Report

Five steps the government must take to deliver its five missions

This report from UK think tank the Institute for Government

Labour has come to power promising to lead a ‘mission-driven government’ and on the basis of a manifesto that focused on its five national ‘missions’. The party has defined this as working: “towards long-term national goals” with “departments working together rather than in silos. Business working with unions. The private sector working with the public sector. And partnership between national and local government.”

The paper focuses on the immediate steps Keir Starmer and his government should take to begin this work, particularly how to get key institutional architecture right. The government’s missions will not be achieved just by adapting structures and processes. They require bigger changes than that: better empowering public sectors workers, supporting front-line delivery, placing power in the right places and moving to more innovative and iterative ways of working. Perhaps most importantly, bringing a wider range of voices and perspectives into decision making.

But to enable all this, government must first set up structures and processes that will form key foundations to direct activity across government. All of this will be a difficult task, but by implementing our recommendations the government will create the foundations needed at the centre to begin this work of making a reality of missions.