New Economics Foundation

Text: Energy shocks are the new normal but Britain's not ready for it. Our macroeconomic institutions are undermining our ability to adapt to an increasingly turbulent world. They need reforming so we can build resilience.

Soaring oil and gas prices are reverberating through global markets - but Britain isn't ready for another energy shock.

Jaya Sood explains why our economic framework is holding us back from building a more resilient economy in our latest blog. Read it here: neweconomics.org/2026/03/ener...

Global economy must stop pandering to ‘frivolous desires of ultra-rich’, says UN expert Olivier De Schutter says new economic agenda needed to tackle crises of rising inequality and ecological collapse

Another insightful observation from @deschuttero.bsky.social from the @theguardian.com

You know there is a problem when the UN Special Rapporteur on *Extreme Poverty* thinks Extreme Wealth is the real issue.

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Stronger public finances mean little without investment to raise living standards, NEF warns The New Economics Foundation reacts to the spring statement

Read our full response here: neweconomics.org/2026/03/stro...

Quote from George Bangham, head of social policy: If the Iran war leads to an energy price shock in Britain, households and businesses won’t be able to afford the pain and the Treasury will have to step in to help. The government should immediately prioritise building a better crisis infrastructure for energy costs, that at the very least supports the most vulnerable households with big rises in energy bills.

If the Iran war leads to a spike in energy prices, the government will have to intervene to support households who will struggle most with bill increases. NEF head of social policy @georgebangham.bsky.social says in response to the spring statement.

Quote from Lydia Prieg, chief economist: Stronger public finances mean little if they come at the cost of the investment needed to raise living standards. The chancellor is staking her reputation on bringing inflation down, but the crisis in Iran shows how our reliance on imported fossil fuels leaves us vulnerable to shocks well beyond our control.

Spring statement response: The events of the last few days show why we need to stop letting arbitrary fiscal rules block essential investment in our economy. NEF chief economist Lydia Prieg responds.

Very good to hear Rachel Reeves talking of rejecting the "failed economic dogmas of the past" and rallying against "trickle down & trickle out" in today's #SpringStatement.

Just not sure that the Government is doing enough to deliver the radical changes our economy needs.

OBR a backseat driver with out-of-date maps, thinktanks tell Rachel Reeves Chancellor urged to reform Office for Budget Responsibility to open way to more public investment

Right now small changes in uncertain OBR forecasts lead the government to making kneejerk policy decisions that often make us worse off. It's not good for our economy or our democracy. That's why we've joined this coalition calling for reform.
www.theguardian.com/business/202...

25-point swing from Labour shows what people really want The 25‑point swing away from Labour shows voters want people‑centred solutions rather than cautious managerialism

I know there'll be lots of folk drawing lessons from the Gorton & Denton by-election. Here's my take for @opendemocracy.net on why we need bolder economic policies that offer real solutions to people's concerns & join the dots of an extractive economic system

www.opendemocracy.net/en/labour-gr...

A quiet spring statement helps us all - here's how we make it last While we enjoy the less frantic approach to policy making for now, let's reform the fiscal rules and build a more stable policy environment

NEW: Ahead of next week's #SpringStatement, NEF's chief economist, Lydia Prieg, shares her take on what to expect and what we should be calling for.

neweconomics.org/2026/02/a-qu...

The government decision to shift an additional £35 of costs off standing charges and into unit rates is a step towards tackling this unfairness.

But it should go further by introducing a National Energy Guarantee which would protect essential energy use for everyone.

The way the standing charge works will mean lower income households who use less energy will see less of a reduction in bills than richer households.

NEF analysis suggests households earning £60-70,000 will save £120, while those earning less than £10,000 will save roughly £80.

This fall has been driven by the government's decisions in the most recent budget.

However, the benefit is partially offset by another rise in electricity standing charges.

This will be welcome news for millions of families (even if the government has fallen short of its promise to cut bills by £150). But there's still more the government could do to help those struggling the most with their energy bills.

The government needs to rethink its approach to the benefits system- there needs to be less focus on strict rules and more employment support that is tailored to the realities of local economies and encourages people into suitable jobs.

This approach is also counterproductive - people who are forced into jobs that don't match their abilities and circumstances are more likely to end up unemployed again.

In this context, it's not fair that our social security system is still using strict rules and sanctions to push people into any job - regardless of whether it matches their experience, skills, or needs.

It's increasingly difficult to get a job - our latest analysis revealed that in some local authorities there are a few as 5 vacancies for every 100 people receiving universal credit...

The EU is betting on deregulation - here's why that won’t work If the EU wants to meet its economic and environmental goals, it needs to reject deregulation in favour of a bolder approach

The EU is betting on deregulation - here's why that won’t work: neweconomics.org/2026/02/the-...

Our new research on The Disappearance of the Great British holiday by @alchap.bsky.social was covered by Tim Leunig in yesterday's @theobserveruk.bsky.social.

Read the research here: neweconomics.org/2026/02/the-...
Link to article below.

@theifs.bsky.social isn't exactly radical but they are rightly calling for a serious rethink of the current fiscal framework... and how it's leading to "dysfunctional policymaking".

It's time for the Chancellor to pay attention! We @neweconomics.bsky.social would go much further. Some thoughts 👇👇

To end the doom loop and allow governments to deliver on the public’s priorities we must democratise and promote transparency within our fiscal framework, through broader representation at the OBR and greater scrutiny of the assumptions they rely on.

But the challenge remains that this system still relies solely on a small group of individual's subjective judgements and uncertain forecasts.

Moving to a new fiscal framework based around a set of fiscal principles or standards, set out by government at the start of each Parliament & monitored by a set of ‘fiscal traffic lights’, as recommended by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, is a step towards breaking the loop.

Rachel Reeves' borrowing rules lead to dysfunctional policymaking, claims IFS The think tank suggests the chancellor's fiscal rules need to shift the focus from one key figure.

The UK's fiscal framework has trapped us in a doom loop of austerity & bond market jitters. Something's wrong when small changes in uncertain forecasts lead government to kneejerk policy decisions they've no democratic mandate for & that make us worse off.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Text: The EU is betting on deregulation - here's why that won't work. If the EU wants to meet its economic and environmental goals, it needs to reject deregulation in favour of a bolder approach

Leaning into deregulation won't reverse the EU's economic fortunes.

Maike Schmidt sets out the evidence against deregulation in a new blog: neweconomics.org/2026/02/the-...

But more action is needed to prevent future price rises. As the impacts of the climate crisis affect production both in the UK and abroad, food prices are set to keep increasing. We need to be prepared for this and can’t just keep defaulting to broad interest rate rises. 3/3

The government's proactive, targeted approach to inflation that we saw at the budget is working: freezing rail fares and prescription charges and lowering energy bills will provide much-needed relief for millions and is bringing down inflation expectations. 2/3

Inflation is on the way down, but prices remain high. People continue to struggle to afford the essentials - many of whom are still being hammered by high interest rates as well as rising unemployment. 1/3

"The story here is that there's too few job vacancies compared to the number of people looking for work."

Our head of social policy @georgebangham.bsky.social talking about today's unemployment stats on LBC News

Pushed into the wrong job? Assessing the link between conditionality and poor quality employment

Our latest report on the link between conditionality in the benefits system and job quality is available here: neweconomics.org/2026/02/push...