Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government - TopPodcast.com

View Top 200 Chart

Back to Rankings Page

Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government — Government
Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government

The first Labour government in 14 years is facing a daunting to-do list and complex challenges at every turn. Public services are under strain. The civil service is under pressure. And ministers must deliver the government’s missions and milestones. But could Keir Starmer’s plan to “rewire the British state” – through using AI and creating a “start-up” culture – turn these challenges into opportunities?
So where is government working well and what is it doing badly? What can be done to make No10, the Treasury and the rest of government function more effectively? What can Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves do to achieve faster economic growth? What will Kemi Badenoch’s Conservatives and the other opposition parties do to hold the government to account? How might Donald Trump shape British politics – and how could the UK’s relations with the EU change in the years ahead?
Get behind the scenes in Westminster, Whitehall and beyond on the weekly podcast from Britain’s leading governmental think tank, where we analyse the latest events in politics and explain what they mean. Every week on Inside Briefing, IfG director Hannah White and the team welcomes special guests for a thought-provoking conversation on what makes government work – and how to fix it when it doesn’t.

Copyright: © Institute for Government

Latest Episodes:

COVID: Why won’t the Government learn? Jan 29, 2021

Show notes

If now is not the time to learn lessons from the COVID crisis, when is? We’re joined by writer, broadcaster and host of the Rock’n’Roll Politics podcast Steve Richards to discuss No.10’s painful learning curve and ask if Boris Johnson’s promised public inquiry ever actually happen. Plus, what have the extraordinary 12 months we’ve just lived through meant for the efficacy of government? The latest edition of the IfG’s annual Whitehall Monitor has all the answers.

“The lessons, frankly, are obvious even if Boris Johnson repeatedly refuses to learn them.” – Steve Richards
“This is a government that finds it hard to admit mistakes… They say ‘we’ll do the right thing at the right time’ without ever admitting when the right time is.” – Tom Sasse
“Boris Johnson doesn’t do context or consequences. He didn’t do consequences as a journalist and it’s a really serious flaw.” – Steve Richards
“Even if you can’t start an inquiry in the middle of a crisis, there’s merit in getting the ball rolling fast – because these things take a vast amount of time.” – Emma Norris
“The Prime Minister seems incapable of learning lessons. The same mistakes are repeated over and over.” – Steve Richards

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Emma Norris, Sarah Nickson, Tim Durrant and Tom Sasse. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Director’s Annual Lecture 2021 Jan 28, 2021

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event

The Institute for Government hosted the annual lecture by Bronwen Maddox, its director.

In her speech, Bronwen looked at the government’s performance in the extraordinary circumstances of 2020 and what 2021 might bring.

Her discussion was followed by a response from Professor David Runciman and the event was chaired by Sir Richard Lambert.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

No.10’s Command and Control Problem – plus Biden and Britain Jan 22, 2021

Show notes

What’s the reality of No.10’s control over government? Is our supposedly superpowered centre really strong enough to command all the organs of state? Do we have too many generalists and too few specialists, and do we even need Special Advisors? Nick Timothy, Theresa May’s former Chief of Staff, joins us to look at the dismal science of “deliverology”. Plus, what will Joe Biden’s arrival mean for Britain? And what was it like dealing with Donald Trump from within No.10?

“I mainly spend my time thinking ‘Thank God I’m not advising a Prime Minister right now’…” – Nick Timothy
“For a highly centralised state, we have a surprisingly weak centre of government.” – Alex Thomas
“Downing Street was a bit like a sleeping drunk at a party. You’d be going about your life but periodically Downing Street would wake up and start shouting. Then you’ve have to put all your energies into getting them back to sleep.” – Nick Timothy
“It’s a real problem that Cabinet doesn’t sit down and set out collective objectives… If you’ve got 570 priorities then you don’t have any.” – Jill Rutter
“Special Advisors can be all-powerful or nothing at all. They can practically run a department or be a bag-carrier – or try to run a department with the abilities of a bag-carrier. I’d scrap them altogether.” – Nick Timothy
“Donald Trump was a terrible President to deal with but even he didn’t manage to ruin the UK-US relationship.” – Nick Timothy

