Admire this from Coffey. Lots of former MPs struggle to find their feet and end up in non-jobs. But this is a serious role which furthers Britain’s interests. She was always unlikely to get it. But fair play on throwing her hat into the ring

Civil service salaries are absolutely too low. But what some of the commentary about specific jobs misses is how junior they are. An HEO is in no practical sense the ‘Poland Country Lead’ - it’s an inflated job title

Civil service pay discourse on the TL? Perfect timing for an updated Institute for Government explainer, using the very latest data. Did you know DSIT's median salary is over £26,000 larger than the Home Office's? More fun facts contained within👇 instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/civi…

This is equally applicable to private office

We should just acknowledge that the student loan system is a graduate tax and be done with it. That way we can design better policy that takes this reality into account.

"The researchers found that 24 of the brain samples, which were collected in early 2024, measured on average about 0.5% plastic by weight." theguardian.com/environment/ar…

One of those short-term ‘cutting the cost of politics’ decisions that new governments often make & then come to regret. Ministers’ time & privacy are crucial commodities. The opportunity cost of sticking a SoS on a cross-country train is not worth it thesun.co.uk/news/30095035/…

This is a fascinating idea.

NEW report today: How can the government meet its housing targets? The latest in our chronic policy problem series - we look at why past governments have failed to meet their targets and 10 principles the government should follow to set a better record. instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/ho…

This is a good report from Institute for Government. Ensuring planning departments have the teams they need and that communities share in the uplift benefits of bringing land forward (I recommend Liam Halligan’s proposals on this in “Home Truths”) will both be particularly important.

Our new report sets out 10 principles for how the government can set a better record on housebuilding - for a quick tour of them take a look at my new comment here 🏘 instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/govern…

Labour made unforced errors but are right to want more outsiders in govt. Me Institute for Government arguing for - CS Commission to know about party affiliation before approving exceptions - PAD roles to be formalised & expanded - CS recruitment to be overhauled bit.ly/3yTeVGV

This should work. A place with natural strengths in the energy sector & existing plans for a DESNZ office. The best outcome would to base an entire UKG net zero campus in the city. If you want to do exciting climate work in government, Aberdeen should be a serious option

+1 for hiring more PADs! ◡̈

NEW: We’ve just launched the IfG Ministers Database as a public resource What’s that, you ask? It’s a record of all ministerial appointments back to 1979 – we use it in research on ministerial churn, gender balance and lots more Check it out here: instituteforgovernment.org.uk/ministers-data…

The Government could save £30m, boost scientific progress and economic productivity by reforming academic publishing. Our latest briefing from Sanjush Dalmia Jonny Coates (jacoates.bsky.social) argues for publishing taxpayer-funded research before going to journals.

Enjoyed this a lot. Interesting that a “distinctive feature of that time in No.10 [was] that we had these people who didn’t really have a specific brief, but could look for opportunities & then push them forward.” Needs to be managed carefully, but govt should do this more!

EVENT: Outside influence: How to build external voices into the centre of government 🗓️ Tuesday 10 September, 13:00 Join us in person or online for this panel discussion with Diana Barran, Sir Ian Cheshire, Neil Heslop, Helen Stephenson, Hannah White instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/external…