Much of the political commentariat is currently obsessed with the soap opera of the Labour leadership election. The peculiar dynamics of the contest itself are fascinating. It is easy to forget how quickly we’ve moved from the prospect of a continuity Blairite Labour party to a party reshaped […]
Back in 2011 Nick Clegg famously said: you shouldn’t trust any government, actually including this one. You should not trust government – full stop. The natural inclination of government is to hoard power and information It’s a position embodying impeccable liberal principles. It demonstrates a clear understanding of […]
Today the Conservatives published their long-promised proposals for the replacement of the Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights, although their thunder was stolen somewhat by early publication of the announcement yesterday at Jack of Kent. There has been plenty of speculation about what such a […]
If we were conducting a survey to find the Coalition’s most objectionable and destructive policy then we’d very likely end up with a long list of contenders. Parts of the policy agenda – such as welfare reform, education policy, or the privatisation of NHS delivery – have attracted […]
Today we witnessed a number of important developments, if you happen to be a policy geek. These developments have a substantially different character, and provide students of the policy process with much to chew on. This morning we received news that Chris Grayling has decided to drop his […]
To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice. Magna Carta Any country or Government which wants to proceed towards tyranny starts to undermine legal rights and undermine the law. Margaret Thatcher When Chris Grayling was appointed Lord Chancellor in […]
Quite a few media outlets (for example, here and here) are this morning reporting figures produced by the Department for Work and Pensions that show four out of ten applicants for Employment and Support Allowance failed to qualify for assistance and, hence, are ‘fit to work’. This is […]
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