Without swift action, the cost-of-living crisis risks driving even more vulnerable people into the hands of criminal lenders.
Pandemic and war, like two horsemen of the Apocalypse, leave the Chancellor scrabbling for a response.
If the war lasts a few years at most, the Chancellor can take the hit. If it’s a new normal that lasts for decades, the outlook is grim.
Better integration with academic courses, more employer involvement, and a clearer balance between local and national oversight would all help.
The fundamental problem is that costs are going up faster than we are getting more productive.
We cannot be the tax cutters we were in the 1980s because we are now an older country than we were then.
Children are particularly affected. But will the unfolding political drama leave any room for serious action?
Whatever the outcome of Sue Gray’s investigation, we must draw a line under the questions being faced by the Government.
For the sake of our bills as well as our security interests, we need to double down on homegrown green energy instead.
When it comes to helping working people, a tax cut to hand would be the cancellation of the Health and Social Care Levy.
The Chancellor extolled principles that point to the possibility of meaningful pro-growth reform of how revenues are raised.
We have the on-the-ground experience to put public money to effective use and ensure it delivers for all.
There should be a growth target to complement the inflation target – to drive government departments to take actions that will promote more UK activity and jobs.
The mission is to create an economy that works for everyone, while protecting people from factors out of their control.
The Spring Statement must not focus on the ‘squeezed middle’ to the exclusion of those at risk of genuine poverty.