• The formal campaign is nearly over but what happens next matters more

    The formal campaign is nearly over but what happens next matters more

    As the General Election comes to a close, the speculation on what happens next is starting to seem much more important than what has been going on for the last six weeks. We have seen, as I have been arguing through these election blogs, at least three different campaign. From the media’s point of view…

  • Why we are missing out on a genuine political conversation?

    Why we are missing out on a genuine political conversation?

    Over the past two weeks I have had the opportunity to sit and listen to ‘real’ people talk about their hopes and aspirations as well as their anxieties and fears. Their voices, as opposed to those which we hear on the news or indeed those that we engage in at conferences or workshops, provide a…

  • Why changing how public services are run and financed is off the agenda

    Why changing how public services are run and financed is off the agenda

    How public services are funded and how they are run have been two central questions to dominate news and political conversations. The scale of problems associated with the NHS, from the crisis in A&E to the scandals revealed in the Francis Report in Staffordshire, have all been about money and staffing. And yet, as the…

  • Why the public realm still matters

    Why the public realm still matters

     The idea of the ‘public realm’ is one which is unlikely to grab everyone’s attention. But it captures an important set of ideas and they are ones we tend to take for granted. At its heart is the simple proposition that the health of a good society can be seen through its commitment to shared…

  • Why listening to what is said is as important as what is not said: Policy lesson one

    Why listening to what is said is as important as what is not said: Policy lesson one

    In the UK back in 2010 whilst the recurring theme was that the then Labour Government had been responsible for the financial crash all the mainstream parties agreed that austerity was a necessary pre-condition for getting the economy straight. Looking back over the past five years, one of the things which is striking is how consistent…