IfG Events

Latest Episodes:

How could the UK take a prevention-led approach to healthcare? Oct 02, 2025

Show notes

The Liberal Democrat manifesto committed to keeping people out of hospital by investing in public health and early access to community services. Prevention is also central to the government’s plans for improving healthcare. But meaningfully shifting care from treatment to prevention is easier said than done.

So how could the UK take a prevention-led approach to healthcare?

We discussed at the 2025 Liberal Democrat Party Conference in Bournemouth with an expert panel featuring:

Andrew George MP, Member of the Health and Social Care Select Committee
Jules Payne Chief Executive at HEART UK - The Cholesterol Charity
Rob Thomas, Head of Public Affairs, UK and Ireland at Novartis UK

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

This event was held in partnership with Novartis UK.

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How can local places ensure devolution delivers economic growth? Oct 02, 2025

Show notes

The government’s devolution plans are centred on devolving more powers out of Whitehall into the hands of the local leaders, and giving local places control of key policy areas like skills, transport, and housing. But questions remain about how this will work in practice.

At the 2025 Liberal Democrat Party Conference in Bournemouth we explored the key steps that local places need to take to develop an effective economic strategy.

Our speakers included:

Baroness Pinnock, Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson on Housing, Communities and Local Government
Professor Lisa Collins, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation at the University of Surrey
Councillor Lorna Dupre, Deputy Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council
Rebecca McKee Senior Researcher at the Institute for Government

This event was chaired by Thomas Pope, Deputy Chief Economist at the Institute for Government.

This event was held in partnership with the University of Surrey.

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Boosting trade and unlocking investment in an uncertain world Oct 02, 2025

Show notes

President Trump’s return to the White House has reshaped the world trade order – posing risks, but also offering opportunities, for the UK.

What can be done to make the UK become a more attractive destination for foreign investment? How should the UK deal with the US - and approach its relationship with China? How can the government help UK businesses and will its new industrial and trade strategy help secure the UK’s economic future?

We discussed at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Bournemouth with an expert panel, featuring:

Clive Jones MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson on Trade
Helen Bower-Easton CBE, Director of Communications at the Financial Conduct Authority
Joanna Cound, Global Head of Public Policy at BlackRock UK
Chris Hayward, Policy Chairman at the City of London Corporation
Giles Wilkes, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government

This event was chaired by Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government.

This event was held in partnership with the City of London Corporation.

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Sir Nick Clegg in conversation: Big tech, AI and political conflict Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

The former deputy prime minister, in his only fringe event at this year’s Liberal Democrat conference, spoke to IfG director Hannah White about Keir Starmer’s Donald Trump strategy, Elon Musk’s interventions in British politics, the AI challenge, and how centre left parties can fight back against the rise of populism.

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Navigating a Contested Age: Chiefly Reflections of Admiral Sir Tony Radakin Sep 15, 2025

Show notes

With European nations now spending more on defence than America for the first time since the Second World War, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin explored how the end of the peace dividend is creating new dilemmas for the political class and what this means for the Whitehall machine.

In his first speech since stepping down as head of the armed forces, Admiral Sir Tony, who served four successive prime ministers, reflected on the advent of a third nuclear age, the race to artificial super intelligence and the requirement for grand national strategy to meet the demands of a new more dangerous era.

Following his speech, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin was in conversation with Dr Hannah White, Director and CEO of the Institute for Government.

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Delivering the government’s economic growth mission: What is the role of the industrial strategy? Sep 12, 2025

Show notes

The industrial strategy has emerged after a long gestation, with June’s white paper containing an exhaustive list of policy commitments intended to deliver Labour’s promise to “lay the foundation for a decade of growth”, create hundreds of thousands of clean energy jobs, ensure that every region thrives, and put Britain “at the forefront of the technological revolution”.

The strategy identifies 37 different ‘Frontier Industries’ within the eight growth sectors already set out in the green paper from October 2024, with these sectors treated as enablers of productivity to other parts of the economy – not just as vehicles of growth in themselves. So how can this ambitious idea be delivered successfully?

What combination of market and regulatory reforms can help to deliver this aim? What will be the role of public sector financial institutions like the National Wealth Fund and British Business Bank? What is the role for private finance? Is the government’s push to encourage more pension fund investment in British industry welcome or risky? And with the industrial strategy containing so many goals, industries and policy instruments, has the government taken on more than it can realistically deliver?

