Mike Brewer

@mikebrewerecon.bsky.social

5.4K followers 1.2K following 230 posts

Deputy Chief Executive Resolution Foundation, CPAG Trustee & Visiting Prof in Practice at LSE Social Policy. 'Calm, Measured, Withering' http://tinyurl.com/y6wxlxhj). 'Cool, calm analysis' (More or Less, 8/10/25). He/him

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Economics 26%

Political science 22%

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Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · 5d

Our major new book is out today, exploring the changing circumstances of the poorer half of Britain, and setting out a policy agenda.

Read a summary of it all here resolutionfoundation.substack.com/p/unsung-bri...

Unsung Britain: working harder, getting nowhere

Mike Brewer explains how recent decades have squeezed the households who can least afford it

resolutionfoundation.substack.com

Reposted by Mike Brewer, Peter Holmes

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 5d

📢 Published today! 🚨

Unsung Britain represents an 18-month investigation into the lives of the 13 million working-age families across the poorest half of the country.

Read more 👉 buff.ly/7WcqrbQ

I’ve noticed a difference between when the 14-year-old was very little to
when my 10-year-old was very little. Within four years, you could
feel the slide.

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · 6d

Ooooh I've been promoted (I'm not CEO don't worry Ruth's still in charge last time I checked)

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 7d

🚨 New

Britain’s ‘unsung’ army – a million people in poorer working-age households now have full-time unpaid caring responsibilities .

Mike Brewer, Deputy Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation, said:
“Britain is getting older and sicker, while a greater share of its population has a disability. While these trends affect the whole of society, they are starkest in the poorest half of working-age families across the country.
“But while we talk a lot about the effects of ageing and ill-health, the implications on demand for unpaid care is largely absent from political debate. That’s despite Britain having an ‘unsung army’ of one million people who do at least 35 hours of unpaid care work every week – equivalent to a full-time job.
“It is time to provide better support for these carers and their families, just as we have done with working parents in recent decades. Carers deserve greater financial support in Universal Credit, more help to stay in work if they want to, and decent social care system to help the relieve the pressure on families.”

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · 6d

There's a t shirt, yes? Surely someone's made a t shirt??

Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 7d

"Full speed ahead to uber-woke, net-zeroist rejoinerism" is the funniest thing a Labour MP has said for some time I'll give it that. It's like a Jordan Peterson quote about Elmo.

Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 7d

Yes, god help we risk a floundering government that feels like no one is in charge.

Reposted by Will Jennings, Mike Brewer, Ben Rosamond

Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 7d

"Full speed ahead to uber-woke, net-zeroist rejoinerism" is the funniest thing a Labour MP has said for some time I'll give it that. It's like a Jordan Peterson quote about Elmo.

Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 7d

Yes, god help we risk a floundering government that feels like no one is in charge.

Morgan McSweeney does have some fans in the Parliamentary Labour Party, of course.
One MP says they are "devastated" he has left.
Another warns it represents "full speed ahead to uber-woke, net-zeroist, rejoinerism".
An MP who has been through several general elections when the tide was against Labour says of colleagues: "Good luck to all these careerists when they face an election without someone like Morgan at the helm.
"Some of us are old enough to remember the Corbyn era with no one in charge and the party floundering."

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · 7d

A bit late, but here is my annual confirmation that I have donated royalties from my book on inequality - a low three-digit sum - to Shelter, Gingerbread and Trussell Trust. (I am amazed it's being bought, as it's all pre-pandemic, but happy that it is)
www.amazon.co.uk/What-Know-Sh...

www.amazon.co.uk

Reposted by Mike Brewer, Ben Barr

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 7d

🚨 New

Britain’s ‘unsung’ army – a million people in poorer working-age households now have full-time unpaid caring responsibilities .

Reposted by Mike Brewer, Samuel Bentolila

Alan Manning @alanmanning4.bsky.social · 11d

My first Lionel Robbins lecture on 'Why Immigration Policy is Hard'. 2 more to come: Monday 9th, 16th 6.30pm www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQkB...

Why immigration policy is hard| LSE Event

YouTube video by LSE

www.youtube.com

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 17d

🧵 NEW: Our report 'Listen and learn' sets out how the Government should improve Universal Credit (UC) for the 15 million people who rely on it.

13 years after its roll-out began, it’s time to get UC right.

We've co-produced recommendations with @changingrealities.bsky.social participants 👇

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Jim Waterson @jim.londoncentric.media · 25d

INFLATION RISES AGAIN, GO THE PUSH ALERTS TO TENS OF MILLIONS OF PHONES

*Possibly to an oddity with the specific pre-Christmas day when airfares were checked on Kayak by ONS staff, something I only know because I was reading Alphaville the other day. www.ft.com/content/fdad...

Will it be another plane weird UK inflation print?

Blame on current air fares

www.ft.com

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Sophie Hale @sophiehale.bsky.social · 27d

New report published assesses the UK’s growth challenge 18 months into the current Parliament, examining how economic performance has evolved since the pandemic and evaluating the Government’s progress against its central mission to raise growth.
www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications...

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · 28d

I really really want to see the bit of the Guardian's style guide that explains the difference between a magnate and a tycoon.

Reposted by Stephen P. Jenkins

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · Jan 15

This is an important programme for us ...

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Jan 15

📢 Applications for our Research Training Programme 2026 are now open.

Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic graduates are invited to apply for a 12-week training programme based in our Westminster office and paid at the London Living Wage.