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Alex Thomas and Jill Rutter. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Backlogs and Burnout: Will the NHS buckle? Jan 15, 2021

Show notes

COVID is on the verge of overwhelming the NHS but Britain is at least vaccinating faster than almost any other country. Almost a year since the first lockdown, is the Government’s pandemic response gaining any traction yet? And how did the Government come to OK the “abysmal” food parcels distributed to families in need? Plus, will local, national and mayoral elections actually go ahead this year? And the science of “deliverology”. Kate Proctor, political editor at PoliticsHome.com, is this week’s special guest.

“The new year is showing all the signs of being every bit as chaotic as 2020.” – Kate Proctor
“Local elections are a verdict on how people feel about a government. So only year after a General Election, Boris Johnson will probably be very happy to avoid them.” – Kate Proctor
“Nicola Sturgeon believes that elections in Scotland will help her mandate for another independence referendum – so she’ll be pushing hard for them to go ahead.” – Kate Proctor

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Alex Thomas, Tim Durrant, Akash Pau and Nick Davies. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

America’s Day of Chaos Jan 08, 2021

Show notes

The insurrectionary riot in Washington DC has shocked the world. What does it tell us about the fragility of democracies who come up against leaders who reject the rules, fire up popular anger, and trash the institutions that hold up the system? Plus, with the Government still on the back foot over COVID, will the vaccine roll-out lead to some semblance of normality for Britain? And what might 2021 hold for the UK (because everyone’s predictions for 2020 were so accurate, weren’t they)? Paul Goodman, editor of Conservative Home, is our special guest.

“Johnson has pulled off the trick of harnessing the popular anger that’s sweeping the world to a tried and tested political agenda.” – Paul Goodman
“The Government seems to be continually taken by surprise by events that seem inevitable to others” – Jill Rutter
“There are only two or three ministers who have real experience of running departments. And those who do, Boris Johnson has consigned to the backbenches.” – Paul Goodman
“Boris Johnson’s approach comes down to who spoke to him last and how they spoke to him.” – Cath Haddon
“Boris Johnson’s government very much had to mind its Ps and Qs with regard to Trump. But now Trump’s going they’ve got no reason to give him a fond farewell.” – Paul Goodman

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Cath Haddon and Tom Sasse. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

IFG LIVE SPECIAL The Brexit deal: An IfG briefing Dec 28, 2020

Show notes

A special cross-post from our IFG LIVE feed. The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement was published on Christmas Eve, just a week before the transition period was due to end. So what does the deal mean for the UK – and for its relationship with the EU? What will change for businesses? How will data be shared? Will the EU and the UK continue to work closely on security issues? How was the contentious issue of fishing finally sorted? And what does ‘taking back control’ really mean in practice?

The Institute for Government Brexit team assembles for a special Brexit deal podcast to make sense of what has been agreed and what will happen on January 1. Hear Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government, in conversation with Maddy Thimont Jack (Associate Director), James Kane (Associate), Georgina Wright (Associate), and Joe Marshall (Senior Researcher). Audio production by Candice McKenzie. #IfGBrexit

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Outsourcing the Death Star: What fiction and fantasy can teach us about government Dec 24, 2020

Show notes

We’ve all had quite enough reality for one year. In an IfG Christmas special, we ask what fictional and fantasy worlds can teach us about governing. What does the collapse of the Republic in Star Wars tell us about Brexit? Does the Harry Potter universe need drastic democratic reform? In the real world, who nails life in government better: Borgen or The West Wing? And where’s the Public Inquiry into the murder epidemic in Midsomer? James Graham – our greatest political playwright and the pen behind This House, Quiz and Brexit: The Uncivil War – is our guest for this special holiday edition.

