Tom Waters

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

What were the decisions and trade-offs made by Chancellor Reeves?

The reforms announced today, to be implemented or consulted on, represent a fundamental change to the way that the state supports out-of-work people.

Mitigating the two-child limit policy would be an effective way to reduce child poverty, but designing an effective policy is not straightforward. 

Mental health has worsened since the pandemic. This is consistent with rising disability benefit claims for mental health. 

Is the working-age population less healthy since the pandemic? What role is changing health playing in rising health-related benefit claims?

Following a bulge in claims, recent figures suggest new disability benefits may not pose as big a cost to the Scottish Budget 2024 as first feared.

We're exploring why there's been an increase in child poverty since 2010 and options the government has to reduce this.

How do post-COVID claimants of health-related benefits compare with pre-COVID claimants? Where in the UK are they? How do other countries compare?