Bright Blue

Bright Blue is an independent think tank for liberal conservatism. The Daily Telegraph has called us “The modernising wing of the Tory party” and the influential Conservative Home website has described us as “A deep intellectual gene pool for the Conservative Party’s future”.

Our work is guided by five research themes: energy and the environment; human rights and discrimination; integrated Britain; social reform; and ageing society. Bright Blue was shortlisted for the 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 UK social policy think tank of the year and UK environment and energy think tank of the year in the prestigious Prospect Magazine annual awards.

A respected voice in policy debates, Bright Blue has recently seen a number of policies adopted by the UK Government: recently, for example, we have successfully campaigned for the introduction of a low-carbon obligation for the UK’s gas network; making the breach of a Domestic Abuse Protection Order (DAPO) a criminal offence; extending Tier 5 Youth Mobility visas to more countries; increasing the period of time international students can stay in the UK on a Tier 4 visa after their course has completed; the ONS asking a voluntary question about gender identity in the Census from 2021; the appointment of a Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion and Belief; new major R&D funding for cleaner and greener aviation; the increase in the salary threshold for the repayment of student loans; the cutting of Stamp Duty for nearly all first-time buyers; reforming rural payments after Britain leaves the EU Common Agricultural Policy so farmers are subsidised for environmental benefits or cost of living, rather than the intensity of the land farmed; the cutting of the initial 7-day way before people become eligible to claim Universal Credit; and the introduction of a new, legal net-zero emissions target in the UK by 2050 at the latest.