

Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government
Institute for Government
The first Labour government in 14 years is facing a daunting to-do list and complex challenges at every turn. Public services are under strain. The civil service is under pressure. And ministers must deliver the government’s missions and milestones. But could Keir Starmer’s plan to “rewire the British state” – through using AI and creating a “start-up” culture – turn these challenges into opportunities?So where is government working well and what is it doing badly? What can be done to make No10, the Treasury and the rest of government function more effectively? What can Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves do to achieve faster economic growth? What will Kemi Badenoch’s Conservatives and the other opposition parties do to hold the government to account? How might Donald Trump shape British politics – and how could the UK’s relations with the EU change in the years ahead?Get behind the scenes in Westminster, Whitehall and beyond on the weekly podcast from Britain’s leading governmental think tank, where we analyse the latest events in politics and explain what they mean. Every week on Inside Briefing, IfG director Hannah White and the team welcomes special guests for a thought-provoking conversation on what makes government work – and how to fix it when it doesn’t.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 5, 2024 • 26min
SpAdcast: What is it really like to be a special adviser? – Ep.4: Moving On
Special Advisers are some of the most important yet misunderstood figures in government. They play vital roles – as the voice of their minister in the department, shaping policy agendas and managing the media. As a new government gets up and running and scores of new SpAds get to grips with their roles, this four part series lifts the lid on what SpAds do, how they do it, and why they’re indispensable to modern government. In this final episode, we look at how SpAd careers end. We start with reshuffles – what’s it like to go through a reshuffle as a SpAd, and how do you find out when one’s about to begin? We also discuss what it’s like to lose one of these jobs and how little notice you really get. Finally, we finish the episode and the series by asking our interviewees to reflect on their time in government. What would they do differently if they had their time again? What are they most proud of? And what advice would they give to future SpAds? Presented by Jack Worlidge. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Aug 2, 2024 • 55min
The Chancellor’s statement of intent
Rachel Reeves has revealed a “£22bn black hole” in the public finances. So do the chancellor’s sums add up and what is her plan for balancing the books? Sonia Khan, a former Treasury special adviser, joins the IfG podcast team to discuss the changing of the ministerial guard at the Treasury and the politics of spending reviews.Talking of spending reviews, is there a better way to go about running them? A new IfG paper has the answers. And is the civil service set up to deliver for a mission-led government? Another new IfG paper reveals 20 ways to overhaul Whitehall.Plus: Braced for Badenoch? Poised for Patel? Time for Tugenhadt? We preview the Conservative leadership contest.Hannah White presents, with Tom Pope and Jack Worlidge. Produced by Candice McKenzie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 29, 2024 • 34min
SpAdcast: What is it really like to be a special adviser? – Ep3: Beyond the department
Special Advisers are some of the most important yet misunderstood figures in government. They play vital roles – as the voice of their minister in the department, shaping policy agendas and managing the media. As a new government gets up and running and scores of new SpAds get to grips with their roles, this four part series lifts the lid on what SpAds do, how they do it, and why they’re indispensable to modern government. In the third episode, we look at how SpAds’ work extends beyond their own departments. Government is complicated, so no-one can do one of these jobs effectively without working with other departments across Whitehall. Most SpAds will be in regular contact with the centre – No10 and the Treasury. So how do those relationships work? How powerful is No10 in reality, and what’s it like to negotiate with the Treasury? SpAds also need to work effectively with other departments, so we discuss the importance of the cross-government SpAd network. Finally, we hear about the importance of maintaining good relations with those outside government – including Parliament, their party, and external stakeholders. Presented by Jack Worlidge. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 26, 2024 • 48min
The Trump vs Harris Showdown
There’s only one story in town – actually, there’s only one story on the planet. And that’s Joe Biden’s decision to pull out of the presidential race – and vice president Kamala Harris’ coronation as the new Democrat candidate to face Donald Trump in November. Mark Landler of the New York Times is back on the podcast to reflect on an absolutely momentous week in US politics, what Biden’s exit means for the presidential race, and what this all means for the UK.PLUS: What is the government’s public service inheritance – and how will public services look by the next general election if the government sticks to its spending plans? A new IfG report has the answers.Hannah White presents, with Alex Thomas and Stuart Hoddinott. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 22, 2024 • 35min
SpAdcast: What is it really like to be a special adviser? – Ep2: Relationships
Special Advisers are some of the most important yet misunderstood figures in government. They play vital roles – as the voice of their minister in the department, shaping policy agendas and managing the media.
