NEF in the news, September 2019

Brexit is sucking all the political bandwidth away from the big issues
Miatta Fahnbulleh appeared on BBC 2 Newsnight at Labour Party Conference to discuss the ongoing Brexit debacle.

John McDonnell says Labour will reduce working week to 32 hours in a decade
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell mentioned NEF research showing that a shorter working week could actually increase productivity in his conference speech. This was covered in the Evening Standard and Personnel Today. NEF CEO Miatta Fahnbulleh also appeared on BBC Radio London and Aidan Harper on LBC to talk about this policy.

The British economy creates lots of jobs – not lots of pay rises
NEF’s analysis showing the average worker was still £128 a year worse off than in 2008 was mentioned by Phillip Inman and Owen Jones in articles for the Guardian. 

Just 6% of homes on sold-off public land set for affordable rent
New research from NEF revealing that over half of plans for sold-off public land have no social-rented housing was covered in 24housing.

Average Briton still £128 poorer than before last recession, new analysis reveals
New NEF analysis showing that the UK population is still poorer than it was in 2008 was covered in the Guardian and the Independent. 

David Cameron Says Austerity Should Have Been Deeper And Faster. The Facts Say Different
NEF CEO Miatta Fahnbulleh wrote for the Huffington Post about the political choice of austerity and its impacts on communities across the UK. 

Austerity and Brexit 
NEF CEO Miatta Fahnbulleh appeared on BBC 2 Politics Live to discuss the political choice of austerity, the Liberal Democrat’s position on Brexit and the likeliness of securing a Brexit deal before the 31st October 2019.

How could a reduction in working time benefit our economy?
Head of Economics, Alfie Stirling, spoke to talkRADIO about NEF research showing how a reduction in working time could boost productivity.

Why should we move to a shorter working week?
Aidan Harper went on LBC to talk about the benefits to people, business and the economy of moving to a shorter working week.

UK working hours would be shorter if pre-1980 trend had not been derailed, new study says
NEF analysis showing UK workers would be working half a day less today had the pre-1980 trend in rising leisure time continued was covered in the Independent and Bloomberg. 

Local government will have £25bn funding gap, report warns
A new NEF report on the effects of austerity on local authorities picked up coverage in the Mirror and Independent. 

The UK’s failing economic model demands such bold ideas
NEF signed a letter in response to the Financial Times’ recent series alongside over 80 economists & civil society leaders, to call on the FT to recognise the failings within UK’s economy. 

Only the rich fly regularly — so now they’ve got to pay to tackle climate change
NEF’s proposal for a Frequent Flyer Levy was covered in the Independent.

Commons vote on a no deal Brexit and a possible general election
NEF CEO Miatta Fahnbulleh appeared on BBC Two Newsnight to discuss the Commons vote and the possibility of a snap election. 

What are the main takeaways from the Chancellor’s spending review?
Our analysis showing it would take up to 11 years to reverse the effects of austerity was covered in iNews. NEF CEO Miatta Fahnbulleh discussed the spending review on Sky News and LBC.

“Co-living is a new way for developers to squeeze profit from the broken housing market”
Hanna Wheatley spoke to the Guardian for a piece about the rise in co-living spaces.