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While Tony Blair has stated that income redistribution is not an explicit aim of his government, many of the changes it has made to the tax and benefit system have been redistributive. The experience to date highlights the challenge New Labour faces if it is to make further progress in reducing poverty and inequality. All the resources they have directed at low-income households since 1997 – and these have been considerable – have just about reduced child poverty by a quarter, while overall poverty rates and inequality have only fallen marginally or not at all. To reduce poverty further will require substantially more redistribution to the poorest, especially those unable to work. To reduce inequality will almost certainly require something to be done to curb the growth in very high incomes, as well as measures to address the long-term drivers of inequality.

This article argues that economists have a potentially valuable contribution to make to evaluation in the social welfare field, provided they are willing to embrace a more flexible and eclectic approach to economic evaluation. It contrasts the perspectives of mainstream economists and other evaluators working in this field, which often appear to be at opposite ends of the spectrum. This may explain why the role of economists often seems to be marginalized - the ends don't meet. Although different approaches to evaluation are to some extent complementary, the article argues that economists can learn from other perspectives on evaluation and should consider adapting or building on more conventional approaches to economic evaluation, where appropriate. This would help to improve the validity and generalizability of their results and would also facilitate more co-operative working with evaluators from other disciplines - helping to make ends meet.

- This article argues that our understanding of income and poverty dynamics benefits from taking a life-cycle perspective. A person's age and family circumstances - the factors that shape their life cycle - affect the likelihood of experiencing key life events, such as partnership formation, having children, or retirement; this in turn affects their probability of experiencing rising, falling, or other income trajectories. Using ten waves of the British Household Panel Survey, we analyse the income trajectories of people at different stages in their lives in order to build a picture of income dynamics over the whole life cycle. We find that particular life events are closely associated with either rising or falling trajectories, but that there is considerable heterogeneity in income trajectories following these different events. Typically, individuals experiencing one of these life events are around twice as likely to experience a particular income trajectory, but most individuals will not follow the trajectory most commonly associated with that life event. This work improves our understanding of the financial impact of different life events and provides an indication of how effectively the welfare state cushions people against the potentially adverse impact of these events.

The use of economic evaluation in relatively complex areas of health and social care has been limited. The level of complexity is influenced by the nature of the problems and interventions under evaluation, being dependent upon the degree of user involvement and the complexity of the inputs and outcomes. Complexity does not preclude the achievement of a good quality economic evaluation, but it can add significant difficulties. Efforts must be made to ensure scientific validity of evaluations, whilst recognising that the complexity inherent in many health and social care interventions may require deviations from and additions to traditional evaluation models. Fundamentally, the net effect will be the need for more time and money than would perhaps be required for the evaluation of a simpler intervention.

As New Labour approaches the end of an unprecedented third term in office, this book asks whether Britain is more equal than it was in 1997. The second volume, updating the highly successful "A more equal society?", provides an independent assessment of the success or otherwise of New Labour's policies.

Using data from several large-scale longitudinal surveys, this article investigates the relationship between the work histories and personal incomes (from both public and private sources) of older women in the UK, US and West Germany. By comparing three countries with different welfare regimes and pension systems, we seek to gain a better understanding of the interaction between the life course, pension system and women's incomes in later life. The association between older women's incomes and work histories is strongest in West Germany and weakest in the UK, where there is evidence of a 'pensions poverty trap' and where only predominantly full-time employment is associated with significantly higher incomes in later life. Work history matters less for widows (in all three countries) and more for recent birth cohorts and more educated women (UK only). The article concludes with a brief discussion of the treatment of women under different pension regimes assessed by the criteria of adequacy, proportionality, vertical equity and horizontal equity.

Reducing poverty is important for those affected, for society and the economy. Poverty remains entrenched in the UK, despite considerable research efforts to understand its causes and possible solutions. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation, with the Centre for Science and Policy at the University of Cambridge, ran a democratic, transparent, consensual exercise involving 45 participants from government, non-governmental organisations, academia and research to identify 100 important research questions that, if answered, would help to reduce or prevent poverty. The list includes questions across a number of important themes, including attitudes, education, family, employment, heath, wellbeing, inclusion, markets, housing, taxes, inequality and power.

Reducing poverty is important for those affected, for society and the economy. Poverty remains entrenched in the UK, despite considerable research efforts to understand its causes and possible solutions. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation, with the Centre for Science and Policy at the University of Cambridge, ran a democratic, transparent, consensual exercise involving 45 participants from government, non-governmental organisations, academia and research to identify 100 important research questions that, if answered, would help to reduce or prevent poverty. The list includes questions across a number of important themes, including attitudes, education, family, employment, heath, wellbeing, inclusion, markets, housing, taxes, inequality and power.