Why cutting the deficit is about people as well as numbers
28th May 2010Cutting the deficit is perhaps the biggest challenge facing the new coalition government.
The current debate has focused on the numbers, but cutting spending will also require government to act very differently. Going with the grain of how people behave could make the process of cutting less painful and more effective.
In an article in this week’s Civil Service World (PDF, 335KB), Institute for Government senior researcher Michael Hallsworth discusses behavioural economics, one of the most intriguing new tools that policy makers can draw on.
By applying the Institute’s new MINDSPACE framework, Michael outlines new strategies to motivate civil servants – and the public – to support the fiscal consolidation.
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