{"podcast":{"title":"IFS Zooms In: The Economy","slug":"ifs-zooms-in-the-economy-638796","podcast_index_feed_id":638796,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/ifs-zooms-in-coronavirus-and-the-economy","website_url":"https://www.ifs.org.uk/podcast","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/5ea004d9fbcc383829c71657/1611670691757-acb69bdbfa16df8b84d3357b86921a11.jpeg","author":"Institute for Fiscal Studies","episode_count":197,"summary":"The IFS podcast about the UK economy, tax, public spending and living standards. Each week, IFS Director Helen Miller speaks to leading economists and researchers to explain the economic issues shaping the UK. Step beyond the headlines with in-depth, independent analysis from the experts at the Institute for Fiscal Studies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-25T06:21:58.046264+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ifs-zooms-in-the-economy-638796"},"episode":{"title":"Do disability benefits need reform?","slug":"do-disability-benefits-need-reform","published_at":"2026-09-24T15:53:06+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ifs-zooms-in-the-economy-638796/do-disability-benefits-need-reform","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ifs-zooms-in-the-economy-638796","url":"https://ifs.org.uk/podcasts-explainers-and-calculators/podcasts","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/5ea004d9fbcc383829c71657/e/6ab5433ed987a018ffe1b13e/media.mp3","summary":"The number of people receiving disability benefits has risen sharply in recent years, pushing up government spending and prompting renewed debate about how the system should work. In this episode, Helen Miller is joined by IFS economists Eduin Latimer and Tom Waters to explain how Personal Independence Payment (PIP) works, who receives it and why claims have increased. They examine the choices facing the government as the Timms Review considers the future of disability benefits. Should PIP remain a universal cash benefit? Could more support be provided in kind? Should eligibility depend more on the severity or type of a person’s condition? And what would different reforms mean for claimants and the public finances? The discussion explores the difficult trade-offs involved in reforming disability benefits - including who receives support, what form that support takes and how much the government spends. Become a member: https://ifs.org.uk/individual-membership Find out more: https://ifs.org.uk/podcasts-explainers-and-calculators/podcasts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"The number of people receiving disability benefits has risen sharply in recent years, pushing up government spending and prompting renewed debate about ho…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2523,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/ifs-zooms-in-the-economy-638796/episodes/do-disability-benefits-need-reform/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/ifs-zooms-in-the-economy-638796/do-disability-benefits-need-reform.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}