Kate Andrews is deputy editor of The Spectator’s World edition.
The world of coronomics continues to surprise us. Last summer forecasters warned of a wave of redundancies after the biggest economic crash in 300 years. Peak unemployment — spurred on by lockdowns — was expected to near 12 per cent, ushering in a new era of chronic financial pain and instability for millions of workers.
Inflation is on the rise again. For the third consecutive month, the Consumer Prices index outpaced the forecasters’ consensus, landing at 2.5 per cent in June, up from 2.1 per cent in May. It’s not just that inflation is overshooting expectations that should trouble us, but that its pace of growth is so fast: at the
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The way the City of London measures success is constantly changing. A new generation of discerning consumers has skyrocketed the importance of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) to company decision-makers. The finance sector is increasingly being seen as the next frontier in climate action. As the City navigates the post-Brexit landscape and our pandemic
Shortly before Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer were slugging it out in PMQs — debating whether the mass-lifting of restrictions on 19 July is indeed a good idea — the Office for National Statistics released their latest antibody survey, the details of which support the Prime Minister’s argument for reopening. It is now estimated that
At yesterday’s press conference, Boris Johnson announced that his government was shelving plans for domestic ‘Covid certificates’ (i.e. vaccine passports), at least for the time being, although this won’t stop private businesses or venues from deciding to use them. We also learned today that it won’t stop the creation of a two-tier system (as Lara Prendergast warned
Could the NHS backlog be even worse than we feared? It’s been reported that the pandemic has pushed a total of five million people onto NHS England waiting lists. But speaking to BBC Radio 4 on Tuesday, health secretary Sajid Javid revealed a new figure, which was not previously in the public domain: As a fresh
The furlough scheme begins to wind down today, as employers will now pay 10 per cent of their staff’s salaries, while the government continues to stump up 70 per cent of their wages. Employees won’t notice a change to their income, which will still be 80 per cent of their monthly wage, with a cap
How much trouble is Matt Hancock in? The Sun splashes this morning on the Health Secretary’s affair with aide Gina Coladangelo. The paper has obtained screen grabs from leaked Whitehall CCTV footage showing very little the way of social distancing. The images are from the start of May, when laws were still in place to
The Tories have a pension problem – and it’s not strictly financial. Over the coming weeks, the cost of pension promises is likely to be in the spotlight. The pensions ‘triple lock’, which the Prime Minister reportedly refuses to scrap, means that the state pension is upgraded each year in line with average earnings, the
This week was meant to be the moment when we could celebrate the return of freedom. Instead, we’re left still navigating a maze of rules. Couples are working out what a ‘Covid-secure wedding’ means (spoiler: no dancing or hugging). Family reunions — once planned for Christmas, then delayed to Easter — are being pushed back
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It seems we are in a new President/Prime Minister alliance of big government spending, should we be excited or concerned? (00:44) Also on the podcast: Are the UK tabloids going woke? (15:00)? And in the wake of the pandemic are we ready to have a grown up conversation about death?(31:11) With Spectator Political Editor James
Boris Johnson delayed 21 June, he said, because the data did not merit a full reopening. The specific data government is tracking to make these decisions remains unknown, so we are left to guess. But it’s hard to imagine the decision was disconnected from the rising Covid infection rate across the UK, due to the
Britain’s economy is growing at the fastest rate in 200 years. Job adverts are 29 per cent above their pre-pandemic levels and employers say they can’t reopen because they can’t find staff. Wages are rising at the fastest rate in ten years. But here’s the question: how much more support does the economy need from
It seems almost certain that ‘freedom day’ will be delayed. So now we consider the details. On the latest episode of Coffee House Shots, we debate the implications of extending restrictions and what that would mean – not just for the summer – but for the rest of the year. Fraser Nelson makes the case for
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On Monday, the Prime Minister will announce whether the 21 June unlocking is to go ahead. Because of the increased transmissibility of the Delta Covid variant, cases in the UK are continuing to rise. Does it make sense to wait for data to confirm that the link between cases, hospitalisations and deaths has been broken,
The UK economy continued to rebound in April, with this morning’s update from theOffice for National Statistics showing GDP grew 2.3 per cent — slightly better than the consensus prediction of 2.2 per cent. The reopening of non-essential shops and outdoor hospitality on 12 April contributed to the boost. GDP now sits 3.7 per cent below its pre-pandemic levels,
If you ask people what they’ve missed out on since the pandemic, they’ll probably lament their cancelled plans. Weddings postponed, birthday parties axed and family reunions moved to Zoom. Me, I’ve missed the unplanned. The spontaneity that knocks your routine, muddles your diary and lands you tipsy in the pub on a Monday night when
Calls to reform corporation tax are nothing new and don’t just come from the left. The inefficient and bureaucratic nature of the tax has been highlighted by free-market advocates for years, as it becomes increasingly obvious that, in the age of multinationals and digital tech giants, the structure is no longer fit for purpose. Action
Amidst all the explosive claims made by Dominic Cummings during today’s select committee hearing, one towards the beginning of the seven-hour session seemed rather unintentional. When asked by Rebecca Long-Bailey MP about what economic assessments were made when considering the first lockdown, Cummings responded that there was no straight-forward ‘document floating around’ which laid out
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18 months on from its first Covid case and Britain appears to finally be on the verge of victory over the pandemic. But while Covid deaths, hospitalisations and cases have all plummeted, the year-long disruption to the wider health service has led to stark predictions of another health emergency – a looming crisis in undiagnosed
