4.6 • 3.5K Ratings
🗓️ 26 March 2025
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Some Labour politicians have been calling for a wealth tax, claiming a 2% tax could raise £24bn. Where are the numbers from and do they add up?
A listener asked why housing in the UK is the oldest in Europe. We explain what’s going on.
The Office for National Statistics has changed how it measures the value of pensions and knocked £2 trillion off its estimates of wealth. Not everyone thinks it was a good change. We find out why.
And Lent is here, but how long is the Christian fasting period? We look at the history of a very flexible 40 days.
Tim Harford investigates some of the numbers in the news, and the world around us.
Presenter: Tim Harford Reporter: Lizzy McNeill Producers: Nathan Gower and Charlotte McDonald Series producer: Tom Colls Production co-ordinator: Gemma Ashman Sound mix: Gareth Jones Editor: Richard Vadon
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0:00.0 | What do Selena Gomez, LeBron James and Martha Stewart all have in common? |
0:06.2 | Their lives and fortunes are all being discussed in season three of Good Bad Billionaire. |
0:10.9 | Yes, the podcast exploring the minds, the motives and the money of some of the world's wealthiest individuals is back. |
0:16.9 | I'm Zing Singh and I'm Simon Jack. |
0:18.6 | Each week we take a closer look at some of the world's mega rich. |
0:21.8 | And try to decide together whether we think they're good, bad or just another billionaire. |
0:26.5 | Good bad billionaire. |
0:27.5 | Listen first on BBC Sounds. |
0:31.6 | BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts. |
0:35.4 | Hello and welcome to more or less. |
0:37.5 | Wherever there's a top secret group chat about numbers, you can bet that we're lurking, |
0:42.3 | unobserved and taking notes. I'm Tim Harford. This week, we resolve last week's low jeopardy |
0:48.5 | cliffhanger about why British houses are really old. We investigate claims that the Office |
0:53.6 | for National Statistics |
0:54.8 | have stuffed £2 trillion into a duffel bag and absconded to Brazil. We return to the |
1:00.0 | increasingly recondite topic of how many days there are in Lent, but first, last week |
1:06.0 | the government announced changes to the disability benefits system, which included cuts aimed at saving |
1:11.8 | £5 billion a year. The move was met with dismay by some, including those on the left of the Labour |
1:18.9 | Party, such as MP Diane Abbott. She appeared on Radio 4's Today programme and argued that |
1:25.2 | there was another way to deal with the financial pressures |
1:27.6 | of a rising disability benefits bill. |
1:30.3 | I would introduce a wealth tax. |
... |
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