Latest news with #policychanges
BBC News
4 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Welsh universities appeal for no more sudden policy changes
Universities in Wales have appealed for an end to sudden changes of government policies that have cut their incomes and made it difficult for them to before MPs, vice-chancellors said a failure, until recently, to raise student fees for inflation, a rise in employers' National Insurance contributions and visa rule changes reducing the numbers of overseas students had all had an impact. Restructuring plans, including university-wide voluntary redundancies schemes, have been announced by Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, Cardiff Metropolitan, Swansea, and the University of South limited plans have also been announced by University of Wales: Trinity Saint David. Earlier on Wednesday, a trade union urged the Welsh government to decide what it wanted from higher education and "properly" fund the sector to fulfil those vice-chancellor Prof Jon Timmis told the Welsh Affairs Committee at Westminster that there was now a need for a "stable policy landscape" to make it easier to plan for the said a "fit for purpose mechanism" was needed to put higher education in the UK on a sustainable footing. Prof Edmund Burke said Bangor University had "no choice" but to make savings to "ensure the financial stability of the institution".The university's executive board would meet on Thursday to start making decisions on its restructuring, he told the committee. It would do everything possible to avoid compulsory redundancies, he said, but was unable to completely rule them Burke also warned MPs that universities "couldn't go another decade" without student fees rising in line with inflation and institutions should work with the UK and Welsh governments to "determine a sustainable financial footing" for higher University's vice-chancellor Prof Wendy Larner said the sector was having to "reinvent itself" and would have to find "new revenue streams".She said she recognised that "governments are challenged" financially but that she was optimistic about the future of the university sector. The head of the body which funds and regulates universities in Wales warned last month that they face "massive" financial challenges but said that none were at risk of going bust in the next chief executive Simon Pirotte said the eight institutions reached a total deficit of £77m for 2023-24, compared to a £21m surplus the previous year. Earlier on Wednesday, higher education unions told members of a Senedd committee that some universities had responded to the financial challenges facing the sector better than University and College Union's Gareth Lloyd was critical of Cardiff University when asked about the vice-chancellor's defence of its approach in evidence to a previous committee meeting."I don't accept that Cardiff did the right thing," he told the Welsh Parliament's education committee."The danger is if we're not careful is this could have a really detrimental effect on students who [now] don't want to go there and that really really worries me," he official Dan Beard claimed senior leaders in other universities were "aghast" at the way Cardiff had handled its proposals to cut jobs and Jamie Insole, from the UCU, said Wrexham University was "in a firm situation" and Aberystwyth University has displayed "how a university can weather a financial storm" by working closely with Deio Owen, NUS Cymru president, told the committee: "There has been an impact on students and learners mental wellbeing due to proposed cut and the confirmed cuts that we've heard in the past few months.""That uncertainty does have a knock on effect," he added."You're paying for a service which you're not sure you're going to get." 'Catastrophic' In a paper for the education committee, Unison warned Senedd members that hundreds of expected job losses at universities across Wales would have a "catastrophic effect on staff, institutions, students, communities and the Welsh economy".In the document the union urged the Welsh government to decide what it wanted from higher education and "properly" fund the sector to fulfil those ministers "must produce a detailed industrial strategy which outlines the skills and number of graduates Wales requires for the future across a range of jobs and ensure universities have the capacity to train these young people", Unison said.
Irish Times
09-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Tough decisions to tackle housing crisis are under way – but will they work?
