AI-generated ‘deepfake’ audio clips of both London mayor Sadiq Khan and leader of the opposition Sir Keir Starmer have circulated on social media. A faked robocall impersonating Joe Biden was sent to voters before a primary election. The number of AI-enhanced images of politicians is increasing. In a year when over two billion people in more than 50 countries will vote in elections, the use of AI technology – more widely accessible than ever – and disinformation could have a major impact on...

The question of how to reform the House of Lords dominates discussions about the upper house, with less attention focused on its day-to-day activities. Since his election as Lord Speaker in 2021, Lord McFall of Alcluith has sought to champion its important role of revising legislation and advising the government, while ensuring the Lords remains on the path of modernisation. Lord McFall has focused on parliamentary outreach and prioritised communicating the value of the House of Lords...

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 institution itself, with frequent complaints about the “dead hand of the Treasury” or attacks on the...

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 Office, National Crime Agency, Serious Fraud Office, City of London Police, Metropolitan Police...

From tackling low economic growth to addressing regional inequalities, from adapting to climate change to transforming public service performance, UK government is facing substantial and urgent challenges. But without radical reform of the centre of government, whoever wins the next election will repeat the failures of previous administrations. The next prime minister must transform No.10, the Cabinet Office and the Treasury. On Monday 11 March, The Rt Hon Sir John Major KG CH and The Rt Hon...

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, the reality in government is often quite different. Pledges may prove difficult to deliver in...

Dr Thérèse Coffey served in government under every prime minister from David Cameron to Rishi Sunak, including four years as a member of the cabinet. She led the Department for Work and Pensions through the Covid pandemic, served as deputy prime minister and heath secretary under Liz Truss, and was made environment secretary by Rishi Sunak. She left government at the November 2023 reshuffle.  Dr Coffey joined Tim Durrant, Programme Director for Ministers at the Institute for Government, to...

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 unfinished constitutional journey? Set up to address this very question, the cross-party Independent...

A wide-ranging discussion on the key issues facing government – and the economy – as a general election draws near. On the panel: • 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 Government • Giles Wilkes, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government • Joe...

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. On the panel: Stephen Bush, Associate Editor and Columnist at the Financial Times Councillor Georgia Gould, Leader of Camden Council Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng MP, former Chancellor of the Exchequer Nick Davies, Programme Director at...

The IfG was delighted to welcome Rt Hon John Glen MP, Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office, 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 opposition parties prepare for an overnight transition? Which issues do they need to consider...

Earlier this month Lord Maude, who served as Minister for the Cabinet Office from 2010-2015, published his Independent Review of Governance and Accountability in the Civil Service. The comprehensive review saw Maude speak to former and present civil service leaders, minister and ex-ministers, former Prime Ministers, and many civil servants. Maude concludes that “the arrangements for governance and accountability of the civil service are unclear, opaque and incomplete”, and that the centre of...

After Rishi Sunak used the recent Conservative Party Conference to pitch himself as the ‘change’ candidate, the Autumn Statement on 22 November was Jeremy Hunt’s first opportunity to set out the government’s new tax and spending plans. But what the Prime Minister and Chancellor can offer will in part be shaped by the new economic and fiscal forecasts they were given by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), the UK’s independent fiscal watchdog. So, what does the Autumn Statement reveal...

High standards are crucial for maintaining public trust in the police – but in recent years the reputation of the Metropolitan Police has been damaged by a number of scandals. Sir Mark Rowley was appointed as Met Commissioner in September 2022 with a mandate to bring in higher standards of policing, reduce crime rates, and deliver more trust in the Met Police. At this Institute for Government event, the Commissioner set out how he intends to achieve his priorities, including through changes...

Public services were hit hard by the pandemic, which exacerbated existing performance problems and pressures on staff. High inflation and widespread strikes have since caused further disruption. Ahead of the Autumn Statement, this event brought together an expert panel to discuss: • How does public service performance compare to pre-pandemic levels? • How can the government recruit and retain sufficient staff to improve public service performance? • What are the key public service challenges...

Rishi Sunak has until December 2024 to call an election. While the formal starting pistol has yet to be fired, and may not be for at least a year, the long campaign has already begun. Both Sunak and Starmer are presenting themselves as the change candidate and the person to fix a country that – they both argue – is struggling to find its way. Kicking off the Institute's General Election programme, this event reflected on the opening pitches of the two main parties at their recent conferences....

To mark the publication of her new book, The Women Who Made Modern Economics, Rachel Reeves MP sat down with IfG's Chief Economist, Dr Gemma Tetlow.

Twenty-five years after the Scotland Act established the devolved Scottish government and parliament, the future of devolution and Scotland’s place in the Union remain contentious issues. The SNP continues to advocate for Scottish independence. Meanwhile, the UK government has pursued a strategy of ‘muscular unionism’. Scottish Labour has called for a new approach, based on greater cooperation between UK and Scottish governments, and for stronger local government within Scotland. So what does...

Questions about standards in public life have dominated politics in recent years. As Chair of the independent Committee on Standards in Public Life since 2018, Lord Evans KCB DL has been at the heart of these debates, leading the committee’s work to define and uphold ethical standards across the public sector.    As Lord Evans reaches the end of his five-year term, he joined the Institute for Government to reflect on the work of the committee and the UK’s approach to standards in public life...

Baroness Hale, former President of the Supreme Court, joins Dr Hannah White, Director of the Institute for Government, and Professor Michael Kenny, Director of Bennett Institute for Public Policy, University of Cambridge, for an in conversation.   This event was part of the IfG and Bennett Institute's joint conference on the Future of the UK Constitution.