The protest placard he held up during Baroness Thatcher’s funeral procession made Dave Winslow a minor celebrity for a day. … Continue reading “Poor people in rich countries – a new approach to measurement and policy”

It is sad to see the Pope enter into the political and economic arena. He does not understand the issues … Continue reading “The Pope and a ‘fair wage’ in Bangladesh”

The central plank of the coalition’s welfare reform programme is finally being rolled out. By merging several major benefits and … Continue reading “Coalition welfare reform will make work pay – but still not by enough”

The conventional wisdom in the mainstream poverty literature is that Margaret Thatcher’s policies caused an explosion of poverty. As one … Continue reading “Thatcherism and poverty: did the poor get poorer?”

Since 1979, the consumption level of the poorest tenth of British society has increased by about 60 per cent in … Continue reading “‘But it works in Sweden!’ – The case against naïve egalitarianism”

Poverty cannot be meaningfully debated without due regard for a population’s demographic risk profile. When it comes to child poverty, … Continue reading “Single parenthood: the poverty industry’s kryptonite”

If you want to get an idea of the poverty industry’s attitude towards poor people, think of an ultra-overprotective parent, … Continue reading “The poverty industry’s weird anti-work agenda”

The government reached the position in 2009 where it could spend no more. In many respects the position was similar … Continue reading “Campaigning for the status quo is not an option”

Econometric literature is notorious for its inconclusiveness. Even for seemingly straightforward issues such as the impact of minimum wage laws, … Continue reading “Planning reform must be a key ingredient in an anti-poverty package”