Twelve months of fairness: prepare to feel festive?

Yesterday’s Treasury Committee questions, including from @bobbywdean.bsky.social and John Glen MP, highlight important concerns about whether the decision to freeze income tax rates was truly fair. 🔗That's an issue we also explored in our Budget response here: www.faircomment.co.uk/p/budget-202...

📢 Our new report sets out a clear message: a fairer economy demands real fiscal powers for local places. The Budget's move to devolve tourism-levy powers was welcome, but it's a small down-payment on the long-term vision we need. 🔗Full report: fairnessfoundation.com/a-fair-share

We’ve teamed up with @transparencyuk.bsky.social to write this joint piece on the case for caps on political donations. It follows new TIUK polling that shows 84% of people believe wealthy individuals use political donations to advance their personal interests. Fair politics needs fair limits👇

For a fair system where politicians are accountable to the public, not just those who bankroll them we need limits on political donations.

Today's publication of the Child Poverty Strategy marks a landmark moment in building a fairer society. The measures announced today will help arrest the deep unfairness of children growing up locked out of opportunity, while their families struggle to afford the basics. 🧵

"Who gets to complain about housing policy in this country? Depends where you live, and how much your house is worth." Great analysis from @jonathanliew.bsky.social in @theguardian.com at www.theguardian.com/commentisfre..., linked to our budget commentary at www.faircomment.co.uk/p/budget-202...

Resourcing HMRC is incredibly good value: every £1 for tax compliance brings in £23. Private-sector orgs dream about ROI like that. But some everyday/automated tax enforcement is error-prone, or hits the poorest hardest. We need to measure tax **enforcement** incidence.

“If Reeves and Starmer have the political will to abolish the two-child limit, they should be able to muster the same boldness for reforming the tax system” – Will Snell of @fairness.bsky.social on the UK Budget in our latest blog post #LSEInequalitiesBlog

We need HMRC to work better for ordinary taxpayers: both fairness and our public finances depend on it. A guest post by Mike Lewis, Director of @taxwatch.bsky.social www.faircomment.co.uk/p/we-need-hm...

📌 Our Budget verdict: Ending the unfair two-child limit on Universal Credit is welcome, but the overall package is a missed opportunity. 🧵 🔗 Full analysis: www.faircomment.co.uk/p/budget-202...

Are you happy to let aristocrats and tech billionaires speak for you? If so, you'll love our new report in the Guardian on money, the media, and the House of Lords 👇

Will Snell of @fairness.bsky.social assesses the UK Budget: “Failing to increase capital gains tax rates and leaving the top tax rate on dividends untouched meant that the very rich were let off the hook”. See more in our latest post #LSEInequalitiesBlog buff.ly/3FnrGNZ

The decision to lift the two-child limit on Universal Credit is the fair choice. The limit introduced random & unjustifiable unfairness between children in larger families born before and after the policy change. 🔗 Read our previous research on the 2CL here: fairnessfoundation.com/two-child-li...

Is Britain broken? Jack Jeffrey, Senior Researcher at the Fairness Foundation, argues that progress depends on an honest recognition of the problems with Britain's economic model www.faircomment.co.uk/p/is-britain...

Thanks to Jane Dodds MS for citing our research in a Senedd debate on wealth taxation yesterday 👇 📉The evidence is clear- extreme wealth inequality harms economic growth & undermines living standards. 🤝Next week’s Budget is a chance to address that inequality and build a fairer society for all.

👩‍⚕️👨‍🚒🤵 Doctors, firefighters, even the super-rich themselves can see it… so why can’t Rachel Reeves? It’s time to tax the super‑rich & invest in our collective future. Yesterday, we delivered over 700,000 signatures demanding that the govt delivers #TaxJustice at the budget.

Do you feel lucky? Why acknowledging our own good fortune would make the world a better place. An article by our founder, Julian Richer: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

🚨Today, Tax Watch's annual State of Tax Administration report reveals that just 61% say HMRC treated them fairly in 2024. 📉That's well below the proportion of small (76%) and large (87%) businesses who say the same. Read more here: www.taxwatchuk.org/state-of-tax...

We’re at Parliament today to support @patmillsuk.bsky.social & the call to tax wealth more than work in next week’s Budget 👇

⚠️Content warning: Suicide and mental health 📢Our new report, in partnership with @d-liveability.bsky.social, explores how extreme wealth inequality may act as a driver of suicide by undermining the foundations that make life liveable. Read the full report here: fairnessfoundation.com/unliveable

Wealth inequality in the UK is higher than it was 30 years ago and far greater than income inequality. The new Wealth Gap Risk Register from @fairness.bsky.social explains why this matters and how wealth disparities affect every part of society, from housing and health to gender equality.

Breaking the tax pledge is the right call...and politically sulphurous. Reeves must argue, far more forcefully, that taxes are *the* essential downpayment we all pay for a fairer society. Patrick Diamond and I wrote for @renewaljournal.bsky.social. Key points in 🧵 👇 renewal.org.uk/blog/if-labo...

Proud to have joined over 100 other organisations in calling on the government to lift the unfair two-child limit 👇

Fascinating insights in this new report from @demos-uk.bsky.social @peterhyman.bsky.social At the heart of young people’s agenda for change is economic fairness & a clear demand for an economic system that tackles the insecurity and precariousness shaping their lives. Read the full report below 👇

Earlier this year, as part of our Achieving Good Growth project, we convened an expert round table with @fairness.bsky.social to discuss the evidence for the relationship between wealth inequality & growth in the UK, & potential policy responses. Find out more ➡️

Wealth inequality harms our economy in five ways - reducing demand, wasting talent, extracting wealth, skewing investment and undermining competition. Read more about the evidence base - and how to fill the gaps in it - in our joint briefing with @acadsocsciences.bsky.social, written up here 👇

Families on lower incomes are almost twice as likely to have to deal with damp or mould & 4 times as likely to live in homes that are too cold. We're backing the new campaign from @healthequals.bsky.social exposing the impact of unsafe homes. Find out more: healthequals.org.uk/hazmat-loung...

