Network Rail, Royal Mail, and Thames Water - three failing utilities
Network Rail, Royal Mail, and Thames Water are all examples of serious failure, with major economic and social consequences. None has lived up to the ambitions of privatisation, nor are they world-lea...
13 Dec 202311min
Territorial carbon emissions don’t tell the full story – the cases of Grangemouth and DRAX
Our politicians may claim that the UK is on its way to net zero electricity, but the potential closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery provides an illustration of why the seemingly good numbers are no...
28 Nov 202311min
The remarkable net zero political consensus – and why it's wrong
The political consensus about how the UK will achieve net zero by 2035 is remarkable, centred as it on the assumption that consumer bills must not go up and that instead we will need to borrow from th...
28 Nov 202310min
Net zero realism
It’s time for climate realism. The political rhetoric of low costs and ever-falling energy bills has inevitably collided with the reality of the actual costs of the transition. Renewables might be zer...
20 Nov 202314min
The Treasury blame game
The Treasury gets accused of not spending enough on school roofs, on health to cut the waiting lists, on local government and social care, on subsidising battery factories and steel plants, and these ...
11 Sep 202311min
Why does everything seem to be broken?
Air traffic control, school buildings, the railways, potholes in the roads, leaking water pipes, local electricity networks failing when the wind blows from the wrong direction. Why does it feel that ...
6 Sep 202312min
Labour's big bet on economic growth
Labour has been busy setting out its plans for the economy, and its pitch to potential voters, of no new income or wealth taxes. Instead, the essential improvements to public services will all be paid...
31 Aug 202315min
Beggars can't be choosers
“Unlocking” and “unleashing” funds is not as straightforward as UK politicians would have us believe. The simple fact is that there are few UK savings to invest. Households don’t save very much; the c...
3 Juli 202313min
