Institute for Government

The Treasury is perhaps the most powerful department in Whitehall. Its ownership of public spending means it has direct control over the money available to the rest of government, while the Treasury’s responsibility for tax policy gives it enormous influence over the finances of households and businesses. But criticism of the department’s influence on government policy is almost as old as the inst...

Better use of data is key to more effective government. Across government, teams are doing fascinating work with data. But those projects don’t get the attention they deserve. Data Bites aims to change that. This event was the 49th in our series, where the speakers present their work in an exciting, quickfire format.

Fraud is the UK’s most common crime. But despite 3.5 million incidents reported in 2022/23, 40% of all reported crimes, only one in a thousand results in a charge or summons. So why is there such a huge gap between preventing, detecting and prosecuting this crime – and what can be done to fix the problem? A wide range of organisations have responsibility for tackling fraud, including the Home Offi...

As he prepares to step down as Chief Operating Officer for the Civil Service and Permanent Secretary for the Cabinet Office, Alex Chisholm spoke at the Institute for Government for his final time as a civil servant. During nearly a decade at the top of the civil service as a permanent secretary, Alex served four prime ministers and worked with three cabinet secretaries, covering eventful and tumul...

The future of the UK asylum system could dominate the 2024 general election campaign. The prime minister has made his controversial Rwanda plan a flagship part of the government’s agenda, while Labour has committed to reforming the asylum system as part of its plan to tackle Channel crossings. Rishi Sunak pledged to clear the legacy asylum backlog by the end of 2023, but the sizeable backlog of pe...

Political parties are increasingly focusing their energy and resources on the approaching general election campaign. The pace will be relentless. The atmosphere will be increasingly fraught. So as the campaign intensifies, how can think tanks make themselves heard – and help to shape policy and political debate? A dramatic – and sometimes chaotic – decade in British politics has brought new challe...

Fixing the centre of government by Institute for Government

Data Bites #48: Getting things done with data in government - smart data special by Institute for Government

With the general election less than a year away, the Conservatives, Labour and all other political parties are drawing up their manifestos. Scrutinised by the media and voters, manifestos can shape debate, shift the polls, and play a major part in an election campaign – and shape what the winning part does in government. While manifestos are described as a contract between a party and the people,...

Productivity Pitches #2: criminal justice and law enforcement by Institute for Government

Inside the Political Mind: How the human side of politics shapes behaviour by Institute for Government

Former deputy prime minister, health secretary and environment secretary Thérèse Coffey joined us at the Institute for Government to reflect on her nine years as government minister. https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/therese-coffey

Devolution to Wales is almost 25 years old. Since the first Welsh assembly elections in 1999, the powers of the devolved institutions in Cardiff have been substantially expanded –with Welsh voters backing the historic transformation of the assembly into a law-making parliament in a 2011 referendum. A quarter of a century since devolution began, what are the potential next steps in Wales’s unfinish...

A special live episode of The Expert Factor podcast. Adam Fleming, Presenter of BBC Newscast Paul Johnson, Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies Professor Anand Menon, Director of UK in a Changing Europe Dr Hannah White OBE, Director of the Institute for Government

The essential IfG briefing From devolution to parliamentary scrutiny, standards in public life to net zero, a panel of IfG experts explore a range of key policy areas that this and future governments will need to focus on. Tim Durrant, Programme Director at the Institute for Government Dr Matthew Gill, Programme Director at the Institute for Government Akash Paun, Programme Director at the Institu...

Rhys Clyne, Associate Director at the Institute for Government, set out key findings from Whitehall Monitor 2024 – the IfG’s annual report into the shape, size and performance of the civil service – ahead of a panel discussion on how the civil service can be reformed to deliver for ministers. Rowena Mason, Whitehall Editor at the Guardian Rt Hon Lord Maude, author of the Independent Review of Gove...

A wide-ranging discussion on the key issues facing government – and the economy – as a general election draws near. Claire Ainsley, Director of the Project on Center-Left Renewal and former Executive Director of Policy to Keir Starmer Anita Boateng, Partner at Portland Communications and former Special Adviser for the Cabinet Office, MoJ and DWP Sam Freedman, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Gov...

Government keynote speech: Rt Hon John Glen MP by Institute for Government

Stuart Hoddinott, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Government, set out key findings from Performance Tracker – the IfG’s annual stocktake of nine key public services – ahead of a panel discussion on how public service performance can be turned around. Adam Boulton, former Political Editor of Sky News Councillor Georgia Gould, Leader of Camden Council Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng MP, former Chancell...

We were delighted to welcome Karin Smyth MP, Shadow Minister of Health, for a keynote speech at Government 2024, the IfG's annual conference with Grant Thornton UK LLP. This was followed by an in conversation with Dr Hannah White OBE, Director of the IfG.

2024 will be a crucial year for government and for British politics. With a general election no more than a year away, Rishi Sunak has asked to be judged on meeting his five pledges – and the pressure is on Keir Starmer to add policy details to his five missions. To mark the start of this pivotal 12 months, the Institute for Government’s annual conference brought together influential speakers and...

Audio recording of event held at the Institute for Government, 16 January 2024.

The next general election is – at most – one year away. If Labour wins, there will, as is almost always the case in the UK, be an overnight transition of power. A party that has spent 14 years in opposition would be instantly thrown into government. But having focused already limited resources on election campaigning, and often lacking the knowledge and experience of being in government, how can o...

Governments often tackle similar issues again and again – from day-to-day matters to major challenges such as natural disasters, public health threats or global financial or security crises. So it is vital that governments learn from experience about what works – and what doesn’t – to improve the functioning of government. But extensive churn in ministers – and the civil servants who support them...

In this first Productivity Pitches event, a new series that the Institute for Government will organise jointly with The Productivity Institute, we were delighted to welcome Cat Little, Second Permanent Secretary to the Treasury and Bart van Ark, Managing Director of The Productivity Institute to discuss these questions: What are the causes of weak productivity growth in public services? How can di...