News

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Generous tax breaks have helped create a “shadow” welfare state for the 20 per cent wealthiest in the UK, research has revealed. The Fabian Society believe these high earners will take almost the same as the worst off fifth take in benefits. The Fabians’ general secretary, Andrew Harrop, indicated his research illustrates the latest Budget was another step in remodeling the welfare state as we know it. This shift has moved resources from the poorest...

Britain has a real problem with foreign languages. A study by the British Council recently found three-quarters of the population cannot hold a conversation in a foreign language. Our apathy could prove to be a big risk to the economy, with an "alarming shortage" of people able to speak the ten languages vital to our future prosperity and global standing. So what's stopping us? New research by the Goethe Institute has revealed that 73 per cent of Brits have considered learning a second...

By Gemma Joyce As the race for London Mayor accelerates, new data is suggesting a change in tide of online support for the front runners. Social data research on the candidates’ performance on social media could be good news for Richmond Park and North Kingston MP Zac Goldsmith. The analysis, conducted by Brandwatch, studied conversations surrounding London Mayor front runners Sadiq Khan and Zac Goldsmith on Twitter, finding that discussion related to the Conservative candidate was scoring a higher percentage of...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Amnesty International has made worrying claims at Qatar, ahead of the 2022 World Cup in their country. The human rights group has accused Qatar of using forced labour at their flagship stadium, which is being constructed to host football matches during the 2022 tournament. Amnesty has made claims that workers at Khalifa International Stadium are forced to live in squalid accommodation, pay huge recruitment fees, have had wages withheld and passports confiscated. The issue has...

Redbridge's Indian communities have reacted to 'patronising' leaflets sent by mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith in the run-up to the election. A campaign leaflet sent by Goldsmith that was tailored to those from specific Indian groups stated he supported family-owned businesses and was against taxes on family jewellery. Cllr Varinder Singh Bola, who received a leaflet saying Goldsmith “campaigned for the Golden Temple to remain in the hands of the Sikh community," called the campaign "very distasteful" and "quite patronising to target ethnic communities"....

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Worrying news has emerged from a new piece of research; sea levels are now forecast to rise over a metre during the upcoming century. This is more than double the previous estimate, and will need drastic action to prevent a global catastrophe caused by the increased water levels. The research was carried out by scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Pennsylvania State University. The news will be terrifying to low laying islands, such...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor HMP Oakwood near Wolverhampton, and it operated by G4S, is making single rooms into doubles to attempt to accommodate an increase in prisoners, but it has raised fears of serious overcrowding. The prison, the UK’s largest privately-run jail are to start sharing cells this summer, after it was told by the Government to cram in another 500 prisoners this July. This move has worried campaigners who see this move as a recipe for overcrowding and...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor The City of London has more than three times as many multi-millionaire bankers as the rest of the European Union combined. The number of bankers with a take home pay of over one million Euros (£800k) per annum rose to almost 3 thousand in 2014, one of which made an astonishing €25 million. The UK, which houses Europe’s biggest financial district in London, dwarfs the rest of the EU bankers in terms of large salaries,...

By Prof Mary Mellor The justification for austerity is that the public sector must live within its means. There is a plausibility in the claim that the state is like a household that should not spend more than it earns. This kind of ‘handbag economics’ draws its analogy from a mythical household. Real households do not live within their means. If they did the economy would grind to a halt. Modern prosperity is built upon debt and the main aim...