The expected move to ease rent caps is part of a Government response to the worsening housing crisis which will see further policy changes announced in the coming weeks, before a revised plan for housing is finalised in July. Government insiders hope that the departures will show them finally getting to grips with the housing crisis. But it would be an exaggeration to say there is confidence that all this will work quickly to increase housing supply. Meanwhile, opposition to the rent cap changes is growing and will be heard both in the Dáil tomorrow and on the streets next week when Raise the Roof, an umbrella group co-ordinated by the trade unions and including NGOs and Opposition parties, holds a major protest outside Leinster House. The housing measures include some already announced and some yet to come. There will be changes in planning regulations to allow small residences in back gardens, extensions and attic conversion s without planning permission; potentially also changes in regulations on apartment construction; the role of the Land Development Agency will be expanded to include mixed-use developments with private sector partners; the appointment of a 'housing tsar' ( just don't call it that ) is also coming; commencing the changes in last year's mammoth planning Act will make it harder to block planning permissions; and money will be provided for new planners in local authorities and An Bord Pleanála to speed up the planning process. READ MORE [ Explainer: Garden rooms and attics – What are the proposed changes to regulations? Opens in new window ] Divisions remain in Government over the possibility of tax incentives for builders and developers of certain types of housing, and they are unlikely to be settled until the budget. But at the top level of Government, there is a growing sense that urgent action is needed on housing, with one insider insisting that the series of decisions now under way will place housing at the very centre of the Government's priorities from now until the summer recess in mid-July. However, there is also an awareness that some measures to increase supply will leave the Coalition open to political attack and public unpopularity. [ Proposed changes to rent rules will incentivise evictions, housing charity warns Opens in new window ] And the problem for the Government is that the unpopularity and the political attacks will be immediate – but any potential payback from the measures in the shape of increased supply is at best years away, and may not even be felt until after the next general election. Even without the planning delays and legal actions that they have to factor into their considerations, builders and developers say it can still take three to four years to deliver a block of apartments. There is no doubt the measures will be welcomed by developers and landlords. But that is not necessarily the same thing as prompting them to move quickly to increase supply. Many will want to see if tax incentives are introduced in the budget; others will want to see if the Government has the political will to resist the pressure already building on the rent pressure zone changes. 'Look, the reality is there is no silver bullet,' says one senior Government source. But, the source says, we need apartments, and the people who build apartments are not building them right now because of the rent caps. [ Rules for renters: What are the planned reforms and will they work? Opens in new window ] All very well, but the simple and logical outcome of changing the rent cap rules is that rents will go up – that's why the landlords and the developers are in favour of it. The Government says that its package will protect renters – but among groups working at the coalface of homelessness, there is little confidence in that. An uptick in evictions and rising rents – both predicted by Opposition parties – would pile enormous pressure on the Government. Within Government, there is an undoubted willingness to take difficult decisions, and an awareness that the time to take them is in the first year of its term of office. But that is not matched by any great confidence that the measures will work. [ Ireland's housing crisis: Why is there such a shortage of homes to buy and rent here? Opens in new window ]
Fast Company
21-05-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
More than half of U.S. workers say job insecurity is ‘significant' stressor
Workers are stressed over job insecurity with many concerned about the possibility of an impending job loss. And that worry may be taking a toll on employees' overall mental health—especially for younger workers. According to the American Psychological Association's 2025 Work in America survey, which recorded online responses from 2,017 employed adults, more than half of American workers are bogged down with worry over their job security. A whopping 54% said concerns about their workplace stability has a 'significant impact' on their stress levels. Why workers are concerned The concern appears linked to recent policy changes under the Trump administration and economic uncertainty. Sixty-five percent said their company or organization has been impacted by policy changes, and two-thirds said those changes have been drastic. Most cited negative experiences as a result of the changes. Seventy-five percent of workers said they've experienced things like 'emotional exhaustion, as well as lack of interest, motivation, or energy at work,' due to shifting policies at work. Those who haven't yet experienced big shifts seem to be mentally preparing for them. More than two in five (42%) of employed adults surveyed said they expect government policies to lead to changes in their own workplace. That view was higher among those who worked in local, state, and federal government, where 53% said they expect to see them. Among the big changes, the possibility for layoffs is top-of-mind for employees. According to the survey, 39% of workers 'said they were concerned that changes in government policies may cause them to lose their job in the next 12 months.' For younger workers, the worry hits much harder. Sixty-five percent of workers ages 26 to 43 called job insecurity a 'significant stressor,' and 75% of those 18 to 25. Only 46% of those ages 44 to 57 said the same, with the number dipping further for older age groups. A challenging market for job seekers Adding fuel to the fire is concern over how challenging it may be to find a new job. About two-thirds of workers who were concerned about losing their job due to changes in government policies (66%) said it would take them a significant amount of time to find a new job if they were laid off. Forty-four percent said they weren't confident they could find a new job in their industry and would have to change fields altogether. 'When people feel their jobs are at risk, it creates a sense of uncertainty that can affect every aspect of their lives,' said Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, APA's chief executive officer, in a news release. 'This cultural moment is threatening workers' sense of stability, control and ability to meet their basic needs. And feelings of insecurity at work and poor mental health can amplify each other in a vicious cycle.' The strain is impacting workers while they're on the job. More than half said they feel tense or stressed during the workday. But they're taking the worry home, too, with 46% saying that their work environment is causing their mental health to decline and 38% saying their personal relationships have been negatively impacted over all the work-related stress.
