Stuart Adam

At this online event IFS researchers will present their initial analysis of the Chancellor's Spring Statement.

Our new report finds that a major recent revision by the ONS to official estimates of household wealth is fundamentally flawed. 

A recent change in ONS methodology reduced measured household wealth by over £2 trillion. But is the new approach an improvement?

This report analyses the Scottish Government’s Budget for 2025–26, with chapters on tax strategy, school spending, public sector pay and more.

At this online event, IFS researchers presented their analysis of the Scottish Budget proposals and the wider Scottish tax and spending context.

Broader reform alongside a council tax revaluation could improve the fairness and efficiency of the Scottish tax system.

Council tax in Scotland – as in England – is out of date, regressive and distortionary. How should it be reformed, and what would the effects be?

Despite the publication of a Tax Strategy alongside the Scottish Budget, it is not yet clear what the Scottish Government’s vision for tax policy is.

Scotland’s Tax Strategy is welcome but says little concrete about tax policy. And some actual tax policy is divorced from any sensible strategy. 

We discuss how taxes like capital gains, stamp duty, and council tax impact the housing market, affecting affordability, renting, and homeownership.

At this event, an expert panel debated what part tax plays in housing market failures and what can be done to fix it. 

The Autumn 2024 Budget brought some agricultural property into inheritance tax. What are the changes? Who will be affected? Were they a good idea?

Should the government raise capital gains tax in the Budget? What is the case for reforming capital gains tax? What are the options for reform?

Should the government raise capital gains tax in the Budget? What is the case for reforming capital gains tax? What are the options for reform?

An assessment of tax policy changes and the policymaking process from 2010 to 2024.