Mike Brewer

New workplace pension participation statistics were published this morning, revealing that certain groups remain at greater risk of heading into retirement with insufficient savings. Here’s what you need to know 🧵

I had such a good time going to Orkney one summer. 18 degrees was a hot day.

Labour’s social security reforms ignore devolution - British Politics and Policy at LSE The Goverment's social security reforms ignore the fact that they will have different consequences depending on which part of the UK one lives in.

Some heatwave weekend reading on why devolution needs to be talked about more in connection with the disability social security cuts.

@lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social blog w/ @safety-nets.bsky.social colleagues @haylesben.bsky.social @sionedps.bsky.social

blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...

The DWP published this year's stats on households impacted by the two-child limit today, which include some welcome new breakdowns on gender and ethnicity, receipt of health/disability benefits, conditionality group, and whether households are affected by the benefit cap. Quick thread/

Which is what makes the Wealth Tax Commission's work so good. Two lawyers and one economist as authors.

And the other parties are different from this how?

The Seventh I am not supposed to be here. That’s almost all I can think as I run as fast as I can away from Tavistock Square. It is 7 July 2005. I am not supposed to be here. I am supposed to be at work. I nev…

20 years ago today, a bomb exploded on a bus at Tavistock Square. I was there. This is what happened:

The latest u-turn looks to be removing all PIP changes from the bill. Remaining net savings in the crucial year for fiscal rules of....about zero. Doesn't mean the bill is nothing though: still very important changes to, and a sensible rebalancing of, universal credit (with savings in future years)

Aberdeen under fire after ousting financial charity’s board The chief executive and all ten independent trustees of Abrdn Financial Fairness Trust were removed in shift away from funding research

Surprised & saddened to see this happen to Abrdn Financial Fairness Trust - they have supported vital work on debt, pensions, tax & much else.

www.thetimes.com/article/7d69...

There’s a lot more than PIP cuts going on that risks being drowned out by that row

Thread & mini-report by @resfoundation.bsky.social’s resident expert on many other changes, good & bad, that cry out for attention

I don't hear enough media reports being clear that the long-run system of disability & incapacity benefits will be the same after last week's concessions as was proposed in the Green Paper.

All that has changed is whether existing recipients will lose out (they now won't).

Today. Join us at 10am.

Graphic for event 'The price is tight' How are the cots of essentials affecting low to middle income families? The event is on Monday 30th June at 10am

How are the cost of essentials affecting low-to-middle-income families across Britain?

On Monday, join our discussion with @claremoriarty.bsky.social @peterlevell.bsky.social and @lalithatry.bsky.social chaired by @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social

Sign up here ➡️ buff.ly/3NYLh0r

Neither literally not metaphorically is the IFS an SW1 think-tank.

Spending Review 2025 - our overnight thoughts Yesterday saw the Chancellor reveal the results of the first ‘zero-based’ review since 2008, the first stand-alone Spending Review since 2019, and the first three-year plan since 2021. For a Governmen...

The dust is settling on the Spending Review, and my colleagues have been busy with the spreadsheets. You can read a summary of our thoughts here (www.linkedin.com/pulse/spendi...) or the full report here (www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications...)

Oooooh nice spot!

Absolutely outrageous from Politico's evening email. Since when did we use US spelling? 😉

Want more SR analysis? Of course you do - see you tomorrow morning.

The Household Support Fund is now the 'Crisis and Resilience Fund' and will be funded at £1 bn/yr (incl. Barnett) until the end of 2028-29. The first multi-year funding will be very helpful for local authorities delivering the scheme as they can now plan, develop their approach, retain staff etc.

A Two Chairman joke!!!!!

Forget the documents, just show us the spreadsheets!

Live tweet summary of SR 2025 below

In Memoriam: Ghazala Azmat (1979 - 2025) | EEA

Very sad to hear this. I worked quite a bit with Ghazala in the 2000s. This is a lovely obituary, and I liked this one sentence a lot: "Discreetness was a core personal value for Ghazala, one she upheld with grace and strength throughout her life"

www.eeassoc.org/news/memoria...

Chart showing Government spending as a proportion of national income (left panel) and change in spending between 2007-08 to 2025-26 (right panel): UK

Since the financial crisis, ever higher health spend has been funded by cutting other public services.

Read 'At your service' now to learn more ⤵️ buff.ly/RTk1uYz

The Migration Advisory Committee has reviewed the financial requirements for Brits & settled migrants to bring partners & children to the UK.

They see the final decision as a political one govt must make, so didn't recommend any single threshold. Here's a short summary 🧵

www.gov.uk/government/p...

Thread on today's Winter Fuel Allowance decision.

Not too late to catch up on my health-and-mortality related reads, and a briefing on all things Polish, including the doughnuts/donuts.

This must be a new definition of "funded by".

Me on the child poverty strategy, now rumoured to be due this autumn.

2 to 1 is not a big payoff, right?