How do men and women value parental leave offering different combinations of pay and length? Read this new @UniofBathIPR policy report, coauthored with @JCliftonSprigg, Ana Catalano Weeks and Alistair Hunt: bath.ac.uk/publications/more…

Why do some people go onto disability insurance in a recession while others don’t? In my new paper with @FurtadoDelia and @NTheodoropulos, we find it’s not just health, jobs and eligibility. It's also who you know. Free access for the next 50 days here: authors.elsevier.com/c/1nuLm…

One achievement the UK has made in the decade since the Brexit vote - it no longer has the most unaffordable childcare, according to @TheEconomist: economist.com/graphic-detail… #childcare

It's hard to side with the big supermarkets, but they have a point in resisting price controls. The price of milk at one major UK supermarket is exactly the same today as it was 3 years ago and down from its post-pandemic peak: bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y7… #costofliving

Happy National Minimum Wage Day. It’s not clear who’s celebrating this year though: today’s increases are the smallest in 5 years but are still (slightly) higher than average wage growth and inflation: bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c36r… #minwage

Rising childcare costs are a concern on both sides of the Atlantic, but what are the causes? nytimes.com/2026/03/05/upsho…. My current @NuffieldFound project "What Price is Free?" with Joanna Clifton-Sprigg is exploring the issue. #childcare

A texbook example of Becker's taste-based discrimination model in action: racist pub landlords in the Midlands went out of business and were replaced by the some of people they had previously banned. bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002pf… #racism

An article that sheds light on a little-understood aspect of the UK's National Living Wage. When an employer pays piece rates, rules state that "someone working at an average speed" must be paid at least the minimum wage per hour: bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ceq1… #minwage

Childcare costs have big effects on family decisions. My new two-year project with Joanna Clifton-Sprigg funded by @NuffieldFound will find out how much providing free nursery hours lowers overall costs for parents: nuffieldfoundation.org/proje…

Listen to me talk about why the introduction of "free" childcare in England might be risky on @bbc5live (fast forward to 33:51): bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002hw… #childcare

When is free not free? My research on childcare costs with Joanna Clifton-Sprigg at @UniofBathIPR was in the news today: bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0r7… #childcare

How $30 is the new $15. Plus "Dueling Economists" (is there any other sort?): nytimes.com/2025/08/04/busin… #minwage

Why do higher wages lead to more crime? Because people seem to spend some of their extra money on recreational drugs. Read my new paper looking at the effects of the UK minimum wage on street crime here: iza.org/publications/dp/1798… #crime #minwage

Listen to my co-author Joanna Clifton-Sprigg from @UniofBath talk about why extending paid leave for fathers is needed on @BBCWomansHour: bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002f8… #paternityleave @UniofBathIPR

A nice quote from my co-author @MichaelRStrain in @nytimes: nytimes.com/2025/05/20/busin…. If employers can't or won't increase prices, they might cut their workforce instead, so it's a matter of who the burden of a policy ultimately falls on. #inflation

How has restaurant price inflation varied across the UK over the past 6 years? Looking at the menu prices at one large pub chain I found that price increases were strongly linked to the income of an area. #inflation #food

Pay rates may soon be going up in the NHS: bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpq7…. My research suggests that this might make it much easier to fill vacancies: iza.org/publications/dp/1727… #vacancies #nhs

The problem facing England's nurseries in one figure: government funding falls faster as a child ages than do variable costs, so nurseries have to rely on younger children to cover their fixed costs: bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8x8… #childcare

Bad maths? As far as I can tell, the equation behind Trump’s tariffs gives the percentage - not percentage point - increase in tariffs. For example, China should get a 34% increase, not a 34 percentage point increase (which is a lot bigger): ustr.gov/issue-areas/recipro… #tariffs