There has been considerable recent debate about the terms of 'Plan 2' student loans, which were issued to 11 cohorts of English undergraduate university students: those who started their courses between academic years 2012/13 and 2022/23.1 We have written before about how these student loans...

Public services play an important role in supporting households' well-being and their members' life chances. This is especially true for low- and middle-income households, for whom the in-kind services received represent a larger share of overall consumption and for whom equivalent private...

Public services play an important role in supporting households' well-being and their residents' life chances. This is especially true for low- and middle-income households, for whom the in-kind services received represent a larger share of overall consumption, and for whom equivalent private...

The government is in the process of conducting a review of universal credit (UC), the main means-tested benefit for working-age people, received by 6.3 million families at any one time. This report discusses some of the challenges UC faces, and outlines potential directions for reform.

The late 2010s saw the Scottish Government gain powers over several existing taxes (most notably income tax) and benefits (mainly related to disability), as well as powers to create new benefits. Devolved taxes now account for around 33% of all tax revenue raised in Scotland. On the benefits...

Since its inception, the Welsh Government has had powers over local taxation - determining the structure of council tax (with councils then setting the headline tax rate) and the structure and level of business rates. The late 2010s saw the Welsh Government gain powers over a number of other...

The Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) is a tax on pre-packaged soft drinks with added sugar. Introduced in 2018, the government's stated aim was to reduce obesity (especially among children) by reducing the amount of added sugar in soft drinks, and encouraging consumers to switch to less sugary...

The Welsh Government aims to increase employment and earnings as part of its 'Plan for Employability and Skills', and in order to help generate additional tax revenues that can help fund public services and investment. It also aims to reduce inequalities in employment and earnings, and has clear...