IfG Events

Latest Episodes:

What role can prevention play in boosting public service productivity? Nov 21, 2024

Show notes

The new government has put prevention at the heart of public service reform plans. So what difference could this approach make? By intervening sooner, problems may not escalate, become embedded, or arise in the first place – meaning preventative services could be a major contributor to public sector productivity.

With spending likely to be tight over the coming years, the theory behind an "invest to save" scheme is clear – but in practice it has been hard to implement, and cashable savings have often proved elusive.

This event brought together a panel of experts to discuss:

Is it realistic to expect preventative programmes to deliver cashable savings?
How quickly could a shift towards a more preventative approach improve public service productivity?
What are the respective roles of the centre of government, departments, and frontline services in delivering this shift and realising productivity improvements?
How can additional investments be made in prevention when acute demand is high and spending tight?

To discuss these questions and more, our panel included:

Dr Thomas Waite, Deputy Chief Medical Officer
Cllr Gillian Ford, Deputy Leader of Havering Council, Cabinet Member for Adults and Health
Daniel Sperrin, Partner at Newton
Moira Wallace, former Permanent Secretary

The event was chaired by Nick Davies, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.

We would like to thank Newton for kindly supporting this event.

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What kind of reform does the NHS need? Nov 19, 2024

Show notes

The Labour government has inherited an NHS in crisis. Pre-existing challenges of growing demand, an ageing population, and high levels of staff vacancies have been exacerbated by the pandemic, resulting in record backlogs and waiting times.

With substantial increases in hospital funding and staffing failing to turn performance round, the new government must help the NHS through the immediate crisis, set it on a sustainable long-term footing and consider the need for more fundamental reform.

Should the NHS focus more on preventing, rather than treating, illness? Could the NHS become more local? Are the new Integrated Care Systems working or should they be reformed? How successful have past NHS reforms been?

To answer these questions and more we were joined by an expert panel, including:

Paul Corrigan, Expert adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care
Penny Dash, Chair of NHS North West London Integrated Care Board
Rachel Wolf, Founding Partner at Public First
Thomas Cawston, Corporate Affairs Lead at Novartis UK

The event was chaired by Nick Davies, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.

This event was kindly supported by Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK.

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In conversation with Lord Blunkett Nov 15, 2024

Show notes

David Blunkett was one of the most reforming ministers of the New Labour government. The former home secretary, education secretary and work and pensions secretary has led major government departments, attempted to drive through public service reform, and seen what prime ministers need to do to drive through change. So what does he make of Keir Starmer’s plans for reform? How does he rate this Labour government’s efforts so far? And what are his lessons – and warnings – for the prime ministers and his team?

Lord Blunkett explored all these questions and more in a fascinating ‘in conversation’ event with Emma Norris, Deputy Director of the Institute for Government.

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Funding public services: What do spending plans mean for performance? Nov 15, 2024

Show notes

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A view from the opposition: What should the Conservative Party’s vision for public services be? Nov 14, 2024

Show notes

Dissatisfaction with public services was a key reason for the Conservative defeat in the general election. How can the new party leader and frontbench regain public trust for running public services? What are the key elements of a distinctive Conservative vision for public services? How should the Conservative Party balance demands for higher public service spending and lower taxation?

Steve Brine, former Chair of Health and Social Care Committee
Rt Hon David Gauke,former Secretary of State for Justice
Rt Hon Baroness Nicky Morgan,former Secretary of State for Education

This session was chaired by Nick Davies, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.

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The criminal justice system: Is there a way to fix it? Nov 14, 2024

Show notes

The new government faces an extremely challenging inheritance in the criminal justice system. How can trust in the police and charging rates be improved? How can criminal court backlogs be tackled? How can government improve conditions and capacity in prisons? How can individual criminal justice services work together more effectively? And does the new government have a plan to address these challenges?

Dr Karen Schucan Bird, Associate Professor at the UCL Social Research Institute
Penelope Gibbs, Director of Transform Justice
Lord Timpson OBE, Minister of State for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending

This session was chaired by Cassia Rowland, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Government.

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Reform or repair? What next for health and social care? Nov 13, 2024

Show notes

How can NHS backlogs be tackled and waiting times improved? What are the prospects for adult social care reform in this parliament? How can government ensure health and care services have sufficient workforces? Do health and care services have sufficient funding and is existing funding used effectively? To what extent can and should health services focus more on prevention? And to what extent do the government’s proposals address these challenges?

Dr Becks Fisher, Director of Research and Policy at Nuffield Trust
Professor Naomi Fulop, Professor of Health Care Organisation and Management at the UCL Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care
Preet Gill MP, former Shadow Minister for Primary Care and Public Health
Dame Una O'Brien, former Permanent Secretary in the Department of Health

This session was chaired by Stuart Hoddinott, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Government.

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Lessons from the rise and fall of the Department for International Development Oct 29, 2024

Show notes

From its creation in 1997 to its merger with the Foreign Office in 2020, the Department for International Development (DfID) managed nearly £200 billion in total and played a global leadership role in reducing poverty. While DfID also had to deal with high-profile failures and public criticism, sustained political support from Labour, coalition and Conservative governments helped the department to achieve a record of delivery during its 23-year existence.

A new book, The Rise and Fall of the Department for International Development, will be published in October. Sir Mark Lowcock, the book's co-author with Ranil Dissanayake, joined an expert panel at the Institute for Government to discuss what we can learn from DfID's history, with a particular focus on building the institution, how to maintain civil service capability, targeting resources and developing ways to measure value for money – with essential lessons for the new Labour government and what other departments can learn from DfID's focus on delivery.

Joining Sir Mark Lowcock on the panel were:

Sarah Champion MP, Chair of the International Development Select Committee

Andrew Mitchell MP, Shadow Foreign Secretary and former Secretary of State for International Development

The panel was chaired by Alex Thomas, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.

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How can the government effectively roll out EV charging infrastructure? Oct 23, 2024

Show notes

The government has promised to restore the target to phase out the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030. The zero emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate also requires that 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in Great Britain will have to be zero emission by 2030. However, car makers have expressed concerns about their ability to hit these targets without further support, and the sale of electric vehicles (EVs) is lagging behind the government target. So what are the barriers to EV uptake?

Charging infrastructure is one reason consumers hesitate to make the switch, with a lack of on-street charging, bottlenecks with motorway charging, as well as concerns about price differential and different rates of VAT for on- and off-street parking. More also needs to be done to ensure the electricity network can cope with demand, and that charge points can be easily and cheaply connected to the grid.

So what could be done to accelerate the rollout of EV charging infrastructure? How does the new government plan to address these challenges? And where in the country are these problems most acute?

To discuss these questions and more, our panel included:

Lilian Greenwood MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for Future of Roads)

Rosa Hodgkin, Researcher at the Institute for Government

Ian Howells, Executive Vice President of Honda Motor Europe

Bharat Pathania, Head of New Technologies at Midlands Connect

This event was chaired by Nehal Davison, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.

We would like to thank Honda for kindly supporting this event.

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Wes Streeting MP in conversation with Hannah White Oct 18, 2024

Show notes

Wes Streeting, the health secretary, joined IfG director Hannah White for fascinating and wide-ranging discussion on his role and priorities, the challenges facing the health service, and how the government plans to turn around performance levels in the NHS.

This joint IfG/New Statesman event was recorded at the Labour party conference in Liverpool.

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