As a new government gets up and running and scores of new SpAds get to grips with their roles, this four part series lifts the lid on what SpAds do, how they do it, and why they’re indispensable to modern government.
In the second episode, we’re focusing on how important relationships are to any SpAd’s job. We start by discussing the importance of trust and understanding between SpAds and their secretary of state – how is this relationship built, and why is it so critical? And what about junior ministers – how do SpAds work with them?
The link between SpAds and the civil servants they work with is also vital. We look at their links with both the secretary of state’s and their own private offices, as well as what they thought about the civil service overall, and whether anything frustrated them.Presented by Jack Worlidge. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 19, 2024 • 39min
Britain with the brakes off, America at the abyss
The pace of British politics isn’t slowing down. A big international summit for Keir Starmer. Devastating Covid inquiry headlines. And a King’s Speech full of bills.But all this is nothing compared to the US. President Biden – now isolating with Covid – is under pressure to withdraw from the 2024 race, and his rival Donald Trump survived, by millimetres, an assassination attempt. The FT’s Lucy Fisher hot-foots it from Blenheim Palace to join the podcast team to make sense of big events either side of the Atlantic. Presented by Hannah White, with Alex Thomas and Rosa Hodgkinwww.instituteforgovernment.org.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 16, 2024 • 45min
SpAdcast: What is it really like to be a special adviser? – Ep1: Into government
Special Advisers are some of the most important yet misunderstood figures in government. They play vital roles – as the voice of their minister in the department, shaping policy agendas and managing the media. As a new government gets up and running and scores of new SpAds get to grips with their roles, this special four-part series from the Institute for Government lifts the lid on what SpAds do, how they do it, and why they’re indispensable to modern government. In this first episode, we look at how SpAds are recruited, and how they found their first days in government. What surprised them, and how did they fit into the wider SpAd team in their department? We also ask our interviewees what their day-to-day lives were like in government, how they added value for their ministers, and finally how they dealt with crises. Presented by Jack Worlidge. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 12, 2024 • 44min
Keir and Prison Danger
The New Statesman’s Freddie Hayward joins the Inside Briefing team to reflect on Keir Starmer’s busy first week as prime minister, with the PM appointing new ministers, the government firing off press releases and policy announcements, and Rachel Reeves making her first big speech as chancellor. But Starmer is also facing his first difficult decision: how to deal with a major crisis in prisons. England and Wales are on the brink of running out of cells...Hannah White presents, with Emma Norris, Tom Pope and Cassia Rowland. Produced by Candice McKenzie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jul 5, 2024 • 38min
LIVE: The day after the 2024 general election
We hosted a special livestreamed recording of the Institute for Government podcast, as a team of IfG experts – bleary eyed but full of coffee – gathered in the podcast studio to make sense of a momentous night in British politics.What does the general election result mean for how the UK will be governed? What decisions and duties await the prime minister over the next days and weeks? How are governments formed and what does it mean civil servants? And what are the big challenges facing the government – and how can it meet them?Hannah White and the team shared their instant reaction, expert analysis, and essential insights.Presented by Hannah White with Giles Wilkes, Tim Durrant and Catherine Haddon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jun 28, 2024 • 43min
Sunak’s election gamble: will Starmer hit the jackpot?
We’re into the general election final countdown and all the polls point to a big Labour win for Keir Starmer. So does Rishi Sunak have any aces up his sleeve or has the general election gambling scandal confirmed many Conservatives’ fears that that their leader is a busted flush? The Guardian’s Rafael Behr joins the podcast to look back on the campaign and explore what might happen next for Labour and the Conservatives. Who has had a good campaign and who has had a bad one? The podcast team pick their choices. What is it the last day – and the first day – in government really like? The IfG’s Giles Wilkes and Jack Worlidge, both former government special advisers, give the inside story. PLUS: What are the big barriers to Labour’s clean energy plan and what can Keir Starmer do to knock them down? Presented by Emma Norris. With Gilkes Wilkes, Jack Worlidge and Rosa Hodgkin. Produced by Candice McKenzie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices


