Application and Evaluation Flashcards
(15 cards)
Recent drivers for nationalisation
-Cost of living crisis
-Thames Water prioritising dividends and ST profits over investment
Recently privatised businesses
-Royal Mail 2013
-Lloyds Banking Group 2017, govt profited £900m
Recent price-capping
-Energy, removed in 2024 as market somewhat returns to normal
-Rail fares, July RPI +1%, only 40% of fares are regulated
BT Openreach
-Quasi-natural monopoly
-BT 14.8m premises passed, CityFibre 3.4m
-Network used by 690 providers
UK broadband market
-BT 35% market share, having merged with EE and Plusnet
-Basically an oligopoly (BT, Sky, Virgin 71%)
-But contestable (infrastructure sharing)
Social tariffs
-Cheaper prices for those on universal credit /low incomes
-BT and Sky
-3rd degree PD
-Voluntary for firms
Recent mergers (2024)
-Nationwide & Virgin Money
-Barrat Homes & Redrow Homes
Barrat Redrow
-Merge came under scrutiny by CMA
-Greater EoS can be achieved, potentially solving housing affordability
-But monopoly power could mean prices don’t fall with costs
UK indirect taxes
-Scotland alcohol 65p per unit
-Plastic packaging £218 per tonne, if less than 30% is recycled
-Sugar tax 2018, funds school sports
-Landfill tax
UK subsidies
-Wind and solar energy
-£3 bus fare cap
-Electric vehicles /charging infrastructure
UK max prices
-Rent capping Scotland 2022 (now abandoned)
-Temporary max unit price for energy bills 2022-2024
LT policies to make housing affordable
-Simplifying planning rules
-Deregulating green belt
-Tax incentives on brownfield sites
Evaluation of sugar tax on soft drinks 2018
-Soft drink consumption fell 35% by 2024
-Raised £1.1bn 2018-2023, used to fund sports in schools
-Obesity rates still rising
Evaluation of Scotland alcohol tax 2018
-13% fall in alcohol related hospital admissions
-Regressive, as low income households drink more
Thames Water
-Ofwat £18m fine, for unjustified dividends
-72bn litres sewage since 2020
