Category Archives: Inflation

Bank Rate rises. Inflation rate stubborn.

Posted on June 22, 2023 by Paul Evans

As widely expected, The Bank of England has increased rates to 5% from 4.5%. This is the 13th increase in a row, and it is a response to Inflation Rates that are remaining stubbornly high. The recently-announced May 2023 RPI … Continue reading →

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March Budget 2023 with added inflation catch-up.

Posted on March 22, 2023 by Paul Evans

Firstly, everything that was said in last week’s budget needs to be placed in some context. It seems that British economic analysts seem to have completely lost the ability to forecast inflation – a problem that may make a nonsense … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Freelance working, Freelancer rights, Inflation, Pay & inflation, Personal Service Companies | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Living Wage Foundation brings its annual announcement forward

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Paul Evans

As reported here in the summer, The Living Wage Foundation has brought forward their announcement of the annual Living Wage/London Living Wage increase. The new figures are £10.90 (90p increase)/£11.95 (£1 increase) respectively – the largest ever annual increase (last … Continue reading →

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Earnings growth – private sector workers outpace the public sector

Posted on October 11, 2022 by Paul Evans

Incomes Data Services (IDS) are reporting…. “Average earnings growth was 6.8% in the private sector in the year to August, contrasting with a growth rate of 2.2% in the public sector (excluding financial services)…” One would think this is encouraging … Continue reading →

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Inflation update – August 2022 figures

Posted on September 15, 2022 by Paul Evans

A pleasant surprise came with the August 2022 inflation figures. CPI was down the 9.9% with the annual RPI inflation rate staying level at 12.3%. CPIH is also slightly down at 8.6%. Most forecasters were expecting further increases. Last month, … Continue reading →

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July inflation figures. There’s no good news here…

Posted on August 17, 2022 by Paul Evans

By now you will probably have seen this morning’s announcements about July’s inflation rates. CPI has reached 10.1% (RPI = 12.3% and CPIH = 8.8%). The Bank of England is predicting that it could go as high as 13% thanks … Continue reading →

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Inflation update

Posted on July 21, 2022 by Paul Evans

None of this should be much of a surprise now. June’s figures are out and the figures are 11.8% (RPI), 9.4% (CPI), and 8.2% (CPIH). Remember, all wages that don’t keep pace with inflation result in short-term falls in standards … Continue reading →

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UK economic outlook – forecasts downgraded – what this means for freelancers

Posted on June 9, 2022 by Paul Evans

Unless someone tells me otherwise, it seems that the biggest issue for many freelancers arising from the cost-of-living crisis is the question of rising fuel costs – and this is likely to hit workers in film and TV particularly hard … Continue reading →

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Living Wage Foundation response to the cost of living crisis

Posted on June 6, 2022 by Paul Evans

As the cost of living soars at rates not seen for more than thirty years, the Living Wage Foundation has announced plans to bring its annual announcement forward from November to late September. The previous figure was announced in mid-November … Continue reading →

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April inflation figures – again, worse than expected

Posted on May 19, 2022 by Paul Evans

Even by the standards of the past 18 months where all forecasts have been shown to be over-optimistic, the leap in CPI inflation between March and April from 7% up to 9% is a startling one. Here’s the ONS summary … Continue reading →

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How inflation is affecting individual households

Posted on March 24, 2022 by Paul Evans

Further to the previous post on the cost of living, Bectu reps may wish to circulate this Office for National Statistics (ONS) page on how to calculate your personal cost-of-living changes.

Posted in Economics, Housing costs, Inflation, Low pay, Minimum wage rates, Pay & inflation, Wages and Pay-rates, Welfare and benefits | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Getting the current cost-of-living crisis in perspective

Posted on March 24, 2022 by Paul Evans

How can we understand the current cost of living crisis in perspective when talking to Bectu members about their wages? One way would be to look at it over a few years. In the past few days, coincidentally, I’ve had … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Freelance working, Inflation, Low pay, Pay & inflation, Wages and Pay-rates, Wealth inequality, Welfare and benefits | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Sunak’s spring statement 2022 – initial details

Posted on March 23, 2022 by Paul Evans

Firstly, with inflation up again at 6.2% from 5.5%, the growth forecasts are fairly conservative at the moment and “we don’t really know how the situation in Ukraine will affect all of this” runs like a subtext to all of … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Freelance working, Inflation, Low pay, National Insurance Contributions (NICs), Productivity, Tax | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Inflation – latest

Posted on March 10, 2022 by Paul Evans

Not a detailed post but a useful snapshot. The latest KPMG forecast for UK inflation has it peaking at more than 10% later this year (due to energy price spikes)… pic.twitter.com/7RvQ49MVi3 — Ben Chu (@BenChu_) March 9, 2022  

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January’s inflation figures

Posted on February 16, 2022 by Paul Evans

Today’s UK inflation figures show cost-of-living increases that reach the highest rate for over 30 years. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation increased to 5.5% in January from 5.4% a … Continue reading →

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You need a 7.1% pay-rise to stand still.

