Top stories published by Gavin Kelly’s blog in 2015

Today the SNP’s annual conference opens in Aberdeen amid continued flux over the balance of control between Edinburgh and London on key issues such as social security spending. Given the deep welfare cuts…

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Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Nov 9, 2015

Top-up powers for Scotland on welfare: welcome to defensive devolution

The debate on devolution of welfare to Scotland has gone up another gear over the last week as the UK government published its amendments to the Scotland Bill that transfers new powers to the Edinburgh…

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Dec 15, 2015

Worker protection in the gig economy: why the rules of the game may change in 2016

If one company caught the zeitgeist in 2015 then it’s probably Uber, the app powered taxi-booking firm. It has become the leitmotif of the so-called gig-economy, attracting enormous…

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Nov 18, 2015

The debate on social mobility is stuck: time for a city perspective

Social mobility plays a curious and sometimes tortuous role in our national political psyche. We love talking about it even if we can’t, or won’t, do much about it. Greater mobility is a goal lionised by all…

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Nov 26, 2015

The candour deficit — rise and fall: what next?

There was always something highly implausible about the pre-election fiscal debate, and that implausibility infected all the parties. No one was immune. It certainly applied to the Chancellor’s cocktail of claims: enormous future cuts to…

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Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Oct 21, 2015

What’s happening to poverty and opportunity in London? The good, the bad and the ugly

What is the outlook for poverty and opportunity in London? Depending on the media you consume you might have the impression that London, undisturbed by the financial crisis, is a…

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Sep 25, 2015

It’s time to talk about tax relief — how more accountability on tax expenditure could help ease the welfare squeeze

As the Budget approaches we await the details of deep cuts in welfare spending, but the fact that they are coming is beyond doubt…

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Oct 19, 2015

Are George Osborne’s tax credit cuts really his 10p tax debacle?

“History doesn’t repeat itself but it does rhyme”, the phrase attributed to Mark Twain, is one that Westminster types like to wheel out to situate a new political saga in the context of previous conflagrations. Well…

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Sep 25, 2015

Credit where it’s due? How to reform and make the most out of Universal Credit

There are some issues where a little bit of knowledge, and a lot of bluster, are all that’s needed for a politician — whether government or opposition — to get through a standard media grilling.

Gavin Kelly in Gavin Kelly’s blog

Sep 25, 2015

The View That Britain Should Be Learning Lessons From the US Labour Market Is Long Past Its Sell-By Date

Political debates about key policy challenges often tend to idealise — and bastardise — the experience of other countries. Whether it is Finnish…

2016

These were the top 10 stories published by Gavin Kelly’s blog in 2015. You can also dive into monthly archives for 2015 by using the calendar at the top of this page.

About

Gavin Kelly’s blog

Gavin writes on politics, economics and public policy in a personal capacity. He is also Chair of the Resolution Foundation and Chair of the Living Wage Commission.

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