IELTS Band 7+ Core

yield tangible results

The reason why the policy has been so effective is because it targets the root cause of the problem.

Having failed to consult local residents, the council proceeded with a plan that proved deeply unpopular.

This raises the question of whether institutional reform alone is sufficient to address the underlying problem.

The data appears to suggest a correlation, but causation has not been established.

defy expectations

The evidence clearly proves that this approach is the most effective one available.

Only when governments commit to structural reform will meaningful progress be possible.

It is worth considering whether the benefits of this approach justify the level of risk involved.

The long-term consequences of this policy remain difficult to quantify with any certainty.

warrant attention

First of all, this policy is good. Secondly, it creates jobs. Thirdly, it reduces pollution. In conclusion, the government should adopt it.

Were this policy to be implemented without adequate safeguards, the consequences could be severe.

Granted, there are exceptions to this pattern, but they do not undermine the general trend.

The findings lend support to the view that early intervention is more effective than later treatment.

underpin assumptions

She is very unique in her approach to problem-solving.

It is the quality of the education, not merely access to it, that determines long-term outcomes.

The consequence of this is that those who are already marginalised face even greater barriers.

Sweeping generalisations about entire populations tend to obscure the complexity of individual experience.

pervasive influence

In my personal opinion, I believe that social media has more negative effects than positive ones.

The more centralised the decision-making process becomes, the less responsive it is to local needs.

It follows that any solution which ignores the economic dimension is unlikely to succeed.

There is irrefutable evidence that prolonged exposure to air pollution damages lung tissue.

mounting evidence

The corruption is a serious problem that is damaging the society.

The agreement, having been in place for over a decade, was finally renegotiated last year.

There is a reasonable case to be made for reducing the age of criminal responsibility.

Many of the assumptions underpinning this economic model have since been called into question.

oblivious to the consequences

He is a very stubborn person who refuses to consider other perspectives.

Rarely does a single factor account for the full complexity of a social problem.

Taking these factors into account, the evidence points toward a more cautious interpretation.

The two interpretations are not mutually exclusive, and both may reflect aspects of the same reality.

commensurate with the scale of the problem

According to my opinion, governments should do more to support mental health services.

Not only does automation eliminate many low-skilled positions, it also changes the nature of skilled work itself.

That may well be true, but it does not follow that the proposed solution is the right one.

The reform has been largely superficial, failing to address the structural conditions that generate poverty.

sweeping generalisation

The government should try to find a solution to solve this problem as soon as possible.

What distinguishes a Band 8 response is not the sophistication of vocabulary but the precision with which ideas are expressed.

The evidence presented here is suggestive rather than conclusive, and further research is needed.

The notion that economic growth automatically benefits all sections of society has been widely contested.

profound implications

The new technology will have a lot of positive impacts on the healthcare system.

The situation has deteriorated to such a degree that emergency intervention is now unavoidable.

Acknowledging this complexity does not mean abandoning the argument — it means refining it.

The committee was unable to reach a definitive conclusion given the contradictory nature of the evidence.

averse to change

In today's world, many people think that education is very important for the future.

No matter how well-intentioned the policy, its implementation will determine whether it succeeds.

The way I see it, the real obstacle is not the cost but the lack of political will.

These vested interests have long shaped policy decisions in ways that benefit the few at the expense of the many.

irrefutable evidence

The government has made a strong majority of citizens feel safe.

There are strong grounds for believing that the current framework is no longer fit for purpose.

In practice, this distinction is often harder to maintain than it appears in theory.

The pervasive influence of social media on political opinion is now difficult to dispute.

resigned to the situation

She stopped to check her phone every few minutes during the lecture.

The introduction of mandatory reporting has been accompanied by a significant reduction in unreported cases.

The thing is, most people do not make decisions on the basis of rational calculation alone.

Many commentators argue that the current system is inherently biased against those without formal qualifications.

complicit in the harm

I remember to meet her at the conference last year — it was a remarkable conversation.

It is imperative that this issue be addressed before the next legislative session.

Even so, the argument has considerable merit and should not be dismissed out of hand.

The proposal, while ambitious, rests on assumptions that have yet to be empirically tested.

on the contrary

He tried to fix the problem by introducing stricter regulation, but the issue persisted.

