The UK is part-way through almost unprecedented real-terms reductions in government expenditure as the government attempts to deal with the large hole in the public finances. As part of this, the UK government has announced and is in the process of implementing £18 billion of cuts to welfare...

The official statistics on the distribution of income and the extent of poverty in the UK in 2011-12 were released on Thursday 13 June 2013. Using the data underlying these statistics, this report analyses: •the changes in average incomes in the most recent year of data and the period since...

The public health and economic effects of the COVID-19 crisis are creating a perfect storm for councils' finances, simultaneously increasing spending and reducing incomes. For example, personal protective equipment (PPE) and social distancing requirements have increased unit costs for a range of...

There are marked differences in life expectancy between the regions of England, between the countries in the UK, and between the UK and other wealthy countries. Within England, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, life expectancy at birth was more than two years higher in London and the South East...

Health is the largest single area of Scottish Government spending, making up 35% of the Scottish Government's total discretionary budget in 2024-25 and 39% of its non-benefit budget.2 Its share of spending has grown significantly over time, driven by large increases in health spending in the...