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In this episode of Policy Matters, hosts Franz Buscha and Matt Dickson look back at some of their favourite episodes from 2020, highlighting the things they found most interesting about the research shared by a selection of different guests.

This week, a new in-depth report from the Wealth Tax Commission recommended a one-off 'wealth tax' on the richest households rather than hiking taxes for the masses. It comes as the national debt has spiralled this year as the Government spent more than £280billion tackling the pandemic and its financial fallout, with Chancellor Rishi Sunak claiming the 'economic emergency' has only just begun. How would it work, could it be a good idea and how unpopular would it prove? Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost take a look. Elsewhere, millions of mortgage payment holidays have been handed out since March - an agreement with lenders to help homeowners during the coronavirus crisis. But for one couple who extended the payment holiday, it turned into a credit report headache when they looked to downsize. In the property market, a new report suggests that stamp duty savings are now being wiped out by house price gains in recent months. Should investors run to the hills if one of the companies that you are invested in or are tempted by has a big pension scheme? And lastly, we give yet another update on the port fiasco in Britain, with the perfect storm of coronavirus, Brexit and Christmas.

In the midst of the second COVID-related national lockdown for England, this episode of Policy Matters sees hosts Franz Buscha and Matt Dickson revisit some of the questions that were being asked in the first episode recorded under lockdown restrictions back in April. They start with some personal reflections on what life has been like juggling working-from-home and home-schooling over the months since the pandemic began, and thinking about the impact that the disruptions to education will have on school-aged children and inequality. Franz and Matt then discuss some of the academic research related to the pandemic; highlighting in particular the unintended consequences of policies like the “Eat out to help out” scheme, and considering the different ways in which the pandemic has affected the self-employed. The programme ends with a look ahead at some of the longer-term effects this experience might have on birth-rates and the implications these may have, and also considers what positive policy lessons could be taken forward and acted upon in the future.

Many aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic have been unprecedented – including the extent to which it has forced the UK population to engage with statistics. This has been a challenge for Government, and it has not always gone well. However, with 190 policies enacted in the first six months of the pandemic - costing around £210 bn - it was never going to be easy. We talk to Vicky Pryce, Chief Economic Adviser and board member at the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), on lessons that can be learnt from the last 9 months. This matters enormously, as a recent global survey identifies a clear relationship between individuals’ trust in information from government and the likelihood of engaging with vaccination programmes.

This month we launched The WealthiHer 2020 report “The Changing Faces of Women’s Wealth” which gives valuable insights into women’s and men’s financial confidence, attitudes to and needs around money, workplaces and equality, both in the UK and Asia. It is clear Covid-19 has had a major impact and nowhere was this truer, than for women and their responsibilities to family, job security and financial prosperity. Women are 1.8 times more likely to have lost their jobs or quit, compared to men. The Institute of Fiscal Studies found that women in the UK are working 156 more hours a month than their partners in support of care of the family or the household; and the gender pay gap has shifted back 60 years as a result of the crisis. In this episode, Tamara Gillan is joined by Michelle King: world-renowned equality expert who has led the charge on strategy for UN Women and Netflix Inclusion. Michelle is armed with more than 16 years’ research and a deep understanding of the invisible barriers that hold women back at work, and how we need to face up to these and collaboratively fix workplaces, not women. Michelle has also just joined us as the MD of WealthiHer female leadership Academy.

The Coronavirus pandemic has brought about a huge shift in the way we all live our daily lives – not least the fact that since March of this year, whoever has been able to has been working remotely. But what does this mean for the role of the physical office as we know it? Recorded just before the government’s latest announcement of a second lockdown in England (but still extremely pertinent), Vicky Sayers is joined by Brandon Hollihan: co-founder of property management company, Castleforge Partners. He shares his experience of working from home and advocates for the importance of the office within business culture.

Adam Cox is joined by CEO of Voneus, Steven Leighton, to discuss how those working in rural communities have been affected by lockdown; and how lack of internet access can affect the ability to work remotely or home-school successfully. They delve into the gigabit scheme, how it aims to support those living in rural areas, and the importance of internet access in the modern day.

In this episode of Policy Matters, hosts Matt Dickson and Franz Buscha talk to Martha Bloom, a researcher at the Science Policy Research Institute at the University of Sussex. Martha recently wrote a report examining the economic returns to creative arts degrees, the types of employment these graduates go on to and the motivations of those who undertake higher level creative education. Franz, Matt and Martha begin by discussing the difficulties facing the creative industries in the post-pandemic world, yet how the crisis has also highlighted the importance of these industries for the wellbeing of the nation. Martha then explains the ways in which creative arts graduates contribute to the economy both within the creative industries and more broadly, what her report reveals about their motivations and the benefits that they enjoy across a range of measures. The discussion then goes on to consider a related report co-authored by Franz and Matt, which examines the earnings and employment returns to different postgraduate degrees. This conversation again highlights the importance of skills and vocations that might not be highly paid but provide vital inputs into the economy and public life, and the danger of judging the value of education purely in terms of earnings.

As 60% of UK money will be in the hands of women by 2030, it is important to understand the issues that the next generation of women care about – and how this impacts every aspect of their lives. This next gen can encompass girls and women from 13 to 39 (and beyond), and their views can differ widely from their mothers’ and grandmothers’. The younger generations are much more aware of environmental, equality, gender, and diversity issues. This may well impact on how they spend, invest, and consume. They are much more likely to research companies online, placing stock on good customer service and value for money rather than brand loyalty. The brands they interact with also have to have good credentials in terms of how they treat their staff and workers along the supply chain; information for which is sourced through social media, online, or through their offline networks. In this programme Tamara Gillan is joined by A-Level student Emily Astley, and her mother Patricia Astley, Executive Director at Julius Baer. They are both passionate about how the next generation of women will rise, and they share their views on the differences between generations regarding money, changing definitions of success, and purpose.

While the world worries about coronavirus, there is another decade-defining event going on – the US election. Will Donald Trump win a second term as US President and have the world dance to his tune for four more years, or will Joe Biden take charge – and what on earth would that mean for people? There is less than a month to go until the US election and under normal circumstances you would expect all the focus of stock market commentators to be on that. It’s not normal circumstances though. The second wave of coronavirus and renewed lockdowns have the world’s attention and the election, if not a sideshow, is definitely not as centre stage as we would usually expect. So, does that mean it doesn’t matter for investors, or should be thinking about it and positioning themselves for the outcome? Does it even matter if Trump or Biden wins, as long as the Fed keeps printing and stimulus keeps coming, and would any decisive win be better than a disputed result? On this week’s podcast, Simon Lambert, Georgie Frost and Sarah Davidson, discuss the US election and what it could mean for our money over here in the UK. And if two septuagenarians arguing about who is going to be the boss of the free world isn’t your thing, what about investing in the future beyond that? Keeping on the investment tip, the team dive into the world of green money and how to invest to back improving the world, or even get a green mortgage or current account.