Author Archives: Rick Muir

Rick Muir

Independent View: two cheers for Vince

By Rick Muir | Fri 11th January 2013 - 11:39 am

Landlords and punters across the country should be raising a glass to Vince Cable today after he announced new rules for pub companies (or pubcos) which will help local publicans in these difficult economic times.

His plans include the introduction of an independent adjudicator and a new statutory code for the industry – something I argued for in this IPPR report: Tied Down.

Pubs are an important part of the community – they’re a meeting place for family and friends and host meetings of local clubs and associations, promoting local charities and events. But they’ve faced serious demise with 16 pubs …

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Posted in News and The Independent View | Tagged , , and | 2 Comments
Rick Muir

The Independent View: Clegg’s Pupil Premium could be wasted

By Rick Muir | Tue 15th May 2012 - 8:56 am

Keen to move on from the poor headlines of the last few weeks, Nick Clegg has sought to re-focus attention on his flagship social mobility agenda with a speech on the Pupil Premium.

The Pupil Premium is the government’s main policy for reducing educational inequality in schools, meaning that schools get extra funding for every child on Free School Meals (£488 this year, £600 next year). IPPR has always welcomed the Pupil Premium but have expressed concerns that it will not be spent directly on providing extra support for the children who need it. Under the current model, schools are free to spend it on whatever they like – and the majority of heads say they are using it to plug gaps in existing budgets.

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Posted in Op-eds and The Independent View | Tagged , and | 15 Comments
Rick Muir

The Independent View: Restore trust to reform democracy

By Rick Muir | Fri 12th June 2009 - 11:40 am

The crisis over MPs’ expenses has shattered trust in politicians. Trust in Parliament has never been particularly high – it has now plummeted to new depths. Our long-standing scepticism as to the motives of politicians has turned into a strongly held conviction that ‘they’re all at it’.

The silver lining is that the crisis may have opened the way for much needed constitutional reform. The Lib Dems in particular have proposed a raft of constitutional reforms as a solution to the crisis. But are we really at a constitutional turning point? And is institutional reform …

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Posted in The Independent View | Tagged , , , and | 4 Comments
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    If Brexit is the cause of all our problems in the UK, what is the cause of the similar, or even worse, problems in France, Germany, Belgium, Italy etc? The ...
  • David S
    Even if one's conclusion after examining all the complexities of the Civil War (which is a good deal more than "monarchy vs. democracy") is that Cromwell was a ...
  • Pawel Urbanski
    Much-needed piece. You are right that young people are the audience, but I am not sure Europe is the way in. The polling you quote shows they already agree with...
  • Pawel Urbanski
    Strong argument, and I agree with the direction. A couple of thoughts from someone who runs small shops. For me, deadweight loss is not a foreign concept. It is...
  • Truthspeak
    Of course ,it should be gotten rid of. Cromwell was a tyrant, a brute and a disgrace for any nation,in any age. The articlee excellently covered the full breadt...