IfG Events

Latest Episodes:

The new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: making a success of the merger Jul 31, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. The merger of DfID and the FCO into the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is one of the biggest shake-ups in UK foreign policy in decades. How will it affect future foreign and development policy, particularly in the world of Coronavirus? What are its implications for the aid budget? And how can the new organisation preserve the strengths of both its predecessor departments?

Tim Durrant, Associate Director at the Institute for Government, welcomes:

Sarah Champion MP, Chair of the International Development Select Committee
James Cowan, CEO of the HALO Trust
Lord Kerr, former Permanent Under Secretary of State of FCO and British Ambassador to the US

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The Media: Covering the Corona Crisis Jul 30, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. How have journalists approached reporting on the Government’s response to Coronavirus? Where does the balance lie between reporting the Government’s message and identifying its failings, potentially undermining its effectiveness? How have journalists coped with the logistics of reporting under lockdown? And what is changing now we are in phase two, with more complicated Government messaging, no routine press conference and the action moving to local rather than national lockdowns?

Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government, welcomes:

Evan Davis, presenter of PM, BBC Radio 4
Kate McCann, Political Correspondent at Sky News
Tom Newton Dunn, presenter and Chief Political Commentator at Times Radio and former Political Editor at The Sun
Jennifer Williams, Politics and Investigations Editor at Manchester Evening News

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Future UK–EU relationship: What do Parliamentarians want? Jul 27, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. Negotiations with the EU are far from over. The UK and the EU may or may not reach a deal by the end of the year, and key issues on state aid and fisheries are yet to be resolved.

Both sides also need to implement the Withdrawal Agreement in full. During the Article 50 negotiations, Parliament played a prominent role in debating – and voting on – the shape of the UK’s exit from the EU. But MPs have largely been cut off from the future relationship negotiations.

Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government, welcomes a distinguished panel to talk about how MPs have tried to influence negotiations on the future relationship – and what they hope to see in the final settlement:

Paul Blomfield MP, Labour Shadow Minister for Brexit and EU
Lord Lilley, Conservative Peer and member of the Lords EU Goods Sub-committee
Lord Ricketts, Chair of the Lords EU Security and Justice Sub-committee
Dr Philippa Whitford, SNP spokesperson for Europe

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Civil Service reform: Getting out of London Jul 25, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. Michael Gove has called for Government decision-makers to be spread across the country, from Mansfield to Middlesbrough to Merthyr Tydfil. He won’t be the first to have tried to move policy makers out of London. So why have past efforts not worked as hoped? What can the Government do differently this time? And will shifting Civil Servants around the country really change decision making? Or is more radical devolution of power required?

Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government, chairs a panel including:

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester
Philip Rycroft, former Permanent Secretary in the Department for Exiting the EU
Lesley-Ann Nash, former Senior Civil Servant at the Cabinet Office
Paul Swinney, Director of Policy and Research at the Centre for Cities

We would like to thank Oracle for kindly sponsoring this event.

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Civil Service reform: Jonathan Slater in conversation Jul 24, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. Jonathan Slater, Permanent Secretary at the Department for Education and Head of the Policy Profession, talks to Bronwen Maddox, Director of the Institute for Government.

We would like to thank Oracle for kindly sponsoring this event.

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Civil Service reform: How to measure success Jul 23, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. How should the Civil Service measure performance – of individuals and of work programmes? What is the role of the Treasury and how can it get better at it? What data does should government be collecting and how can it best use it? Does the Civil Service need to get better at evaluation?

Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist at the Institute for Government, welcomes our panel:

Lord Macpherson, former Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury
Aaron Maniam, Deputy Secretary, Industry and Information at the Ministry of Communications and Information, Singapore
Professor Ngaire Woods, founding Dean of the Blavatnik School of Government
Simon Parker, Director of Strategy for the London Borough of Redbridge

We would like to thank Oracle for kindly sponsoring this event.

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Civil Service reform: Finding and keeping the right people Jul 23, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. How can the Civil Service recruit, retain and reward the right people? What needs to change on pay and opportunities for promotion to reduce staff turnover? What skills and expertise do civil servants need? What type of quantitative skills should the Civil Service develop and where do they need to be deployed? What are the barriers to recruiting and retaining engineers, mathematicians and economists? How do different professions fit in? And what difference would an improvement in recruitment and retention make to the quality of policy advice?

Alex Thomas, Programme Director at the Institute for Government, joins a panel including:

Catherine Baxendale, author of How To Best Attract, Induct And Retain Talent Recruited Into The Senior Civil Service
Edwina Dunn, CEO of Starcount and Commissioner at the Geospatial Commission
Dr Louisa Nolan, Head of Data Science Projects at the Office for National Statistics
Matthew Trimming, Senior Adviser at PUBLIC
Max Tse, Executive Director at the National Audit Office

We would like to thank Oracle for kindly sponsoring this event.

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Civil Service reform: This time is different Jul 23, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. What makes this round of Civil Service reform different from efforts that have gone before? What’s missing from the plans and where is this government getting it wrong? The Government’s targets aren’t new, so why do the same issues keep coming up? How do you actually get the Civil Service to change? And what can government learn from past rounds of Civil Service reform?

Bronwen Maddox, Director of the Institute for Government, welcomes our expert panel:

Baroness Simone Finn, former Special Adviser, and Non-Executive Director at the Cabinet Office
Ravi Gurumurthy, Chief Executive of Nesta
Jane Dudman, Public Leadership Editor for the Guardian
Dame Sue Owen, former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

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Jeremy Hunt MP in conversation Jul 20, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. Former Health and Foreign Secretary JEREMY HUNT talks to Bronwen Maddox, Director of the Institute for Government. From the earliest stages of the Coronavirus pandemic Jeremy Hunt, Chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee, has raised concerns about the Government’s response. What are the global consequences of Coronavirus, what lessons can be learned from other countries, and how they can work together in their response to the pandemic?

Mr Hunt, the UK’s longest-serving Health Secretary and a former Foreign Secretary, sets out the lessons that both Government and the NHS needs to learn, what can be done to prepare for a second wave of COVID-19, and the decision to fold the Department for International Development into the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

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Scrutinising Special Advisors Jul 20, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. Special advisers play an essential role throughout government, but is their role about to change? With the government altering the way that “SPADs” are employed and organised, and the extent to which they report to Number 10, special advisers could find themselves under increased scrutiny.

Tim Durrant, Associate Director at the Institute for Government, welcomes a panel of guests to look at the influence special advisers have over public policy; how their work is scrutinised; and what role their minister plays in holding them to account. The event is part of our wider work looking into the role of special advisers, and evaluating current changes the government is making to their work.

On our panel to discuss these issues are:

Gavin Barwell, former Downing Street Chief of Staff
Rt Hon David Lidington, former Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Polly Mackenzie, Chief Executive of Demos and former Director of Policy to the Deputy Prime Minister
Dr Catherine Haddon, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government

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