Resolution Foundation Podcast

Understatement of the year?

The Treasury promised us a boring non-event, which on the day was massively over-shadowed by events in the Middle East anyway. Ruth Curtice discusses the merits of annual fiscal events, the difficulty of getting growth going, and what to expect in the Chancellor's upcoming (and unprecedented) *second* Mais Lecture, with James Smith (Chief Economist at the Resolution Foundation) and Giles Wilkes (Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government). 
Read Understatement of the year on our website today, for the full detail of our Spring Forecast response.
 
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Taking the temperature: Spring Forecast 2026 and the prospects for borrowing, growth and living standards

The Government came into office promising to tackle policy uncertainty by limiting major fiscal events to one a year. They failed to deliver this last year, but are determined to deliver a ‘policy free’ Spring Forecast next week. Have they achieved greater policy certainty, or been scuppered by the cost of policy U-turns, public service pressures, major changes in the UK economic outlook, or problems that need fixing before the Autumn Budget?
 
Speakers
David Miles
Member of the Budget Responsibility Committee at the OBR
Dharshini David
BBC’s Deputy Economics Editor
James Smith
Chief Economist at the Resolution Foundation
Ruth Curtice
Chief Executive at the Resolution Foundation

Where is the UK economy heading?

Catch up on a recording of our recent event discussing the outlook ahead of the Chancellor's Spring Forecast.
The Autumn Budget was barely three months ago, but the UK has experienced plenty of economic and political drama since then. In the short time between OBR forecasts, there have been encouraging signs on the public finances and the outlook for inflation. But growth remains sluggish and uncertainty elevated amid rising geopolitical tensions. There are some signs of productivity ‘green shoots’, but the risk is they are indicative of higher unemployment.
 
Speakers
Karen Ward - Managing Director at JPMorgan Asset Management
Yael Selfin - Vice Chair and Chief Economist KPMG in the UK
Andy King - Specialist Partner at Flint Global
James Smith - Chief Economist at the Resolution Foundation
Ruth Curtice - Chief Executive at the Resolution Foundation (Chair)

Who are 'Unsung Britain'?

Britain does not feel like a nation at ease – and hasn’t done for a very long while. By more than two-to-one, Britons last year judged the country to be on the “wrong track” rather than heading in the “right direction”. Ruth Curtice, the Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation, discusses the experiences and prospects for the nation's poorer half with Scarlett Maguire and Tom Clark.

Growing pains

The Resolution Foundation has documented two decades of UK economic underperformance and stagnant living standards.
 
18 months into a government elected on a mandate of change and growth, and following the publication of Mountain climbing, we're assessing their growth strategy – its intentions, its achievements, and its prospects moving ahead into an uncertain world. Lord David Willetts, the President of the Resolution Foundation, is joined by Sophie Hale, Research Director at the Resolution Foundation, and Anna Leach, Chief Economist at the Institute of Directors.

Net zero farming: How can we kick-start the net zero transition in farming without making the cost of living crisis worse?

The UK has made good progress towards net zero in recent decades. But the agriculture sector stands out as having made barely any progress. To meet our legally-binding climate targets, agriculture and land use will need to decarbonise seven times quicker this decade than in the past 15 years. Fundamental changes to how we make food and use land will be needed. But decarbonisation in this area is hard and any efforts will need to overcome considerable political and living standards barriers to reform.
 
How can policy makers meet the decarbonisation challenge while protecting living standards for farmers and consumers, while also upholding food security? How can better-designed land-use policy play a role? How should the sector’s generous subsidy system be overhauled? And who should pay for greening food production?
The Resolution Foundation is hosting an in-person and interactive webinar to debate and answer these questions. Following a presentation of our latest policy proposals on the farming sector, we will hear from leading experts on the challenges of cutting emissions from food production, reshaping how land is used, and how to take a living standards-first approach to these.

Fixing the 13-year itch: How to make Universal Credit work for the millions of families who claim it

The roll out of Universal Credit began way back in April 2013, a process that has been beset by delays, design changes, controversy and criticism from across the political spectrum. But 13 years on, the roll out is almost complete and Universal Credit is here to stay. As we approach this crucial milestone and the Government is undertaking its own internal review of the benefit, now is a good opportunity to take fresh look at UC’s design and structure and ask what operational changes could be made to improve the experience and outcomes for the seven million families claiming UC today.
How could changes to Universal Credit improve income stability for its claimants? How could the interaction between the benefit system and work be smoother? What could be done to improve trust in Universal Credit? And can make Universal Credit be made to work better without breaking the bank?

What can Westminster learn from Scotland on reforming disability benefits?

Resolution Foundation Research Director Lindsay Judge talks you through the learnings from recent benefit reforms in Scotland, joined by Louise Murphy and Ben Geiger. Read 'Delivering dignity' on our website today to learn more.