deductions trapping people in poverty and debt
Blog DWP taking £1.6bn a year from low-income households for debt repayments The erosion of our income safety net is no secret. Between 2010/11 and 2019/20, working-age social security was cut by £29bn. These cuts, targeted at the poorest in society, have left levels of income support at their lowest in 40 years, forcing destitution on almost 4 million households. The inevitable result of people trying to get by on inadequate income is a growing reliance on debt.
Helping people into good jobs rather than just any job could save the government billions
Blog The government’s current approach is pushing people into lower paid jobs that leave many with inadequate and insecure incomes In recent years, the guiding mantra of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) when it comes to supporting people into work has been ‘ABC’ – “Any job first, a Better job next and into a Career”. In reality, the government’s approach is too often pushing people into lower paid jobs that leave many with inadequate and insecure incomes.
Buying back better
Publications How social housing acquisitions in London can tackle homelessness and help councils avert bankruptcy Download the report The UK is in the midst of a longstanding but sharply deepening housing crisis. And in no part of the country is that crisis more visceral than in London. With already sky-high rents rising steeply as part of the cost-of-living squeeze, London’s councils face record numbers of homeless families for whom they must provide homes.
Reforming property tax
Publications Dampening further property speculation in the housing crisis Download the report In conjunction with the Homes for Us alliance of grassroots organisations and campaigners, the New Economics Foundation is developing policies to fix England’s broken housing model. Tax reform is an important tool to do so.
The gap between universal credit and the cost of living is growing
No matter what we do for a living or where we live, we all want pretty similar things: a warm home, knowing that our family and friends are safe, and the assurance that we will be able to cope with whatever life has in store. But right now, for too many of us, this is out of reach. The UK’s weak income safety net is forcing millions into impossible choices over whether they put food on the table or heat their home.
Three-fifths of private renters cannot afford the cost of living
Blog The government must unfreeze housing support for private renters The cost of living crisis means that, for many families, affording the essentials — such as the rent or mortgage — is getting harder. While the headline inflation rate appears to have peaked, nearly everyone is being hit with huge rises to their housing costs. Social tenants face rent increases of 7% next year and 3m mortgaged households will see an average annual increase of £3,000 by the end of 2023/24.
The national living income
Publications Guaranteeing a decent minimum income for all Download the report The crises of the early 2020s, of the Covid-19 pandemic and war in Europe, brutally exposed the fragility of the UK social security system. But this fragility was a long time in the making. A decade of cuts, freezes, caps, and haphazard migration between systems left the UK with one of the weakest safety nets, both among developed countries globally, as well as in the UK’s history.
Families across the country are feeling the squeeze
Families are already struggling to afford the essentials, like household bills or a trip to the dentist. That is set to get significantly worse in the year ahead as earnings and social security payments fall short of rising prices and rents.
Over 10 million households will struggle to meet the cost of living next April
Blog The rising cost of living isn't going away. So why has is the chancellor's support package going to expire in the spring? By Sam Tims, Lydia Prieg No matter what we do for a living or where we live, many of us want pretty similar things: a warm home, knowing that our family and friends are safe, and the assurance that we will be able to cope with whatever life has in store.
23.4 million people unable to afford the cost of living this spring
Nearly half of all children will be living in families that have to make sacrifices on essentials The cost of living is increasing faster than at any point in recent history. Last month, the annual inflation rate soared to 5.5%, a 30-year high. This means that up and down the country, clothes are more expensive, fuel bills are rising, and the cost of the weekly shop is increasing. But this won’t be the end of the inflation story.
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