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  • Follow the Money

  • How Much Does Britain Cost?
  • By: Paul Johnson
  • Narrated by: Rich Keeble
  • Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (77 ratings)
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Follow the Money cover art

Follow the Money

By: Paul Johnson
Narrated by: Rich Keeble
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Summary

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

'This is a brilliant book. Buy it, read it and weep' The Times

'The antidote to naivety that our political class needs' Sunday Times, Book of the Week

'A treasure trove of killer facts' Guardian

'Read it, absorb it, and understand how the country works' Laura Kuenssberg

'If you want to understand why crazy politics routinely trumps economic rationality in government choices, read this' Robert Peston

Paul Johnson and the enormously respected Institute for Fiscal Studies aim to hold Government to account - without which politicians will get away with their half-truths, elisions and dubious claims. This is a forensic examination - by the man best placed to do so - of the way the state raises and spends £1 trillion of our money every year. To follow the money. To provide an explanation, of where that money comes from and where it goes to, how that has changed and how it needs to change.

Government decisions determine the welfare of the poor and the elderly, the state of the health service, the effectiveness of our children's education, and how prepared we are for the future: whether that is a pandemic or global warming. As a society, we are a reflection of what the government spends.

Johnson looks at what happened following the financial crisis of 2008-09 and the austerity years that followed. He examines the way that the government tackled the economy during Covid - when the UK budget shot up to over a trillion for the first time - and he analyses prospects for our future as we grapple with looming recession and the cost of living crisis.
©2023 Paul Johnson (P)2023 Hachette Audio UK

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What listeners say about Follow the Money

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A highly readable explanation of our political challenges

If every member of the electorate could read this book we would get better politicians

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars

Superb analysis of the UK’s financial structure

A detailed and wise polemic from an expert in his field. Every politician should read this book.

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1 person found this helpful

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Great insight

This book gives a great insight into the various tensions and stakeholders in all aspects of financing life in the UK. It is impartial and bases its views in facts rather than defending one political party or the other.

In audio format it can be hard to internalise all of the numbers but the narrative drives home the overarching points so don’t worry too much about not being able to recall every figure presented.

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars

Frank, honest and knowledgeable

Tells you in a comprehensible way the things you need to hear but find uncomfortable rather than the flattering drivel supporting your own bias found on social media etc. If all voters read this the world could well be a better place. Can't recommend it enough.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Clear Honest Simple

Well narrated non political clear, honest and simple overview of tax and spend in Britain and future options.

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Really great read

Great to get a look through the keyhole and definitely changed my view on tax and the tax system.

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    5 out of 5 stars

Essential reading for election year

Clear and evidenced review of the dire state of Britain and the mess we are in after years of stagnant growth, under investment and disastrous political decisions . Every aspect of society and the economy is addressed by an author who knows his stuff. We are sadly lacking in politicians with any new ideas, secretaries of state with tenures in weeks rather than years and a parliament without direction; most evident with Brexit and immigration debates. The book is head and shoulders above the political debate; data driven and clearly explained.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Sensible insights if you want to improve the functioning of the welfare state.

Not the most gripping book, but a sensible look at how the current system works and how it can be improved from a statist/altruist perspective. A lot of moral assumptions are made in the name of "progress" with no consideration for the idea that his pre suppositions about the state forsably extracting money (life) from it's citizens might be wrong. Mostly dismisses the idea that increasing tax discourages growth. Doesn't consider the knock on effects of many of the ways government is run, the destruction of personal responsibility/community the welfare state has. A sensible but biased towards a centrist/altruistic/statist view of government, he does state he has biases at the start so I can't complain!
Easy to follow but easy to put down also, good for the general listener interested in how the British government works and can be improved if we just wish to continue with the current moral goals.

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    2 out of 5 stars

Nice overview, very one-sided

This is a solid, if somewhat on the nose, overview of government spending in the UK over the last few decades, told in an informal way.

It's told from a very particular point of view. The author's an economist, so speaks in averages that many people couldn't relate to their lived experiences. He's unabashedly southern and middle class, speaking fairly disparagingly about 'the regions', 'othering' disadvantaged communities, while addressing the reader as if they were of his privileged socio-economic class. And, in an effort (I think) to appear politically neutral, he writes as if the disastrous economics of the Conservative governments since 2010 were not cruel and deliberately unfair but mistakes that any government could have made though it was trying its best.

Basically, quite an irritating book.

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I got a reference in it

great book. Paul is a legend of the ifs and I highly recommend this book for everyone

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