Such has been the pace of change that many regulatory systems have simply been left behind.

Under certain conditions, this approach has proven effective — but those conditions are rarely met in practice.

Technological disruption tends to yield both winners and losers, often along existing lines of inequality.

based on the evidence available

The report was wordy, overly formal, and it did not present its argument clearly.

The longer governments delay acting on climate change, the higher the eventual cost of doing so will be.

To varying degrees, all developed economies face the same structural pressures.

The author contends that urbanisation, far from being a problem, is central to economic development.

tangible benefit

The government should to invest more in renewable energy sources.

Taken together, these findings suggest a pattern that cannot easily be dismissed.

At first glance, the policy seems straightforward, but closer examination reveals several unresolved tensions.

The sheer scale of the displacement has overwhelmed existing humanitarian infrastructure.

in the long run

Despite the fact that she studied hard, but she still failed the exam.

The assumption that economic growth automatically reduces poverty has been widely challenged.

I think so, though I would want to qualify that by saying the evidence is still limited.

Critics argue that the legislation circumvents the regulatory framework that was designed to protect consumers.

at first glance

The media are playing an increasingly large role in impacting the way people form their opinions.

Not only has the programme failed to meet its targets, but it has also consumed twice its original budget.

Broadly speaking, the approach has worked, though results have varied considerably across regions.

The report delineates three distinct phases in the development of the modern welfare state.

on the whole

The number of people who are unemployed are rising sharply.

Dolphins are more intelligent than many people realise, often demonstrating problem-solving abilities comparable to primates.

The distinction is subtle but significant, and it is worth pausing to consider it carefully.

The evidence warrants a thorough reassessment of the assumptions driving current immigration policy.

by and large

She is a quite brilliant researcher who has published extensively on the subject.

She has been in hospital for three weeks following the operation.

What strikes me about this argument is not the conclusion but the assumptions on which it rests.

The government's approach has been criticised for being reactive rather than anticipating problems before they arise.

strengthen the case for

Basing on these findings, we can conclude that the intervention was successful.

She said she couldn't attend, and neither could he.

One consequence that is often overlooked is the effect on those who are already at the margins.

The two studies yield divergent results, which complicates any attempt to draw firm conclusions.

have far-reaching consequences

The policy has been enormously successful. Moreover, it has faced some significant criticism.

Most analysts expect the economy to recover — I hope so too, though the evidence is mixed.

This is not to suggest that the policy is without merit — quite the contrary.

These findings are consistent with the view that poverty is reproduced across generations.

run counter to

He is always punctual and does his work with a lot of accuracy.

The proposal to restructure the healthcare system — the most radical in a generation — was met with fierce opposition.

The problem, as I see it, is not a shortage of resources but a failure of coordination.

The initiative has been largely ineffectual, failing to produce the changes it was designed to bring about.

lend credibility to

There has been a continuous growth in the number of electric vehicles on the road.

By the time the policy was reversed, significant damage had already been done.

In the absence of clear evidence, it would be premature to draw any firm conclusions.

Access to quality healthcare should not be contingent upon an individual's financial circumstances.

remain to be seen

The two problems are very different from one another and cannot be solved with the same solution.

The findings, though preliminary, are consistent with previous research in the field.

There is no shortage of proposals — the challenge is identifying which ones are actually viable.

imply vs infer

hold sb accountable for

It is a well-known fact that physical exercise is beneficial for mental health.

It is widely assumed that economic development leads to greater political freedom, though the evidence is far from clear-cut.

Whether this is true in all cases is open to question, but the general trend seems clear.

The results strongly suggest that current policies are failing the most vulnerable members of society.

exacerbate existing inequalities

She has a tendency of taking on too many responsibilities at once.

Little did the architects of the policy anticipate the scale of resistance it would encounter.

I would not go so far as to say that the approach has failed, but the results have been disappointing.

The study calls into question the long-held assumption that bilingualism delays language acquisition.

deepen understanding of

The policy is aimed to create a fairer distribution of wealth across society.

The higher the levels of civic engagement, the more resilient a democracy tends to be.