CBC
15-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Scott Moe releases list of 10 changes Ottawa 'must make' to reset relationship with Sask.
Social Sharing Premier Scott Moe has published a letter he sent to Prime Minister Mark Carney outlining 10 policy changes the federal government "must make" in order to reset the relationship between Ottawa and Saskatchewan. Moe wrote in a Wednesday post on social media that Carney has the ability to quickly move to address the 10 items. "[That] would clearly signal a new, more positive relationship between Saskatchewan and the federal government than we have had for the past 10 years," Moe wrote, referencing the strained relationship his provincial government had with prime minister Justin Trudeau. Moe's demands include: The immediate launch of negotiations with China in order to remove tariffs on agricultural food products, a reference to the 100 per cent tariff China has placed on Canadian canola oil and peas. The end to a number of federal policies meant to lower carbon emissions, such as the industrial carbon tax and clean electricity regulations. Changes to the Criminal Code to address bail reform and the introduction of harsher penalties to combat "new street drugs." Expansion of pipeline capacity across Canada and the opening of rail and port capacity. Reduction of federal "red tape" in order to streamline federal approval of infrastructure projects and reduce "infringement" into provincial jurisdiction Many of the topics were raised by Moe during a press conference after last month's federal election. 'He still cheers for the Oilers': Scott Moe sees 'path forward' with Carney 15 days ago Duration 1:57 Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe congratulated and extended an invitation to Prime Minister Mark Carney to visit the province as soon as possible. A day after the federal election, Moe expressed optimism that Parliament can work with Saskatchewan, and other provinces, to form a united front. Moe's letter was explicit in his insistence the federal government not impose the federal backstop on the industrial carbon tax. Moe's government eliminated the provincial output-based performance standards program, which taxed large industrial emitters, at the start of this month. The letter alludes to a conversation Moe and Carney had on May 1, during which the premier says he raised the 10 policy changes. Moe is the latest premier to release a wish list of projects and policies he wants to see addressed by the federal government under Carney, whose Liberals won a minority government in the April 28 federal election. Unlike his counterparts, Moe's letter does not identify a singular project he wants assistance on. For example, Ontario Premier Doug Ford highlighted a need for federal support on a tunnel under Highway 401. Moe is scheduled to hold a news conference on Thursday morning to mark the end of the spring legislative session, and it's expected he'll have more to add on his list of demands at that time. AgriStability meeting moving ahead On Wednesday, the province's Official Opposition urged Moe's Saskatchewan Party government to help farmers facing China's tariffs on canola. The NDP says the province needs to sign on to the federal AgriStability program, which is meant to protect producers against dramatic increases in costs and changing market conditions. Daryl Harrison, Saskatchewan's minister of agriculture, said those efforts are already underway. "The federal government's proposed changes to the program haven't been implemented. Once a federal ag minister has been appointed, negotiations will continue around program enhancements," Harrison said during question period. Harrison added that he has a meeting scheduled for Thursday morning with Heath MacDonald, who was named as the new federal agriculture minister on Tuesday.
