Institute for Government

Following the May 2026 local and devolved UK elections, Reform UK is running over 20 local authorities, has two regional mayors, and is the second-largest party in the Welsh parliament. But how would a Reform UK government in Westminster approach complex challenges like rewiring the state, boosting public service productivity, and growing the British economy? On 7 July, the IfG welcomed Richard Ti...

The IfG DevoLab is dedicated to exploring the innovations enabled by devolution, learning from the results, and sharing the lessons so that places can take better decisions about how to use devolved powers and budgets. We were in Sheffield for the fifth DevoLab event, where three speakers set out how mayors and local leaders can build and sustain a shared vision for growth across their regions. Th...

Five years on from the merger of the Foreign Office and the Department for International Development, this is a pivotal moment for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The government is managing the reduction in the international aid budget, the department is undergoing a major restructuring, and its permanent secretary was sacked by the prime minister. With fewer resources, ev...

The worthy aims of the NHS’s prevention shift include reducing childhood obesity, cutting the prevalence of smoking, and tackling harmful alcohol consumption. But previous Institute for Government work shows that shifting to prevention is incredibly difficult, with successive governments’ actions rarely meeting lofty rhetoric. So, one year on from the launch of the 10-year health plan, how much pr...

Andy Burnham will surely become prime minister in a matter of weeks. But what kind of government would he lead and how can he prepare for the biggest job in British politics? As Burnham sets out his policy priorities, and with much speculation about the key appointments he will make to his top team, this webinar brought together leading IfG experts to explore the challenges awaiting the next prime...

The Institute for Government was pleased to welcome Dan Tomlinson MP, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, to share his experiences as the sole departmental minister for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs – and set out his vision for transforming the department. What will the shift to “digital by default” mean for HMRC’s performance, culture and operating model? How can digital transformation impro...

Boys from families living on low-incomes have been ‘left behind’ in early years policy making for decades. Nearly three in five boys from low-income families are not reaching a good level of development by the end of reception year, with long-term effects on their later educational attainment, job prospects, health and wellbeing. Two reports from the Institute for Government (IfG) – supported by I...

The Covid-19 pandemic saw the government spend hundreds of billions of pounds to buy PPE, keep businesses afloat and avoid mass redundancies. In the heat of this once-in-a-generation crisis, decisions were made that enabled widespread fraud by both individuals and organisations – leading to an estimated £10.9 billion of Covid-19 spending being lost to fraud and error. In December 2024, the chancel...

The Institute for Government was pleased to welcome Kemi Badenoch to give a keynote speech on Tuesday 9 June at 10:30am. Following her speech, the Leader of the Opposition was in conversation with Dr Hannah White, Director and CEO of the Institute for Government, and took part in a Q&A with the audience.

An expert panel drew on lessons from the recent assisted dying bill and other PMBs to consider how backbench MPs should approach complex issues. While historically major social reforms – such as decriminalising homosexuality or legalising abortion – have been introduced through private members’ bills (PMBs), most backbench attempts to legislate that do not begin with government support fail to mak...

Ministerial resignations, letters of no confidence, and Andy Burnham’s determination to return to Westminster have rocked Keir Starmer’s premiership. Plenty of twists and turn await in the coming weeks, with the work of government continuing under a cloud of uncertainty. So how can a prime minister lead a government if their authority is being questioned by their own MPs? What would a Labour leade...

The government has introduced the Representation of the People Bill to lower the voting age to 16, change how electoral rules are enforced and – potentially – introduce new restrictions on political donations. But embedding new processes for registering to vote, changing how electoral rules are enforced, and ensuring there is clear information for 16- and 17-year-olds will all take time – and affe...

The children’s social care market is often described as “broken” – including by the government itself. Too many children end up in unsuitable settings, the quality of care varies sharply across the country, and costs have risen to levels that put severe pressure on local authority budgets. So, what does the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act, which has recently received Royal Assent, mean for th...

