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Core Cities is an association of eleven cities in the UK: Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, and Sheffield. Altogether, Core Cities and their surrounding regions account for around one quarter of the UK population and economy. Given their size and assets, Core Cities have the potential to boost national growth. However, unlike second-tier cities in most other large OECD countries, Core Cities have low levels of productivity by national and international standards. With the right policies and sufficient investment in public transport, housing, skills and other key policy areas, Core Cities could become centres of economic activity that pull their regions and the entire UK to higher productivity levels. This report unpacks the causes of low productivity in UK Core Cities and offers policy recommendations for the local and national level to achieve higher productivity and more inclusive growth.

This profile provides a concise and policy-relevant overview of health and the health system in the United Kingdom as part of the broader series of the State of Health in the EU country profiles. It provides a short synthesis of: the health status in the country; the determinants of health, focussing on behavioural risk factors; the organisation of the health system; and the effectiveness, accessibility and resilience of the health system. This profile is the joint work of the OECD and the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, in co-operation with the European Commission.

Twenty-first century governments must keep pace with the expectations of their citizens and deliver on the promise of the digital age. Data-driven approaches are particularly effective for meeting those expectations and rethinking the way governments and citizens interact. This report highlights the important role data can play in creating conditions that improve public services, increase the effectiveness of public spending and inform ethical and privacy considerations. It presents a data-driven public sector framework that can help countries or organisations assess the elements needed for using data to make better-informed decisions across public sectors.

In the wake of the technological revolution that began in the last decades of the 20th century, labour-market demand for information-processing and other high-level cognitive and interpersonal skills have been growing substantially. Based on the results from the 33 countries and regions that participated in the 1st and 2nd round of the Survey of Adult Skills in 2011-12 and in 2014-15, this report describes adults’ proficiency in three information-processing skills, and examines how proficiency is related to labour-market and social outcomes. It also places special emphasis on the results from the 3rd and final round of the first cycle of PIAAC in 2017-18, which included 6 countries (Ecuador, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Peru and the United States). The Survey of Adult Skills, a product of the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), was designed to provide insights into the availability of some of these key skills in society and how they are used at work and at home. The first survey of its kind, it directly measures proficiency in three information-processing skills: literacy, numeracy and problem-solving in technology-rich environments.

This edition of the Reader’s Companion accompanies Skills Matter: Additional Results from the Survey of Adult Skills that reports the results from the 39 countries and regions that participated in the 3 rounds of data collection in the first cycle of PIAAC, with a particular focus on the 6 countries that participated in the third round of the study (Ecuador, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Peru and the United States). It describes the design and methodology of the survey and its relationship to other international assessments of young students and adults. The Survey of Adult Skills, a product of the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), was designed to provide insights into the availability of some key skills in society and how they are used at work and at home. The first survey of its kind, it directly measures proficiency in several information-processing skills – namely literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technology-rich environments.

Under Action 14, countries have committed to implement a minimum standard to strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of the mutual agreement procedure (MAP). The MAP is included in Article 25 of the OECD Model Tax Convention and commits countries to endeavour to resolve disputes related to the interpretation and application of tax treaties. The Action 14 Minimum Standard has been translated into specific terms of reference and a methodology for the peer review and monitoring process. The minimum standard is complemented by a set of best practices.The peer review process is conducted in two stages. Stage 1 assesses countries against the terms of reference of the minimum standard according to an agreed schedule of review. Stage 2 focuses on monitoring the follow-up of any recommendations resulting from jurisdictions' stage 1 peer review report. This report reflects the outcome of the stage 2 peer monitoring of the implementation of the Action 14 Minimum Standard by the United Kingdom, which is accompanied by a document addressing the implementation of best practices which can be accessed on the OECD website.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) regularly conducts in-depth peer reviews of the energy policies of its member countries, a process that supports energy policy development and encourages the exchange of international best practices and experiences. The United Kingdom is a global leader in decarbonisation, both in terms of actual emissions reductions and ambitions set out in five-year carbon budgets. The carbon price floor has supported coal-to-gas switching, which combined with a record investment in offshore wind and solar PV, is transforming the UK power sector. By 2030, wind and solar are expected to reach above 50%, more than in any other country. Solutions for flexible electricity markets and technologies need to be scaled up. Coal and nuclear power capacity is going to retire and new nuclear faces a weak outlook, the contribution of natural gas to meet peak demand is likely to increase. The UK has been able to stabilise production from the North Sea. Given its long term decline, however, oil & gas imports are critical. Maintaining open energy trade with the Continent and the world has to remain a top priority. The UK Clean Growth Strategy puts energy technology and innovation at the centre of its decarbonisation policy. The IEA underlines that the country’s offshore expertise is a strong basis for innovative technologies, such as carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) and also hydrogen, along with improving energy efficiency. In this report, the IEA provides recommendations to help the country guide the transformation of the UK energy sector and to meet its ambitious targets.