Reports
How the government can design better asylum policy
This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government puts forward recommendations to help the government set a clear direction and a coherent asylum strategy. The government must exert its authority over the whole asylum system and avoid short-sighted measures aimed at conjuring an illusion of control. This report puts forward recommendations to help...
Present tense
This report from UK think tank Localis assesses the current state of local government financial governance and sustainability to ask what the case for reform might be. In English local government, the ‘golden triangle ‘of chief executive, monitoring officer and chief finance officer – who exercise their leadership responsibilities to own and champion good governance...
How to set up a public body
This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government sets out how government can set up public bodies better. As government priorities change, particularly after a general election, there is often a need to set up new institutions to deliver on those priorities. Public bodies can be well placed to do this. If set...
Why a circular economy is good for business
This report from UK think tank Green Alliance outlines five reasons why a circular economy is good for business. In a circular economy materials are kept in use for as long as possible, reducing the need for new resources and minimising environmental impacts from extraction to disposal. This approach not only benefits the environment but...
Carefully, compassionately
This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation looks at how we can learn from Canadian mistakes to ensure assisted dying can be safe. Objectors to assisted dying policy often cite Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) programme to exemplify the danger of doing so, including concerns about due process and eligibility. The...
Judge Dread
This report from UK think tank the Adam Smith Institute looks at how lawfare undermines business confidence in the UK. A new report by the Adam Smith Institute (ASI) outlines how the expansion of class action lawsuits is undermining trust in the UK’s business and legal environment. This increase in class action access and third-party...
Local growth plans
This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government lays out the steps the government should take to make local growth plans as effective as possible. The government has recognised the role metro mayors across England will have in realising its mission to increase growth across the country. It has asked local leaders to...
The British entrepreneur
This report from UK think tank Onward looks at how startups can put Britain back in business. Britain can unlock a new generation of entrepreneurs and inspire growth among small businesses with major reforms to tax, regulations and lending. Too many small British businesses are unable to grow, leaving the country reliant on 1% of...
Taking responsibility
This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation looks at how the government can improve enforcement of farmed animal welfare laws. Most Britons eat meat, but consumers increasingly care about where it comes from. In this report, we set out to understand how farmed animal welfare standards are enforced, and how that enforcement...
Principles for state approaches to commercial cyber intrusion capabilities
This report from UK think tank Chatham House looks at navigating the policy challenges of cyber intrusion markets. The rapid growth of markets in which cyber intrusion capabilities can be bought and sold as products and services by states, companies and criminals raises thorny policy challenges that are not adequately addressed by existing concepts of...
Fiscally responsible
This report from UK think tank the Social Market Foundation examines the case for reforming remote gaming duty. Online casino gaming is currently undertaxed by the UK - compared to other sectors and other countries. Ahead of the Autumn Budget 2024, this report makes the case for increasing the tax on online casino gaming, and...
New values
This report from UK think tank Localis calls on councils to make use of the new Procurement Act to drive social prosperity. In the context of an evolving public procurement landscape, local authorities in England are grappling with multiple challenges and opportunities. An increasing strategic turn in procurement is being reflected by legislative reforms, notably...
Plain dealing revisited
This report from UK think tank Localis looks at planning for flood resilience. In autumn 2021, Localis published ‘Plain Dealing – building for flood resilience’. The study took for its context the sense that development on flood risk areas sits at the intersection of the housing and climate crises. In the three years since publication...
Tackling judicial bribery and procurement fraud in Nigeria
This report from UK think tank Chatham House looks at how harnessing public disapproval can enable collective action against corruption. Nigeria’s corruption challenges are central to the country’s struggles with insecurity, inequality and inadequate provision of public goods and services. Tackling corrupt activities is made more difficult by their interdependence. The misappropriation of public funds...
Prescription for prevention
This report from UK think tank Reform sets out a new vision for primary care. 90 per cent of daily NHS activity happens in general practice and the community. If the primary care model is no longer fit for purpose, it weakens the foundations of the entire system and undermines the longstanding ambition to move...