With a crucial set of local and devolved elections taking place in England, Scotland and Wales on Thursday 7 May, the Institute for Government devolution team hosted an expert webinar the day after to discuss the results so far. What is the likely composition of the new governments in Edinburgh and Cardiff and what will be their policy priorities? What are the implications for UK-devolved relation...

The Palace of Westminster is one of the world’s most recognisable historic buildings and the home of the UK parliament. Yet much of the estate is in urgent need of repair. While debates over how to approach the Restoration and Renewal programme have continued for over a decade, other countries have already moved ahead: Austria has completed the renovation of its parliament, and Canada’s is well un...

Our third webinar in a three-part series focused on the findings of Whitehall Monitor 2026. The third Whitehall Monitor webinar – the final in a three-part series exploring the IfG’s annual flagship report on the civil service – took a deeper look at the people who make up the civil service workforce, including diversity and morale, and considers the crucial role of, and challenges facing, civil s...

On Thursday 7 May, voters in Scotland and Wales will elect the members of the devolved parliaments in Edinburgh and Cardiff. A change of government is expected in Wales, where Labour trails both Plaid Cymru and Reform UK in the polls. In Scotland, by contrast, the SNP is forecast to take a fifth successive victory, potentially with an outright majority, which the party will claim provides a mandat...

The Institute for Government was pleased to welcome Matthew Pennycook MP, Minister for Housing and Planning, to give a speech on leasehold reform and the move to commonhold. The speech, in which the Housing Minister spoke about the government's ambitions on ending the feudal leasehold system, follows publication of the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill for pre-legislative scrutiny. Follow...

Successive UK governments have made immigration policy a high political priority, but no recent government has seemed to meet public expectations in the pursuit of those policies. So, what have recent immigration policies been trying to achieve, and why have so many people ended up unhappy with the outcome? A new book by Madeleine Sumption explores these questions. Drawing on decades of research,...

The government is reeling from the revelation that Peter Mandelson was appointed as UK ambassador to the US despite having failed a security vetting process. With the blame-game dominating the week in Westminster, what will we learn from Keir Starmer's 'judgment day' Commons statement? What will Olly Robbins – who was sacked by the PM as Foreign Office permanent secretary – reveal in a crucial sel...

Improving productivity is at the heart of the government’s plans for public services, underpins the ‘strategic and agile state’ and is a critical enabler for many of its ambitions for the future. The Chief Secretary to the Treasury has been drawing on experience from the public and private sector to make sure the 2027 spending review consolidates and furthers the government’s productivity drive. T...

The second webinar in our three-part series focusing on the findings of Whitehall Monitor 2026. The webinar featured: Heloise Dunlop, Researcher at the Institute for Government and co-author of Whitehall Monitor 2026 Becky Noble, Public Services AI Lead at PA Consulting Jack Worlidge, Senior Researcher at the IfG and co-author of Whitehall Monitor 2026 The event was chaired by Hannah Keenan, Assoc...

Our first webinar in a three-part series focused on the findings of Whitehall Monitor 2026. The first Whitehall Monitor webinar – kicking off a three-part series exploring the IfG’s annual flagship report on the civil service – looked at the context in which much needed strategic workforce planning should be taking place: how the size and shape of the civil service has changed in the past year, ag...

As war in the Middle East disrupts energy markets across the world, what are the implications for households and businesses in the UK and how should government respond to the price shock? This IfG webinar explored Rachel Reeves’s options for supporting consumers – and what the ongoing conflict could mean for energy policy, the transition to net zero and for the public finances. What are the implic...

With just a few weeks remaining before May’s Scottish parliament election, Malcolm Offord, Leader of Reform UK in Scotland, joined us to discuss the state of devolution, Scotland’s economy and public services, and the future of Scotland. With Reform UK predicted to win a sizeable number of seats in Scotland for the first time, this webinar saw Malcolm Offord set out his policies and plans for Scot...