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

Sam Lister, Director General for Industrial Strategy at the Department for Business and Trade

Paul Nightingale, Professor of Strategy at the University of Sussex

Karen Northey, Corporate Affairs Director at the Investment Association

Giles Wilkes, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government

This event was chaired by Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government.

This event was kindly supported by the Investment Association.

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From protest to power: How can Reform's locally elected leaders govern effectively? Sep 10, 2025

Show notes

At this year’s local elections, the Reform Party secured outright majorities in 10 local authorities and won two metro mayor contests.

As its local leaders make the transition from opposition to government, what skills will they need to be successful? What are the trade-offs they will have to make? How should they design and deliver policy? And how should they work with the Labour government in Westminster to deliver for voters locally?

Speakers:

Dr Hannah White, Director and CEO of the Institute for Government (chair)

Cllr Linden Kemkaran, Leader of Kent County Council & County Councillor for Maidstone Southeast

Akash Paun, Programme Director (Devolution) at the Institute for Government

Gawain Towler, former Head of Press for Reform UK

This event was an IfG fringe event held at the Reform UK Party Conference 2025 in Birmingham.

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The Freedom of Information Act at 25: What next for freedom of information? Sep 05, 2025

Show notes

The Freedom of Information (FoI) Act – which was passed 25 years ago and came into force five years later – created a legal right for citizens to request information from public authorities. This was a radical shift in the government's approach to information and a significant step towards a more open culture of government.

FoI was designed to generate more transparency and to tackle perceived secrecy in government, and it has been a vital tool for journalists, researchers and private citizens alike. However, some politicians have been critical of the burden that FoI requests create, and there are outstanding questions about how the FoI system can be more effective.

With FoI requests more than tripling since it was introduced in 2005, this IfG event assessed the state of FoI on its double anniversary – and explored, through a series of proposals and an expert panel discussion, how the system can be improved.

To pitch their proposals for the future of Freedom of Information, the IfG was joined by

Jenna Corderoy, Investigative reporter at Democracy for Sale
Dr Louise Crow, Chief Executive of mySociety
Dr Ben Worthy, Lecturer at Birkbeck University

And to discuss the proposals and the FoI system more broadly:

John Edwards, Information Commissioner
Lord Charlie Falconer, Secretary for Constitutional Affairs and Lord Chancellor (2003–07)
Lynn Wyeth, Executive Board Member of the Campaign for Freedom of Information, and Executive Board Member of The National Association of Data Protection and Freedom of Information Officers (NADPO)

The event was chaired by Gavin Freeguard, Associate of the Institute for Government.

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How will Keir Starmer’s No10 reset work? Sep 04, 2025

Show notes

The prime minister has made some big changes in No10. Darren Jones moves from the Treasury to take on the newly-created job of chief secretary to the prime minister. A new executive director of communications has been recruited. Minouche Shafik has been appointed as the PM’s economics adviser. And other eye-catching job changes are taking place.

So what does this all say about how Keir Starmer wants to govern? How will Darren Jones’s role dovetail with chief of staff Morgan McSweeney and Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden? Will these changes really equip the centre of government for a “relentless focus on delivery”? And what Institute for Government recommendations should Starmer now adopt as he weighs up further changes to the centre?

Alex Thomas, Hannah Keenan, Gemma Tetlow and Hannah White explain all in this expert Institute for Briefing.

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IfG DevoLab #1: How devolution can address health inequalities Aug 05, 2025

Show notes

The IfG DevoLab is a new Institute for Government initiative dedicated to exploring the innovations enabled by devolution, learning from the results, and sharing the lessons so that places can take better decisions about how to use devolved powers and budgets.

The first ever IfG DevoLab event saw speakers from three regions set out how the powers and profile of mayors are being used to address health inequalities in their regions.

The three case studies being presented at IfG DevoLab #1 were:

‘Beds for Babies: Safe Space to Sleep’, by Andy Gates, Director of Development, Collaboration and Culture at the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority

‘Taking a health in all policies approach’, by Vicky Hobart, Director of Public Health at the Greater London Authority Group.

‘Working Well’, by Thomas Britton, Principal – Contracted Employment Provision at the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

The three speakers were joined by Peter Babudu, Executive Director of Impact on Urban Health, for a broader discussion of how devolution can improve health outcomes, how the government can support innovation and learning, and whether there is a case for further devolution in this area.

This event, which took place in London and could also be joined online, was chaired by Akash Paun, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.

Insights from this event informed a published policy briefing containing the three case studies and the key lessons for mayors and local leaders.

This event was kindly supported by Impact on Urban Health.

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