http://flipchartfairytales.wordpress.com/2014/04/25/self-employed-the-nouveau-pauvre/#comment-19576 :: Here’s a great piece of analysis from Flip Chart Fairytales which uncovers the truth behind the recent boom in self-employment in the UK. Turns out declaring yourself as self-employed is an effective way to get the DWP off your back. If you move from Job Seekers Allowance to Working Tax Credits they can…
Very encouraging to see Martin Wolf in the Financial Times talking seriously about full reserve banking. His proposals for are a step in the right direction but are only part of the solution. They highlight a set of additional underlying problems that also need to be addressed. He takes no account of one of the main…
Blowing Bubbles
Yesterday The Telegraph reported on the current house price boom. The average asking price in England and Wales is more than £262,500 – 7.3% higher than it was 12 months ago. For those of us who struggle with the concept of cumulative growth 7.3% doesn’t sound like a very big number but if you do…
Anyone who’s encouraged by George Osborne’s claims of having steered the UK through the stormy waters of recession into a period of growth that’s “the largest in the G7” needs to read this piece: Comparative Recovery from Flip Chart Fairy Tales. Personally I don’t think GDP is a very useful measure of economic performance but…
Even in the USA the debate about universal basic income is coming out into the mainstream. Here’s a substantial piece on PBS News Hour in which people from right and left talk of the advantages of UBI. Not much discussion about how to fund it but that will come, I’m sure.
Welcome to Collaborative Scotland. I’ve just become a signatory to Collaborative Scotland’s commitment to engage in the independence debate with respect and courtesy, and continue in the same spirit after the referendum regardless of the result. There are many other debates in life where a similar commitment from both sides would save a lot of…
Views From The Boatshed 