Session overview

Come join us and DINs economist in residence David Smith, Economics Editor, Sunday Times as he unpacks the governments long awaited spending review and what this means for you, the economy, business and the housing sector.

We are delighted that David has signed on to deliver these new briefing sessions for DIN members so after each fiscal event you will understand what the implications of the various announcements will mean for your business strategy.

Covering areas around:

In this session David Smith, Economics Editor of The Sunday Times, will examine a key set of announcements for the government and the economy; the summer comprehensive spending review, to be unveiled in June. This will set out detailed spending plans for the next three years. Though Rachel Reeves set out the "envelope" for the spending review in her October budget, and trimmed that envelope slightly in her Spring economy update, it is the detail of the spending allocations that will matter, including for the housing sector. There are several important questions that Reeves has to answer:

• Will the spending review keep the public finances on track to meet the chancellor's all-important fiscal rules?
• Are unprotected departments facing a repeat of the kind of squeeze they faced in the 2010s?
• Are clashes over public sector pay inevitable?
• The government will prioritise improved efficiency and productivity in public service delivery, are such improvements achievable?

About our speaker

David Smith

David Smith has been Economics Editor of The Sunday Times since 1989, where he writes a weekly column. He is also a leader-writer, an assistant editor and policy adviser. Since 2016 he has also been writing a weekly column for The Times, where he worked from 1984 to 1989.

David Smith is the author of several books, including The Rise and Fall of Monetarism; Mrs Thatcher’s Economics; North and South; From Boom to Bust; UK Current Economic Policy; Eurofutures; Will Europe Work?; Free Lunch: Easily Digestible Economics; The Dragon & the Elephant: China, India and the New World Order; The Age of Instability: The Global Financial Crisis and What Comes Next, and – in 2015 – Something Will Turn Up; Britain’s Economy Past, Present and Future. He is a visiting professor at both Cardiff University and Nottingham University. He has won a number of awards, including the Harold Wincott Senior Financial Journalist of the Year Award, the Economics Commentator of the Year Award, the Business Journalist of the Year Award in the London Press Awards and Property Columnist of the Year.

Who should attend?

Any leader wanting to understand the current economic position of the UK and the implications of the Spring economic update. From CEOs, Board members, Exec and Service Directors across the housing business will benefit from attending this session.

Attendance at this session is free as it is included in your DIN subscription