Incisive commentary from the IfG’s expert team on issues facing government and key ministerial decisions.
From analysis of key political events such as budgets and party conferences to snap responses to unexpected developments such as government reshuffles, our writers set out their views and analyse what government gets right, what it gets wrong, and what it can do better.
Will Boris Johnson’s new chief of staff Steve Barclay be able to get a grip?
It is not yet clear how the prime minister’s new No.10 set-up will help him survive
Targets alone will not solve the NHS backlog
Poorly designed NHS targets could do more harm than good
The government spurns another opportunity to show commitment to transparency
Another opportunity for the government to show leadership on transparency and ethics has gone begging
The government has yet to convince that Brexit benefits outweigh the costs
The government’s ‘Benefits of Brexit’ reads more like a short-term fillip for backbench MPs rather than a long-term plan
The levelling up white paper: welcome ambition but underwhelming policies
The set of policies in the long-awaited levelling up paper fail to meet the scale of the challenge
Lord Agnew is right: Covid support write-offs merit more resources
Debt incurred should be pursued – no matter if the loan was agreed during a crisis.
Government should not use its “Brexit Freedoms” Bill to further sideline parliament
Watering down scrutiny of changes to rights and regulations would be the opposite of parliament ‘taking back control’.
Boris Johnson’s plan for an ‘Office of the Prime Minister’ won’t address Sue Gray’s criticism
A superficial reorganisation of No.10 cannot solve the government’s problems
Sue Gray's report exposes the poor leadership in Johnson's No.10
Boris Johnson must now respond to the accusations of poor leadership set out in Sue Gray's report
New UK intergovernmental structures can work, but only with political will
The opportunity to reset intergovernmental relationships requires a shift in attitudes from all four governments of the UK