It is perhaps no coincidence that these problems emerged at precisely the moment funding was cut.

The reform has done little to redress the structural imbalances that have persisted for decades.

draw on a wide range of evidence

This proposal, despite it is well-intentioned, is unlikely to produce the results its supporters expect.

The scheme, originally designed to support small businesses, has since been extended to cover larger enterprises.

Herein lies the central tension: how to balance individual freedom with collective responsibility.

The two perspectives are often presented as incompatible, but this framing obscures important common ground.

call for urgent action

Under no circumstances can the privacy of individuals be compromised in the name of national security.

To put it plainly, the system is not working for the people it was designed to serve.

These policies tend to disproportionately affect those who are already disadvantaged.

come to terms with

What has become clear is that economic growth, in the absence of redistribution, does not reduce inequality.

The question of who bears the cost is, ultimately, a political one rather than a technical one.

The degree to which technology can substitute for human connection remains deeply contested.

bear the burden of

Having been subjected to decades of underinvestment, many urban areas now face severe infrastructure challenges.

This suggests that the problem is structural, not incidental — and therefore requires a structural solution.

Critics contend that the plan prioritises short-term political gain over long-term public benefit.

take precedence over

Should the negotiations break down, both sides will face significant economic consequences.

Be that as it may, the urgency of the situation demands that we act now rather than wait for perfect conditions.

The mechanism by which poverty perpetuates itself across generations is complex and multifaceted.

leave much to be desired

The more closely we examine the data, the more apparent the methodological flaws become.

The programme was well-funded but poorly conceived, which ultimately led to its failure.

lend itself to

It was not until the financial crisis of 2008 that governments began to question the fundamentals of deregulation.

Many commentators have called for a more nuanced approach that acknowledges regional variation.

strike a chord with

There is every reason to believe that the situation will worsen before it improves.

The agency lacks the authority to compel compliance, which significantly limits its effectiveness.

play out

The proposal, if adopted without modification, would replicate many of the failures of the previous system.

The policy was implemented without adequate consultation, which undermined public confidence from the outset.

paint a misleading picture

Not since the industrial revolution has a single technology reshaped labour markets so fundamentally.

The study reveals a stark discrepancy between what governments report and what communities actually experience.

meet with resistance

It is worth noting that the research draws on a relatively small and non-representative sample.

The government has been reluctant to acknowledge the extent to which its own policies contributed to the crisis.

reach its full potential

Aware of the political sensitivity surrounding the issue, the minister chose her words with considerable care.

The proposal raises legitimate concerns about privacy that cannot simply be dismissed.

throw into doubt

The committee agreed that the policy needed revision, as did most independent observers.

The report stops short of recommending a complete overhaul of the existing system.

account for the discrepancy

The complexity of the situation notwithstanding, the government was expected to provide clear answers.

There is a growing body of evidence linking sedentary behaviour to a range of serious health conditions.

cast doubt on

It is essential that every candidate be given an equal opportunity to demonstrate their abilities.

The decision to expand the programme was premature, given that the initial results were inconclusive.

reach a tipping point

Many of the problems facing urban areas today are not new — they have simply become more visible.

The author acknowledges the limitations of the study, which lends the argument greater credibility.

bridge a divide

This argument, compelling as it is, does not address the fundamental question of distribution.

The two policies are broadly comparable in scope but diverge significantly in their approach to enforcement.

adopt a more measured approach

The data, when analysed at the regional level, tells a rather different story from the national picture.

The initiative has been lauded by some but condemned by others, reflecting the deep divisions within the field.

lay the groundwork for

To assume that all communities will respond to the policy in the same way would be a serious oversimplification.

Economic development alone is insufficient to guarantee equitable outcomes for all members of society.

give way to

Seldom, if ever, has such a far-reaching reform been attempted without significant public opposition.

The narrative around immigration has shifted considerably in the past decade, often in ways that obscure the facts.

hinge on a single factor

The benefits of the scheme are contingent not only on funding but also on the capacity of local institutions to deliver.

have a vested interest in

The distinction between correlation and causation is one that researchers must be vigilant about maintaining.

be in a position to

The argument, though internally consistent, fails to account for a number of well-documented exceptions.

stand in stark contrast to