Kirsty, 29, from Newcastle upon Tyne North in the North East, wanted to train as a nurse to serve her community's healthcare needs. Despite having the qualifications and determination, she found herself blocked by a system that caps training places below demand. Health Education England's budget constraints, imposed by HM Treasury, treat public investment in healthcare training as a cost to minimize rather than the foundation of patient care. The North East has qualified candidates ready to train and hospitals that need staff, but Westminster's spending limits create artificial scarcity where none should exist. This episode examines how Treasury decisions that treat the government as though it could run out of pounds directly impact individual lives and community health outcomes. Disclosure: This story represents broader systemic issues affecting healthcare training across the UK.

YouTube video by Turn Left

A masterpiece! By far the most inspiring economics film I have ever seen. Watch the trailer, stream the film for free, or host a screening in your community.

Paste the economic claim you're struggling to counter and get a fact-based rebuttal, built on Modern Monetary Theory. Free, no account needed.

Paste the economic claim you're struggling to counter and get a fact-based rebuttal, built on Modern Monetary Theory. Free, no account needed.

YouTube video by Giant Pictures

Paste the economic claim you're struggling to counter and get a fact-based rebuttal, built on Modern Monetary Theory. Free, no account needed.

These two cannot coexist for long

US stocks rose with the Nasdaq hitting a record high as optimism over corporate earnings outweighed concerns about rising Treasury yields https://t.co/Q87Fwc72l2

Malcolm, 38, from Rugby in the West Midlands, represents thousands of transport workers sidelined by Westminster's investment choices. Despite his skills and experience, Malcolm watches as transport infrastructure projects that could transform his region remain unfunded. The Department for Transport's own analysis reveals per-capita spending in the West Midlands is a fraction of the national average, with investment concentrated in London and the South East. Engineers and construction workers exist in the region right now, many out of work. The steel and concrete are available. What prevented the spending was HM Treasury's doctrine that public investment must be rationed as though government were a household. This episode examines how political choices in Whitehall leave communities like Rugby disconnected. Recorded October 2024. Views expressed are those of contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of the producers.

Ask questions about MMT, fiscal policy and economics. Answers grounded in the MMT archive of episodes and papers.

Ask questions about MMT, fiscal policy and economics. Answers grounded in the MMT archive of episodes and papers.

Pension Adequacy and the Financing of Social Care

John Healey's speech comes ahead of next month's Budget, as he faces pressure to bring down government borrowing costs.

John Healey's speech comes ahead of next month's Budget, as he faces pressure to bring down government borrowing costs.

Banking as a System of Credit Creation

The funding objection is the biggest obstacle to climate action

YouTube video by Richard J Murphy

Nobody has beaten the MMT bot. Bring your best anti-MMT argument and see how you score.

PM says he is willing to expend political capital to bring in universal service for England funded by ‘everybody’

Sir Andrew Dilnot, who proposed reforms 15 years ago, says the cost of such a scheme would be "very substantial".

Banking as a System of Credit Creation

Meet Niamh, 26, from Sheffield Central in Yorkshire and The Humber. She wanted to become a teacher in a subject with critical shortages, but found herself blocked by Westminster's funding choices. The Department for Education reduced teacher training bursaries for shortage subjects in her region, setting national recruitment targets that ignore local needs. HM Treasury's spending rules force departments to compete for fixed pots, as though the government that creates the currency must first find it somewhere. The classrooms were there. The graduates who wanted to teach were there. What was missing was the political decision to connect them. This episode explores how central government choices create artificial scarcity in education. Views expressed are the presenter's own.

PM says he will put proposals for NHS-style service funded by everybody into Labour’s next general election manifesto

Surging energy bills, higher borrowing costs and rising inflation have left the PM and his chancellor in a fiscal bind

MMT practitioners are moving beyond defensive explanations toward real-world applications. This week shows the field maturing from "what MMT is" conversations to serious debates about recession prevention and infrastructure spending, suggesting practitioners believe policymakers are finally ready to listen.

YouTube video by Richard J Murphy

The prime minister told the BBC that social care in England is "as unfair as American healthcare".

Daniel, 24, from Leeds Central and Headingley wanted to become a teacher in Yorkshire and The Humber's schools. He had the qualifications, the passion, and local schools needed teachers. But HM Treasury's spending rules forced the Department for Education to cut teacher training bursaries for subjects facing critical shortages in his region. Westminster set national recruitment targets that ignored regional disparities, treating the government as though it must find money rather than create it. The classrooms were there. The graduates ready to teach were there. What was missing was the political decision to connect them. This episode explores how central government choices block talented people from entering teaching when schools need them most. Blocked Britain investigates when bureaucracy meets human ambition.

Record £66m from Home Office highlights hostility Muslims face, government’s anti-Islamophobia partner says

Economics puts individual households in their model as consumers. Consumption is the far end of a long chain of production. For many, consum