Posted on November 17, 2021 by Paul Evans

In the light of today’s news about cost-of-living increases… With tax rises in April and inflation set to hit 5% someone on average earnings will need a wage rise of over 7% to keep their living standards constant https://t.co/UpkxBM1Iku — … Continue reading →

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Cost of living price rises – it’s all bad news

Posted on November 17, 2021 by Paul Evans

There’s lots of bad news around for anyone who isn’t enjoying significant wage rises at the moment. ONS figures are reporting that the consumer prices index (CPI) measure of annual inflation rose to 4.2% in October, up from 3.1% in … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Inflation, Low pay, Minimum wage rates, Pay & inflation, Wages and Pay-rates | Tagged , | 1 Comment

New ‘Living Wage’ published

Posted on November 16, 2021 by Paul Evans

The Living Wage Foundation has published their new ‘Living Wage’ rates – up from £9.50 to £9.90 across the UK (40p increase), and from £10.85 up to £11.05 in London (20p increase). The Living Wage rates are the only rates … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing costs, Inflation, Low pay, Minimum wage rates, Pay & inflation, Wages and Pay-rates | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Surprising-yet-unsurprising news about people thinking of leaving their jobs

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Paul Evans

The most surprising-yet-unsurprising nugget here is that “…the majority of those considering quitting had been offered no incentives to stay by their employers.” 📰📰NEW STUDY: How to Solve the Labour Market Crisis by Raising Standards Labour shortages are a principal … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Employment, Inflation, Long hours, Low pay, Mental Health, Pay & inflation, The working environment, Wellbeing, Work-life balance | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Budget statement – quick reaction

Posted on October 27, 2021 by Paul Evans

Here’s a quick reaction to today’s Budget statement from Rishi Sunak. As ever, it’s worth waiting for a lot of this to be digested by economists and a range of more detailed briefings will be available in a few hours. … Continue reading →

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National Living Wage will rise to £9.50 an hour

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Paul Evans

The 59p increase for workers over 23 – up 6.6% from £8.91 reflects the inflationary pressure outlined here a few weeks ago. The new rates will rise from 1 April 2022 as follows: National Living Wage for over-23s: From £8.91 … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Inflation, Low pay, Minimum wage rates, National Insurance Contributions (NICs), Pay & inflation, Tax, Trades Unions, Wages and Pay-rates, Wealth inequality | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Drivers particularly badly hit by soaring costs

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Paul Evans

In news that will particularly hit film freelancers, car costs are soaring. Secondhand cars are costing up to 60% more than they did in 2019, and the price of petrol is climbing rapidly. The weekly road fuel prices stats on … Continue reading →

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Energy bills to rise by 50% between 2020 and 2022

Posted on October 18, 2021 by Paul Evans

With the impacts of soaring global gas markets on the energy bills, and the price cap rising by 12 per cent on 1 October, The Resolution Foundation is briefing that energy bills are set to rise by 50% between 2020 … Continue reading →

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Got a pay claim coming up? Want advice on inflation, and stuff like that?

Posted on October 12, 2021 by Paul Evans

If you have a pay claim coming up and want advice on inflation, and stuff like that…. good luck! Firstly, the official, current inflation figures have not been as flimsy a guide as they are at the moment for a … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Employment, EU & Brexit, Inflation, Pay & inflation, Productivity, Skills & capacity | Tagged | 3 Comments

VAT gradually returning to normal rates

Posted on October 5, 2021 by Paul Evans

Since July 2020, there has been a reduced rate of VAT (5%, and not the normal 20%) charged on transactions in the leisure and hospitality sectors (which includes theatres and live events – a list of who it applies to … Continue reading →

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Negotiating expenses for working in London (a guide for non-Londoners)

Posted on October 4, 2021 by Paul Evans

If (for example) you are based in Glasgow but you are asked to spend time working in London, what % uplift should you ask employers for when negotiating expenses? There’s a website called Numbeo that tracks and compares the cost … Continue reading →

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Inflation – 3.2% in August

Posted on September 15, 2021 by Paul Evans

The increase in the cost of living, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index, has reached 3.2% in the year to August. But the ONS says that we shouldn’t read too much into this (very large) jump because… “The increase … Continue reading →

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Labour shortages increase potential industrial muscle for workers

Posted on August 27, 2021 by Paul Evans

Today’s FT is full of news about how labour shortages are hitting the economy in numerous ways as a result of multiple market failures [£] which includes the pandemic, the pingdemic, market failure but obviously, we can’t add brexit to … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus, Economics, Employment, EU & Brexit, Gig economy workers, Inflation, IR35, Migration & working abroad, Pay & inflation, Productivity | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Jobs growth fueling interest rate changes?

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Paul Evans

Useful info in here [£] about the current state of the jobs market. How the hot UK labour market is driving interest rate forecasts https://t.co/xIehn9Av73 — Financial Times (@FT) August 11, 2021

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Inflation rises to 2.5%

Posted on July 14, 2021 by Paul Evans

From The Guardian: “Britain’s inflation rate has risen to 2.5% – its highest level in almost three years – after the easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions prompted rising demand. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said dearer food, secondhand cars, … Continue reading →

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Will Biden’s stimulus package cause inflation?

Posted on June 30, 2021 by Paul Evans

The LSE blog summarises the arguments with a panel of US experts expressing their views on the likelihood of the economy ‘overheating’ and causing inflation as a result.

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“The beast of inflation”

Posted on June 20, 2021 by Paul Evans

Haldane has warned of the “beast of inflation” stalking the land once more, with booming demand, labour shortages and supply-chain disruption risking a “wage-price spiral familiar from the 1970s and 1980s”. For Haldane, that warrants action to reduce the scale … Continue reading →

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OECD says UK economy recovery will be stronger than previously predicted

Posted on June 3, 2021 by Paul Evans

The OECD is predicting UK growth of 7.2% in 2021 and 5.5% in 2022 – “the fastest since World War II”. However, it also predicts…

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Economy headlines for May 2021

Posted on May 20, 2021 by Paul Evans

Unemployment has fallen slightly and job vacancies risen to their highest level during the pandemic, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Inflation has doubled, with CPI rising by 1.5% in the twelve months to April (up … Continue reading →

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