Executive Summary
Assessment and Recommendations
Chapter 1. Key Challenges: Translating a Resilient Macroeconomic Performance into Faster Growth in Living Standards
-Introduction
-Recent Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook
-Fiscal Policy
-Impressive Macroeconomic Performance also Reflects Flexibility in Labour and Product Markets
-The Major Challenge is to Close the Productivity Gap
-Reducing Large Numbers on Disability-Related Benefits is the Key to Raise Labour Utilisation
-Annex. Differences between the OECD and 2005 Budget Projections
Chapter 2. Housing: Raising Responsiveness of Supply
-Assessing the Risk in the Current Cycle
-Policy Measures to Increase Supply
-Policy Measures Acting on Demand
Chapter 3. Public Services and Infrastructure: Tracking the Improvements
-Spending on Health and Education Can Still Be Made More Efficient
-Transport Infrastructure
Chapter 4. Pensions: Options for Reform
-The Current System
-Options for Reform
Chapter 5. Could More Childcare Increase Labour Supply?
-Incentives to Take Up Work
-Maternity Leave and Family-Friendly Working Conditions
-Flexible Childcare: Ensuring Cost Consciousness while Stimulating Innovation
-Conclusions
Chapter 6. From Incapacity to Rehabilitation and Employment
-The Current System and Reform Proposals
-From Back Pain to Mental Health Problems
-Conclusions
Chapter 7. Raising Innovation Performance
-UK Innovation Performance: Is It Really Mediocre?
-Do Composition Effects Explain Why R&D Performance Has Been Weak?
-What Should Policy Do about Innovation?
-Summary and Conclusions
Chapter 8. Raising the Level of Skills
-Diagnosis of the Skill Shortage and its Causes
-Dealing with the Skills Shortage
-Summary and Conclusions
Annex. Progress on Structural Reforms
Acronyms