Details here 👉 buff.ly/Guyvcgk

Research Training Programme 2026
12-week training programme
February - April 2026
Westminster

Applications are invited from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic graduates

Apply by: 08:59 am
Friday 30 January 2026

Full details can be found on the Opportunities page of the Resolution Foundation website

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Jan 15

Reposted by Tim M. Blackburn, Peter Thorne, Ed Hawkins , and 10 more Tim M. Blackburn, Peter Thorne, Ed Hawkins, Steve Peers, Mike Brewer, Rebecca Williams, Tom Griffin, Glen O’Hara, Ian Butler, Gary Sheffield, Federica Genovese, Michael Larkin, Tim Leunig

Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · Jan 12

🧵A political/media guide to the "truth" about net-zero

1) Add up costs to install & run a net-zero energy system
2) Pretend fossil-fuelled alternatives wld be free
3) Do say "eco zealots are bankrupting us"
4) Don't say "free cars if we scrap net-zero" cos it sounds ridiculous
5) That's it!

1/10

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Jan 12

🚨Major conference🚨

We're publishing a new book – combining analysis and policy work with in-depth conversations to understand the needs of lower income families – and hosting a major conference to discuss, with keynote speeches from Andy Burnham and Ken Murphy.

Register now➡️ buff.ly/2tG8LsY

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Jan 8

The Resolution Foundation is on substack!

Subscribe to make sure you don't miss further insights into our publications and the latest policy developments from staff at the Resolution Foundation.

Our most recent post is from @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social ⤵️ buff.ly/gVKQE4o

Who did we protect during the pandemic? And who fell through the cracks?
Resolution Foundation Chief Economist Mike Brewer reflects on how the economic interventions in response to the Covid pandemic impacted equality – and what we could do better next time

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · Jan 7

This is a bad headline.
But I guess, ‘add 0.1% to total employment costs’ is less exciting.

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Reposted by Mike Brewer, Katherine Brickell

Changing Realities @changingrealities.bsky.social · Jan 7

"As a mother, my heart swelled with pride. But as an advocate, I felt something even deeper: a reassuring reminder that this country still has space for compassion..." Why we [continue to] do this work, a blog by Beauty reflecting on a visit to No.10: www.changingrealities.org/blog/hope-at...

On December 18, 2025, I stepped through the iconic black door of No. 10 Downing Street, carrying more than just a diary appointment. I brought with me hope, memories, and the quiet weight of every family whose story has intertwined with the mission we pursue at Changing Realities.

www.changingrealities.org

Reposted by Will Jennings, Patrick Dunleavy, Mike Brewer , and 10 more Will Jennings, Patrick Dunleavy, Mike Brewer, Christopher McCabe, Steven French, Jonathan Wolff, Simon Wren‐Lewis, Holger Nehring, Margot C. Finn, Christina Ho, Oliver Mason, Michael Larkin, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · Jan 6

I'm afraid there *is* an obvious answer: it can't.

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · Dec 23

Brilliant column by @sarahoconnor.ft.com on the Employment Rights Act:

The good, the bad and the ugly of Britain’s labour market reforms

It’s the detail of the new Employment Rights Act that will matter — and the timing

www.ft.com

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · Dec 22

V much enjoyed this.

How Jane Austen revealed the economic basis of society
economist.com/christmas-sp...
from The Economist

How Jane Austen revealed the economic basis of society

Some unacknowledged truths about money

economist.com

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Arkady Martine | Dr. AnnaLinden Weller @byzantienne.bsky.social · Dec 21

It's midwinter's eve tonight.

If you're quick about it, you can start your timed THE DARK IS RISING read-along before midnight.

(tonight's portion is Chapter 1, 'Midwinter's Eve'. Tomorrow is 'Midwinter Day' and 'The Sign-Seeker'.)

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Prof Ruth Patrick @ruthpatrick0.bsky.social · Dec 19

Yesterday, over 60 of us fr @changingrealities.bsky.social came together in @10dowingstreet.bsky.social for a reception at which the PM & @darrenpjones.bsky.social thanked us for our efforts to push for action on child poverty. Together, we can make change happen. But this is just the beginning.

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Nye Cominetti @nyecominetti.bsky.social · Dec 15

The reason we thought it worth writing is that I don't think this is obvious to everyone. And even if you know unemployment is rising, you might not know that it 'explains' *all of* the change in employment compared to pre-pandemic.

Reposted by Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Mike Brewer , and 1 more Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Mike Brewer, Federica Genovese

Jane Green @profjanegreen.bsky.social · Dec 8

My parent’s local A&E doesn’t have pillows, time, beds, capacity. The GP doesn’t have emergency appointments for emergencies, services with capacity to refer people to.

Caring like this about nomenclature and pronouns seems to me a luxury pursuit, frankly.

Parody Nigel Farage @parodypm.bsky.social · Dec 8

Susan Hall's condition has now reached the 'shouting at biscuits' stage.

Reposted by Stephen P. Jenkins

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · Dec 5

NEW ANALYSIS: Today the Government announced its new Child Poverty Strategy. But what might it mean for the outlook for child poverty in this Parliament, and how does it compare to progress on reducing child poverty in recent decades?

New RF analysis answers these questions....

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Dec 5

The Government’s Child Poverty Strategy published today is the first we’ve seen for 11 years – which in itself is a sea change. 🧵 👇

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Dec 5

Updating our projections for the latest data and forecasts from the OBR, we project that child poverty rates will fall to 31 per cent by 2029-30, 3.5 percentage points lower than would have been the case in the absence of policy changes …

Chart showing proportion of children living in relative poverty after housing costs, under different scenarios: UK

Reposted by Mike Brewer

Resolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · Dec 5

The Government’s Child Poverty Strategy published today is the first we’ve seen for 11 years – which in itself is a sea change. 🧵 👇

Mike Brewer @mikebrewerecon.bsky.social · Dec 5

This is all a bit of a shame, because the abolition of the two-child limit is a major deal for children in large families, and child poverty.

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