The UK lost £11 BILLION to multinational corporations cheating on their taxes from 2016 to 2021. Who's robbed us? Our govts know— they have the tax records— but have kept them from the public due to a US-backed global gag order. #NameTheTaxCheaters Report from @taxjustice.net 👉 bit.ly/taxjustice25

What can we learn from previous societies where rampant inequality undermined social cohesion, in many cases to the point of collapse? We've just published the write-up of our event with Dr Luke Kemp, author of 'Goliath's Curse', with @dhnnjyn.bsky.social and @warstudieskcl.bsky.social

On the International Day of Care and Support, this week’s New Economy Brief explores what the Carer's Allowance scandal tells us about how our economy and society undervalue care: neweconomybrief.net/the-digest/w...

New research from @fairness.bsky.social shows how wealth inequality is harming our economy & society - featuring our work on the gender wealth gap. On average, men hold £378,079 compared to women’s £300,017 – a 21% gap. Taxing wealth would both generate vital revenue and address gender inequality.

❗️Our new research shows how the wealth gap grew by 54% between 2011 & 2021, locking more and more people out of a fair chance to succeed. 📈Our Wealth Gap Risk Register 2025 reveals how this extreme divide holds back economic growth & harms community cohesion. 🔗 fairnessfoundation.com/risks-2025

“The wealth gap is choking off growth, funnelling resources into property and financial assets rather than productive investment. It is worsening the housing crisis, which now stands as both a symptom and a driver of broader inequality” @fairness.bsky.social fairnessfoundation.com/risks-2025

The wealth gap between rich and poor increased by over 50% from 2011 to 2021, to over £11.5 trillion. Find out more about the impacts on our society, economy, democracy and environment, and what we can do about it, from our updated Wealth Gap Risk Register.

"The govt must use this moment to ensure that the super-rich contribute their fair share rather than cutting services that impact the poorest and most marginalised." Our very own Caitlin Boswell in @theguardian.com, with a clear message for the Chancellor. 👉 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

In lane one: Pensions Crisis! In lane two: Intergenerational wealth disparity! In lane three: Collapsing real wages for young people! In lane four: A.I.! *finger twitches on starting pistol*

What would a wealth tax look like? 💸 Full discussion here 👉 linktr.ee/ohgodwhatnow... #wealthtax #podcast

🚨ICYMI🚨 Is the old “work hard and you’ll make it” model broken? And do we need a wealth tax to fix it? Will Snell of the @fairness.bsky.social joins @nndroid.bsky.social and @hannahfearn.bsky.social to discuss a growing crisis 👉 linktr.ee/ohgodwhatnow... #ukpolitics #pension

Fairness Foundation CE Will Snell recently spoke on the @ohgodwhatnow.bsky.social podcast to discuss how wealth inequality is shaping the retirement prospects of today’s workforce, and how current policy choices affect intergenerational fairness 👇 🎧Available now linktr.ee/ohgodwhatnow...

🚨NEW EPISODE🚨 Don’t mention the pension! – Can we avoid a two-tier society? Will Snell of the Fairness Foundation joins @nndroid.bsky.social and @hannahfearn.bsky.social to discuss a growing crisis 👉 linktr.ee/ohgodwhatnow... #ukpolitics #pension

Straight Outta Richmal Crompton: The 'Just William' books were read by a generation who also grew up with the security of a functioning social contract. Today's young people are facing a very different future.

We've published a new set of interactive graphics on taxing wealth, including: 📈 the relative wealth share over recent years 📊 differences between headline/effective tax rates & 📢 the impact of different policy solutions Find out more here🔗 fairnessfoundation.com/taxing-wealth

Some weekend reading for anyone curious about the case for wealth taxes, and other policies to reduce wealth inequality. From Howard Reed and me for the @fairness.bsky.social: "Win-Win-Win: Taxing Wealth for Fairness, Revenue and Growth" fairnessfoundation.com/win-win-win

Labour MPs want the Chancellor to go beyond fiscal tinkering at the upcoming Budget. New polling reveals a majority of Labour MPs (52%) think the Chancellor should raise taxes to fund more spending & investment rather than just to meet her fiscal rules: labourlist.org/2025/10/labo...

2⃣ We joined @fairness.bsky.social for the release of Win-Win-Win — their latest report showing how reforming wealth taxes can raise revenue, tackle inequality, and boost growth. fairnessfoundation.com/win-win-win

In November's Budget, the Chancellor can reform taxes on wealth to achieve three wins - raising revenue, tackling inequality and boosting growth. Find out more at fairnessfoundation.com/win-win-win

Four flavours of fairness: Fairness was a common thread running through the Labour, Conservative, Lib Dem and Reform conferences this year. Read our round-up by @jasonbunting.bsky.social

This week's New Economy Brief looks at the crisis in local government funding - its roots, its consequences and possible solutions: neweconomybrief.net/the-digest/c...

What can we learn from previous societies where rampant inequality undermined social cohesion, in many cases to the point of collapse? Join us and @warstudieskcl.bsky.social for a discussion with Dr Luke Kemp, author of 'Goliath's Curse', and @dhnnjyn.bsky.social on 20 October at 6.15pm to find out