On 15th March, Stan’s Cafe put on a sold-out performance about how Birmingham City Council spends £3,000,000,000 of our money. The event was held at The Exchange, University of Birmingham. Here’s what we learned from the play. Annoyed about your bins not being picked up again, or the ridiculous number of bollards that just popped … Continue reading “All Our Money: The Impossible Job of Running Birmingham City Council”
Category: Government
Key Announcements From the Spring Statement 2023
Wednesday 15th March 2023 was Budget Day. Jeremy Hunt delivered his first spring budget, and first major economic policy reveals since the revoking of policies outlined in Liz Truss’ mini-budget in September 2022. Alice Pugh and Hannes Read take a look at some of the key announcements from the budget. OBR Forecasts for the economy … Continue reading “Key Announcements From the Spring Statement 2023”
Labour’s Plan to Put “The Right Powers in the Right Places”
In December 2022, the Labour Party published a new report which promised to decentralise political power in the UK by putting “the right powers in the right places”. Dr Charlotte Hoole and Dr Matt Lyons evaluate how Labour’s proposals differ from the current system and what it could mean for the West Midlands. In December … Continue reading “Labour’s Plan to Put “The Right Powers in the Right Places””
How do Fertility Rates and Childcare Costs Play out in the UK Labour Market?
Abigail Taylor discusses fertility rates and childcare costs within the UK Labour Market comparing the findings internationally. This blog is part of a series looking at the UK Labour Market. See also: – Why are the Over-50s Leaving the Workforce?- Labour Market Flows and Future Participation Flows – What Are the Current Challenges in the … Continue reading “How do Fertility Rates and Childcare Costs Play out in the UK Labour Market?”
Insights into Birmingham City Council’s Spending Power, Revenue Funding and Spending between 2010-11 and 2019-2020
A new report by Alice Pugh, Dr Abigail Taylor, and WMREDI intern Charlotte Tomlinson examines changes in Birmingham City Council’s income and expenditure over the decade between 2010/11 and 2019/20. In this blog, Alice and Abigail summarise the aims of the report, the methodological approach adopted and they key findings. They also discuss key messages … Continue reading “Insights into Birmingham City Council’s Spending Power, Revenue Funding and Spending between 2010-11 and 2019-2020”
Logic Models for Business Cases
Danielle Mason, from the What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth, discusses the importance of logic models when applying for local economic growth funding and highlights a new training programme to help support their use. At What Works Growth, we want to improve the use of evaluation and evidence for local economic growth policy. The … Continue reading “Logic Models for Business Cases”
Key Announcements From the Mini Budget
Alice Pugh takes an in-depth look at the government’s recent mini budget and what it means for people and businesses in the UK.
The Wider Impacts of Cutting 91,000 Civil Service Jobs
The Government had recently proposed a cut in Civil Services jobs in an attempt to save £3.5 billion. Dr Matthew Lyons and Professor Anne Green consider the regional economic impact of the proposed cut of 91,000 civil servants and its consequences for levelling up. Introduction The civil service has been in the spotlight of UK … Continue reading “The Wider Impacts of Cutting 91,000 Civil Service Jobs”
The Case for a Just Devolution
Liam O’Farrell discusses the idea of ‘Just Devolution’, whereby devolution is driven not by demands to stimulate growth but to create a more just society. Find out more about the Just City Project. Devolution is currently front and centre in British politics. There have been comparisons of the relative performance of the devolved governments in … Continue reading “The Case for a Just Devolution”
Reflections on Assessing Value for Money at Local Government Level
George Bramley discusses his attendance and presentation at a recent Green Book event, and why these events are so useful for those who commission, produce or review business cases at the local government level. I recently had the opportunity to share my reflections at the ‘Green Book: One Year On: Value for Money’ event in … Continue reading “Reflections on Assessing Value for Money at Local Government Level”