Institute for Government

An IfG expert briefing on the challenges facing the new PM Rishi Sunak has vowed to “fix” the mistakes made by his short-lived predecessor in No.10. But this country’s third prime minister in just over two months has inherited a daunting in-tray – and a party still reeling from the resignation of Boris Johnson, the fraught leadership contest that followed, and the 49 days of Liz Truss’s chaotic go...

David Halpern, the ‘What Works’ National Adviser since 2013 and chief executive of the Behavioural Insights Team, has spent nearly a decade advising ministers and other leaders in government on using evidence to make better policy. As his term as national adviser comes to an end he spoke at the Institute for Government to look back at the successes, failures and future prospects for doing ‘what wo...

From u-turning on budgets to sacking chancellors, spooking the markets and seeing borrowing rates climb, it has been a dramatic, chaotic and, for many people, painful start to Liz Truss’s time as prime minister. What mistakes were made in the transition between Boris Johnson’s No.10 and Truss’s administration? Why were Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng so quick to disregard the value of institutions and ex...

Scotland’s place in the union hangs in the balance. The Supreme Court is set to decide whether Nicola Sturgeon can hold her proposed 2023 independence referendum. If the verdict goes against the SNP, then Sturgeon’s Plan B is to place independence at the heart of the next general election campaign. The UK government is determined to prevent a rerun of the 2014 vote, while Labour is developing plan...

It is 15 years since former home secretary John Reid reportedly described the Home Office as ‘not fit for purpose”. So what is the verdict in 2022? Just four years ago the Windrush scandal exposed systemic problems in the Home Office’s handling of immigration and citizenship, the way policies were made and the culture of the department. And since then the Home Office has continued to make headline...

Liz Truss has made economic growth a priority. And innovation – new ideas, technologies and processes – is an important driver of growth. But the UK performs much less R&D than many other advanced economies. So how can government policy best support innovation in the private sector and drive levelling up? Speakers: George Freeman MP, former Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation Adam Benn...

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. At this month's event, the 34th in our series, the speakers presented their work in an exciting, quickfire format. Each speaker had eight minutes, followed by eight minutes of questions from the audience. Our speakers were:...

There are plans to join up data across government services, websites and platforms, and use data in assessing and evaluating how public services are performing. The Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, making its way through parliament, is just one of many initiatives. But there are risks, as well as opportunities, in linking data held on citizens. So how can government ensure the public...

The chancellor’s new Growth Plan signals a change of course in the government’s economic and fiscal strategy, raising questions over where levelling up fits into the new administration’s strategy. Is the government still committed to narrowing the gap between richer and poorer regions, in terms of productivity, skills and jobs? What measures should it use to assess progress? How should it report o...

What should the new prime minister prioritise on the NHS and social care? In light of the major challenges facing the NHS and social care, many of which predated the pandemic, we heard from health experts, including: Marco Longhi MP, Member of the Health and Social Care Select Committee Anita Charlesworth, Director of Research and REAL Centre at the Health Foundation Danny Mortimer, Deputy Chief E...

Inadequate transport infrastructure has been blamed as a key contributor to poor economic performance outside of London and the South East, and transport policy is a key lever that national and local government can pull to deliver levelling up. We discussed the role of transport to promote regional growth, whether the government’s current approach is the right one and how infrastructure spending c...

Boris Johnson’s tenure as prime minister was marked by a series of ethical scandals which ultimately led to his resignation. His successor, Liz Truss, has put an emphasis on her judgment about what is right and wrong, downplaying the importance of the institutions, advisers and rules that her predecessors put in place to help guide their governments. But with public trust in politicians as low as...

Government cannot do levelling up alone, and an ambitious agenda to change the UK’s economic geography will be reliant on the private and third sectors. So how can how can central and local government foster collaborations with business and the social economy to drive levelling up? Speakers: Paul Scully MP, Minister of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister...

How can the civil service get better? And – with potentially huge efficiencies needed in the public sector – how can it do that for less money? Speakers: Gillian Keegan MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Rt Hon Lord Maude of Horsham, former Minister for the Cabinet Office Rt Hon Baroness Stowell of Beeston, former Leader of the House of...

We explored whether regulators should have specific responsibility to consider the regional implications of their work, and where the levelling up agenda fits alongside the other challenges – such as world events, technological developments and changing citizen and consumer expectations – that government and regulators are having to grapple with. Speakers: Paul Scully MP, Minister of State at the...

The government’s vision for net zero is based on unleashing a range of technologies through the power of the market. But getting the right mix of policy, regulation and market support to achieve this won’t be easy. Is the government being too optimistic about the speed and cost of deploying technologies? What should it learn from the UK’s success on offshore wind? And what steps does it need to ta...

Expanding and improving the UK’s housing stock will be crucial for delivering on the government’s flagship commitments to achieving net zero carbon emissions and levelling up economic performance and wellbeing across the country. But the government’s plans so far provide little detail about how this housing revolution will be achieved, and more clarity is needed on the mix of policy, regulation an...

How can the better use of data benefit public services? Our panel, chaired by Gavin Freeguard, featured Matt Davies, Senior Policy Adviser at the Open Data Institute; Helen Milner OBE, Group Chief Executive at Good Things Group; and Antonio Weiss, Senior Partner at The PSC. This event was recorded at the 2022 Labour Party Conference in Liverpool.

Technology is profoundly reconfiguring our society, creating new opportunities but also new risks and inequalities. Many politicians and policymakers have a limited understanding of technology and its effects, yet government has no choice but to grapple with these issues. How do we take technology out of the box labelled 'digital policy' and give it the attention it needs at the heart of policy an...

After a series of ethical scandal - from Matt Hancock's breach of lockdown rules, to 'wallpapergate' and 'partygate' - Labour has suggested it is time for an Independent Ethics Commission, to bring together all the various watchdogs and strengthen their powers. But how could such a proposal work? What responsibilities could the commission take on? And is it time to redesign the system of standards...

In the UK climate remains a top-tier issue even in the face of economic turmoil, even if net zero is yet to emerge as a key area of political competition. What are the lessons of recent elections around the world for campaigning on climate change? And what should UK Labour’s approach be at the next general election? We discussed recent elections, breakdown the attitudes of voters and geographies,...

How should an incoming Labour government work with the civil service? We hosted an event exploring what mistakes previous new governments have made in how they work with civil servants for Labour to learn from. To discuss, we were joined by Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, Member of Parliament for Leeds Central; Dame Meg Hillier MP, Chair of the Public Accounts Committee; Rt Hon Dame Margaret Hodge MP, Memb...

The government has downplayed the role of behaviour change in net zero. But will people really be able to fly ‘guilt free’, or should they be expected to make modest changes to their diets and lifestyles? And how would a Labour government encourage behavioural change? We will discussed with: Kerry McCarthy MP, Shadow Minister (Climate Change and Net Zero) Darren Jones MP, Chair of the Business, En...

What role should regulators play in levelling up under a Labour government? We discussed with Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town, Chair of the Lords International Agreements Select Committee; Martin Coppack Martin Coppack, Director of Fair By Design; and Ben Fisher, Director of Communications at the Solicitors Regulation Authority. The event was chaired by Dr Matthew Gill, Programme Director at the I...

How can government policy best support innovation in the private sector to boost growth and reduce regional inequality? Our panel included Chi Onwurah, Shadow Minister for Science, Research and Innovation; Adam Bennett, Client Director for Central Government at Costain Group PLC; Professor Richard Jones, Vice-President for Regional Innovation and Civic Engagement at the The University of Mancheste...