Questions and answers about
the economy.

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Why are good jobs concentrated in certain places?

Good jobs exist everywhere in the UK – but the highest-paying roles remain heavily concentrated in London and the South East, and a small number of cities. Structural change has reinforced these patterns, raising difficult questions about how policy can help to spread opportunity more widely.

Productivity & growth

Is the UK on track for growth in every postcode?

Every UK region grew in 2024, but nearly a third of local authorities experienced a fall in total output that year. Analysing the latest official data helps to explain this striking variation – and offers an initial framework for assessing the prime minister’s promise of ‘growth in every postcode’.

Pensions, savings & investment

Can the UK afford the triple lock on state pensions?

The value of state pensions in the UK is protected by the so-called triple lock. This policy has led to substantial increases in payments to pensioners, raising questions about its affordability over the longer term.

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What is the state pension triple lock?

Since 2012 the state pension has risen each April by whichever is highest: earnings, prices or 2.5%. Earnings won 6 times, CPI 5, the floor 4. Next April looks set for a 3.9% rise, taking the full new state pension to about £250.70 a week.

Compounded, the full state pension has risen by 81% since April 2011, against 64% for earnings and 55% for prices.

Lessons from history

How has the UK’s financial system changed over the past 100 years?

The UK’s financial system has been forged by economic shocks, political priorities and market changes. Over the past century, banks have come to play a bigger role, not least for firms looking to raise capital. Recent reforms seek to revive corporate equity and bond markets to support growth.

Lessons from history

How have UK businesses changed over the past 100 years?

The end of the British Empire, large-scale technological progress, an increasingly globalised world economy and big shifts in government policy have all affected UK businesses over the past century. But despite such changes, a number of British companies that were prominent in 1926 remain so today.

Lessons from history

Have economic inequalities in the UK narrowed over the past 100 years?

Both income and wealth inequality, as measured by the shares held by the top 1%, declined consistently in the UK from 1914. But there was an abrupt halt in both declines in the early 1980s. Since then, income inequality has risen while wealth inequality has appeared steady for over four decades.

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