“Dramas like The West Wing let you take an institution like the Presidency and stress-test it in a fictional environment… You get to enjoy the absurdities in a safe place.”– James Graham
“What does Obi-Wan Kenobi tell Anakin? ‘Only the Sith deal in extremes’. Star Wars is a love letter to social democracy and George Lucas is the ultimate centrist dad.” – James Graham
“Midsomer badly needs a place-based approach to crime prevention.” – Alice Lilly
“The Death Star? That’s no moon, that’s a failed Government mega-project.” – Gavin Freeguard
“The Thick Of It essentially predicted the Big Society with its ‘Fourth Sector Pathfinders’.” – Emma Norris

Presented by Cath Haddon with Alice Lilly, Emma Norris and Gavin Freeguard. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Year The World Stood Still: 2020 In Review Dec 21, 2020

Show notes

From Barnard Castle to Brussels, from Wuhan to the White House, it has been a year of unprecedented challenges, impossible choices, huge governmental gambles and astonishing mis-steps. Will 2020 prove to be a wild aberration or a turning point for the business of British government? Our crack team of analysts returns from the (virtual) IfG Christmas Party to discuss the successes and failures of a year of crisis, from the pandemic emergency measures to the reform of the Civil service to, yes, Brexit.

“We’ve seen a Prime Minister who struggles to rise to the enormity of what he’s faced with.” – Jill Rutter
“The Government’s communications have been so poor that they obscured many of their own successes.” – Alex Thomas
“There is a growing narrative about Keir Starmer sitting on the fence. Labour need to address that next year” – Maddy Thimont-Jack
“A hard rain fell on a lot of civil servants before it fell on Dominic Cummings himself.” – Bronwen Maddox
“Boris Johnson’s optimism has led him into a cycle of overpromising and under-delivering.” – Jill Rutter
“To say the peak has passed and you can go out, and then see ANOTHER peak… that could be a blow that a government might not recover from.” – Alex Thomas

Hosted by Bronwen Maddox with Jill Rutter, Alex Thomas and Maddy Thimont-Jack. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

So Here It Is, Mini Christmas Dec 18, 2020

Show notes

Can Boris Johnson get the country to stick to his plans for a Compact Christmas – or has he already blown the comms challenge? What has a year of lockdown and surveillance done to Britain’s liberal instincts? Plus, with the Brexit saga at least reaching the end of the beginning, how can Britain build a robust industrial strategy for the future without just throwing money about? Ed Conway, economics editor at Sky News and Times columnist, is this week’s special guest.

“Whatever happens with Brexit, we’re really going to need our Christmas to deal with what’s coming up next year.” – Ed Conway
“The mixed messages are too much for the public to take. You can’t say ‘go outside’ one day and ‘stay inside’ the next.” – Giles Wilkes
“Everyone wants everyone else to be restricted, but not themselves…” – Cath Haddon
“If these industrial tools for government weren’t a good idea last time, why would they be a good idea this time?” – Giles Wilkes
“Trying to impose policies that nobody is going to follow is a question of realpolitik and I don’t envy anyone making that decision.” – Ed Conway
“Politicians like to point at things and say ‘We should be better at that!’ But they seldom answer the question of how.” – Giles Wilkes

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Cath Haddon and Giles Wilkes. Audio production by Alex Rees

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

BONUS: What does a Biden presidency mean for the UK? Dec 12, 2020

Show notes

This is an audio recording of an IfG Live Event. Joe Biden is set to become the 46th US president. How will he deal with Coronavirus and the economy? What are his priorities internationally, and will he restore the US’s role in alliances? And what about the trade deal the UK wants so much, and relations with Boris Johnson, dubbed “Britain Trump” by the current occupant of the White House?

On our panel to discuss these questions are:

Dan Balz, Chief Correspondent for the Washington Post
Elizabeth Dibble, Chief Operating Officer at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and former Deputy Chief of Mission at the US embassy in London
Emily Tamkin, US Editor for the New Statesman
Sir Paul Tucker, Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School and former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England

The event is chaired by Sir Richard Lambert, Board member of the Institute for Government and former Editor of the Financial Times.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Related Podcasts