THE NEW INVESTMENT ZONES: An Assessment of their likely impact

Professor Steve Fothergill - Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research, Sheffield Hallam University The Spring Budget announcement In the Spring Budget on 15 March, the UK government announced new plans for Investment Zones.  These should not be confused with the Investment Zones announced in last September’s Growth Plan and then scrapped in November– there … Continue reading THE NEW INVESTMENT ZONES: An Assessment of their likely impact

There is no quick fix to the economic inactivity problem

This blog first appeared as an Editorial for the Institute of Employability Professionals (IEP) Journal. This highlighted the evidence base on both the longer-term and shorter-term increases in economic inactivity amongst particular groups, especially amongst those with health conditions or disabilities. These have pointed out that whilst the Labour Force Survey (LFS) indicates that unemployment is at a historical low, employment has still not recovered to pre-pandemic levels with currently a quarter of a million fewer people in employment than before the pandemic.