Insights archive
Reform’s £50 Billion Welfare Plan: A Costing Is Not a Social Contract Reform has now published more detail than its critics sometimes admit. What is still missing is the law, the delivery plan and…
Read articleThere is a familiar rhythm to British public policy. A popular campaigner identifies a real unfairness. Ministers sense an easy win. Special advisers spot a headline. A complex administrative system is reduced to a…
Read articleRecurring digital payments have quietly become a fixed feature of household finances across the UK, Europe and the United States. For revenues and benefits services, understanding their scale, their cross-national consistency — and their…
Read articleReflections from the Independent Revenues and Benefits Monday Discussion Group This week’s Independent Revenues and Benefits Monday Discussion Group ranged widely, but two themes dominated the discussion: the government’s latest youth employment package, and…
Read articleThe latest Independent Revenues and Benefits Monday Discussion Group took the Chancellor’s Spring Statement as its starting point and asked a simple question: what does it really mean when viewed from the frontline of…
Read articleMeeting note for 16 February 2026 The group focused on two linked themes that continue to dominate local public service delivery: whether council tax and adult social care should be reformed in tandem; and…
Read article1. Council tax administration High Value Council Tax Surcharge (HVCTS) The main direct council tax change is the new High Value Council Tax Surcharge: Administrative implications for councils: There are no direct changes to…
Read articleIndependent Revenues & Benefits Monday Discussion Group10 November 2025 The latest Monday Discussion Group, chaired by Malcolm Gardner, explored pension credit take-up, changes to notional pension income rules, and the real impact of the…
Read article27 October 2025 The Independent Revenues and Benefits (R&B) Discussion Group gathered for another lively Monday session chaired by Malcolm Gardner, who began on a light note from “sunny Yorkshire” before steering conversation into…
Read articleThe Independent Revenues & Benefits Monday Discussion Group was back on 8 September, with Malcolm Gardner welcoming everyone after the summer break. Smiles all round, though the mood paused for a moment as Malcolm…
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