Building More, Building Beautiful
The housing crisis will only be solved if the developers of new homes place more emphasis on design and style to gain the support of existing communities, according to exclusive new polling for Policy Exchange. Building More, Building Beautiful: how design and style can unlock the housing crisis, with a Foreword from Secretary of State for Housing Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP, shows that support for traditional design is highest among lower socioeconomic groups and that Nimbyism can be overcome if plans better reflect people’s desire for traditional building design, like Victorian terraces and Georgian blocks.
The Smart State
The UK should become a global hub for ‘GovTech’, with digital technology offering the chance to transform the relationship between the state and the citizen, and create a more efficient, responsive and innovative state, says a new Policy Exchange report The Smart State.
The State of the Union
The State of the Union is a new paper by renowned historian Professor Arthur Aughey, of Ulster University, in which he says by any comparative international standards, the Union has proved both successful and durable as an arrangement of state. When placed in the broadest international context, the United Kingdom can sometimes look like an oddity. But the Union on which it is predicated is a remarkably enduring constitutional arrangement and a surprisingly cohesive national state.
Monetary policy after the Great Recession – time for the eurozone to grasp the nettle?
Policy Exchange’s Head of Economics – Warwick Lightfoot – argues that the deepening tensions in the eurozone make it all the more important that an exit strategy is developed for countries that no longer fit the model.
Skills will be the focus for education reformers in the coming years
Policy Exchange’s John Blake – himself a former teacher – says that while school reform will continue, recent announcements suggest that skills policy will be the focus of the Department for Education under its new leadership.
Britain’s industry-led space policy “model” has been a resounding success. But can it survive the fierce competition of the new space race?
The UK has made significant progress developing its approach to space, including the passage of the recent Space Bill and announcement of the Space Strategy, argues Policy Exchange’s Senior Research Fellow for Defence Gabriel Elefteriu. Discussing the event held at Policy Exchange to explore these issues, Gabriel argues that more will be required if the UK is to fully take advantage of the opportunities offered by this new frontier.
Will Heaven to join Policy Exchange as Director of Policy
Will Heaven, Managing Editor of The Spectator, will join Policy Exchange as Director of Policy later this summer. He will play a leading role in our domestic research programme, notably on two of our new work streams – Place and Prosperity.
Schools Minster endorses Policy Exchange plan to raise standards while reducing teacher workload
Rt Hon Nick Gibb MP has publically backed the latest education report by Policy Exchange, setting out how standards can continue to be raised in state schools. Completing the Revolution set out how using textbooks produced by respected third-parties like the British Museum can improve the quality of teaching while reducing the time teachers have to spend preparing for lessons. The idea builds upon other school reforms pioneered by Policy Exchange, including free schools and the pupil premium.
Policy Exchange welcomes Hon James Mattis
Policy Exchange was delighted to welcome Hon James Mattis, US Secretary of Defense, to our offices. Secretary Mattis discussed the current global situation, a situation which includes the threats posed by North Korea and a Russia seeking to challenge the territorial integrity of its neighbours. He also spoke of the enduring importance of the UK–US Alliance and of Britain’s continued moral voice on the world stage, as Policy Exchange argued for in The Cost of Doing Nothing. He also praised Policy Exchange’s record of thought leadership in making the case for a Global Britain’s continued commitment to NATO.
Upcoming Events
- Wednesday, 27 June, 2018
11:00 - 12:30
Policy Exchange invites you to a panel discussion on “The importance of the Five Eyes in an era of global insecurity”.
- Thursday, 21 June, 2018
10:00 - 11:30
The UK Climate Change Act went through Parliament 10 years ago with cross-party support – marking a political consensus on climate action that has continued ever since and serving as an international template. Former Labour Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, Conservative Energy Minister Claire Perry, Liberal Democrat energy spokesperson Baroness Featherstone and Climate Change Committee CEO Chris Stark were joined by a packed audience to consider how successive governments have tackled the issue and how to get to net zero carbon emissions.
- Tuesday, 5 June, 2018
8:00 - 9:30
In his valedictory speech as Chief of the Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach reflected on the unprecedented range of threats faced by the United Kingdom and the commitments undertaken by the armed forces around the world. He said he was “deeply uncomfortable” about the prosecution of veterans for their past service, an area of work pioneered by Policy Exchange in The Fog of Law. He called for greater flexibility around armed forces careers and more focus on engineering and modern languages.
