Martin Rathfelder
@rathfelder.bsky.social
530 followers 720 following 460 posts
Retired Mancunian agitator. Patient representative/ public contributor in Manchester University. Unpaid advocate for disabled people. Wikipedian. Whalley Range Labour Party. Perfection is the enemy of improvement!
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
thekingsfund.bsky.social
The social care system is not fit for purpose. Many people can't access the care and support they need and others are left facing catastrophic costs. Our new long read outlines the six key issues and the options cited to tackle them. https://bit.ly/3VPOdH3
Fixing Social Care: The Six Key Problems And How To Tackle Them
Different people have different opinions about what’s ‘wrong’ with social care and how to fix it. This long read outlines the six key issues and the options cited to tackle them.
www.kingsfund.org.uk
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
jonbloomfield.bsky.social
@stephenkb.bsky.social calling out yet more racist garbage that fills the pages of our right-wing press these days.
stephenkb.bsky.social
No, it's not. It's all a lie. The blunt truth is across the 1991, 2001, 2011 and 2021 Census *every* ethnic group in the UK has become *less* geographically segregated and *all* groups, majority and minorities, are more likely to interact with people not like them.
igmansfield.bsky.social
Outstanding piece by Stephen Daisley.

Ethnicity is no barrier to Britishness - it's culture and integration.

That means 'smaller cohorts and aggressive integration policies' - and tackling the institutions that 'have amplified grievance narratives and radical anti-Western ideologies'.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
suttontrust.bsky.social
🗨️ "The truth is that experience isn’t free...It costs more than anyone with a financial safety net will ever understand."

Read about the problems with the prominence of unpaid work in creative careers ⤵️
Unpaid work is killing class diversity in the creative industries - The Sutton Trust
Our alum, Bethany, discusses the prominence of unpaid work in the creative professions.
www.suttontrust.com
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
thekingsfund.bsky.social
Is a healthier nation a wealthier nation?

For the first time, the ONS and NHS England, have linked millions of pseudonymised patient-level data on hospital waiting lists with individual-level data from HMRC.

Siva Anandaciva explores the findings. https://bit.ly/4gYwkze
Can Tackling Waiting Lists Get Britain's Economy Moving Again? | The King's Fund
New analysis from the Office for National Statistics and NHS England explores whether reducing waiting lists could help more people return to work and boost productivity.
bit.ly
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
healthwatchengland.bsky.social
Contrary to evidence that men are reluctant to attend services, our research shows an overwhelming support for a prostate cancer screening programme. https://bit.ly/4gZbf85
"The willingness of men to take part in a national prostate cancer screening offers the NHS a chance to engage with men and narrow health inequalities."
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
resfoundation.bsky.social
Older adults are more likely than younger adults to have seen passive gains in wealth.

Between 2018-20 and 2020-22, adults aged 75-79 saw the highest average passive increase in family wealth, a gain of nearly £18,000. People in their late 30s gained roughly half that amount (around £9,000).
Chart showing Estimated mean change in family wealth per adult over preceding two years, by age group: GB, 2014-16, 2016-18 and 2020-22
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
acornunion.bsky.social
This isn’t an unavoidable fact of life. It’s the direct result of policy choices made my those in power.

It doesn’t have to be this way.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
resfoundation.bsky.social
Wealth gaps between age groups have widened sharply in recent years.

The difference between those in their early 30s and early 60s has more than doubled in real terms since 2006-08, from £135,000 to £310,000.

Find out more about these trends in our latest report on wealth⬇️

buff.ly/Ya8kInK
Chart showing median real family net wealth per adult, by five-year age group: GB
Most age groups saw their wealth rise in the latest period, but gains were far from equal. Those aged 50-54 recorded the largest increase – typical per adult family wealth rose by £35,000 between 2018-20 and 2020-22 – but people in their late 30s saw only a £9,000 rise. These larger gains for older groups have widened existing wealth gaps: the difference between those in their early 30s and early 60s has more than doubled in real terms since 2006-08, from £135,000 to £310,000.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
adambienkov.bsky.social
Abolishing stamp duty would put a £24.5 billion a year black hole in Government finances by 2030, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
cjayanetti.bsky.social
stamp duty is progressively structured, hard to avoid, and raises a lot of money

it does make it more expensive to buy housing, but for first time buyers its impact is dwarfed by deposits and mortgage costs

tax theory hates it because tax theory loves looking through the wrong end of telescopes
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
nuffieldtrust.org.uk
Exploring 15 jurisdictions across the world, this report is the most detailed look to date at lessons from other countries as the UK and Scottish Parliaments debate bills to legalise assisted dying and potentially set up assisted dying services. 🌍

#AssistedDying
Assisted dying in practice: International experiences and implications for health and social care
Exploring 15 jurisdictions across the world, this is the most detailed look to date at what the UK can learn from other countries as the UK and Scottish Parliaments debate bills to legalise assisted…
buff.ly
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
resfoundation.bsky.social
Instead, real cash wealth gaps have grown - from £1 million in 2006-08, to £1.3 million by 2020-22.

The size of these wealth gaps really matter because it makes it harder for people to earn their way into becoming wealthy.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
resfoundation.bsky.social
In fact. it would now take 52 years’ worth of typical earnings – £1.3 million in total – to move from the middle to the top of the wealth distribution.

A full-time employee saving all their earnings across their entire working life would still not be able to reach the top of the wealth ladder.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
resfoundation.bsky.social
Kicking off our event, Senior Economist @mollybroome.bsky.social says that household wealth peaked on the eve of the crisis, and our new research examines the shape and distribution of that wealth.

Why 'before the fall'?...
rathfelder.bsky.social
Do we have a property owning democracy?
rathfelder.bsky.social
Taxing wealth in UK really means taxing the old. Over 60s have a majority of wealth.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
fullfact.org
We’ve spotted several videos being shared on social media claiming the TV licence fee is set to double for over-65s.

But this isn’t true.
The TV licence fee is not doubling for over 65s – Full Fact
A spokesperson for the BBC confirmed this isn’t true, contrary to claims being shared on social media.
fullfact.org
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
greyskiesthinking.bsky.social
🧵This is not just an issue for specialists. Official data which is not fit for purpose is feeding a crisis narrative on benefit claims that is for the most part accepted uncritically by political elites and the media.
louisemurphy.bsky.social
It's increasingly perplexing that DWP aren't prioritising improving their stats to better reflect the move from legacy benefits to UC.

Until then, we'll keep getting misleading headlines like 'Long-term sickness claims rising by 5,000 a day' - you can't blame journalists when the stats are so bad!
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
europeanmovement.co.uk
“The tide is turning.” says Heseltine.

People now see Brexit for what it is — a disaster that has left Britain smaller, poorer, and weaker.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
premnsikka.bsky.social
Richest 1% has more wealth than 70% of UK population combined.

Top 20% own two-thirds of wealth, receive 36% of income.

Bottom 20% own 0.5% of wealth, receive 9% of income.

Can't grow economy or have social stability.

Poverty is political choice. Which political party wants to address this?
The government must ensure fair distribution of income
'The average real wage of workers has hardly moved from the 2008 level whilst bosses never had it so good.'
leftfootforward.org
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder