Let’s talk about how NHS spends our money
Increased funding for the NHS is one thing, making sure the NHS uses it’s resources wisely is another, writes Robert Colvile in The Times 18 June 2018. Following the government’s annoucement of a roughly 3.4% funding increase and CPS analysis showing the NHS tends to spend less efficiently when giving more funding, Robert Colvile urges… View Article
The sorry state of the NHS debate
The current state of debate on the NHS isn’t far off a sketch from the 1987 Spitting Image Election Special, Neil Kinnock and Roy Hattersley stand up in a car in a town centre, brandish a red megaphone, and proceed to shout “nurses!” repeatedly to the assembled crowd, writes James Heywood, Senior Researcher at the CPS, in… View Article
The EU negotiation. First, let’s use the velvet glove. But if that doesn’t work, the iron fist
“Britain needs to stop kicking the can down the road – because when the road runs out, the Commission has a cage ready for us”, writes Alex Morton for Conservative Home, Wednesday 13 June. Morton, CPS’ Head of Policy, writes following the government’s apparent agreement to allowing Parliament to have a final vote on the… View Article
Unions should reform to appeal to modern workers
Unions like the RMT set themselves against the public when the oppose reform – alienating modern workers, writes Emma Barr in City A.M. Debate column, Tuesday 5 June. Instead of seeking solutions for the modern workplace, unions are too focused on “hard-left Corbynite ideology” and as a result are becoming less relevant to workers. Click here to read the… View Article
Don’t review spending before first reviewing government – and how it doesn’t work
Austerity has failed because it was “the wrong goal”, writes Alex Morton, CPS Head of Policy, in his column for ConservativeHome. Reform of public services, and government itself, should be the focus of “the burden on taxpayers could be reduced and outcomes for government programmes improved”. Alex points to recent CPS analysis which shows increases in NHS funding tend… View Article
Our railways need the same revolution we had in air fares says CPS Research Fellow
“Chris Grayling’s decision to renationalise the East Coast Main Line franchise is thoroughly depressing”, writes Tony Lodge, CPS Research Fellow, in The Times, Thursday 24 May. Lodge, who has written several reports on rail improvement for the Centre for Policy Studies, proposes an “aviation-style solution” with companies bidding for slots on the timetable rather than monopolising services for an entire… View Article
Meet The Conservative Think-Tanks Hoping To Reboot The Tories
“You can’t move in SW1 without finding a new think-tank,” Michael Gove remarked at the launch of ‘New Blue’, the latest essay collection from the Centre for Policy Studies. Owen Bennett, Deputy Political Editor at the Huffington Post, has cat his eye around SW1 and provided “all you need to know about the centre-right’s ‘ideas factories’“…. View Article
CPS Director testifies before Lords Committee on internet regulation
Robert Colvile, Director of the Centre for Policy Studies, testified before the House of Lords Communications Committee on the subject of internet regulation. Robert, who was a journalist specialising in technology prior to joining the Centre for Policy Studies and is the author of “The Great Acceleration: How the World is Getting Faster, Faster”, spoke… View Article
Ruth Davidson – I’m afraid the crash generation just doesn’t trust the Tories
The Conservatives need to be “less shy” about their values if they are to win over younger voters, writes Ruth Davidson in The Guardian, Friday 18 May. Writing following the publication of CPS/YouGov polling showing almost half of 18 to 24-year olds say they wouldn’t consider voting Tory at the next general election, Davidson offers… View Article
The Sun asks would these five Tory plans win back young voters from Jeremy Corbyn?
The Sun reported that “the Tories have launched an all-out assault to win back the hearts and minds of Britain’s youth” and highlights five policies from a recent CPS publication, on Thursday 17 May. The article highlights proposals including better targetting of pensioner benefits, a digital revolution in the NHS, and on the spot fines… View Article
Gove urges Tories to move away from Venezuela attack lines
Michael Gove urges Conservatives to move away from attacking Corbyn on Venezuela, reports the Steerpike blog. Gove told the audience at the CPS event that the party could no longer “recapture the arguments of the 1980s…capitalism has changed”. Click here to read the full piece on The Spectator website. Michael Gove was speaking at the launch of ‘New Blue:… View Article
Universities need a helping hand with mental health
Despite good progress on mental health issues in recent years there is still more to be done and universities are a key partner, writes Emma Revell. In her essay for CPS publication ‘New Blue’, Helen Whately MP highlights a “toxic mix of circumstances that can make students at university especially vulnerable to mental health crises”…. View Article
Best days of your life? For too many students university is lonely, and deadly
University can be “stressful, lonely and unhappy” for many students and a series of tragic suicide highlight the “urgent need for better mental health support in universities”, writes Helen Whately MP for The Times Red Box, Wednesday 16 May. In her piece, Helen sets out proposals to support universities including asking the Office for Students… View Article
Are you angry with the Lords? Don’t abolish or elect it. Here’s a better reform
As the House of Lords continues to flex its muscles over Brexit, the debate should be about reform, not abolition or election, writes Alex Morton in his regular ConHome column. Alex argues that an elected second chamber would leave to a “struggle for legitimacy” between the two houses and “greater chaos” while dispensing with a… View Article
‘Stop Going On About Venezuela’ Gove Tells Tories Who Want To Win Young Voters
Michael Gove warned that the younger generation are broadly “suspicious towards capitalism” and the Conservative Party should listen to their concerns, reports the Huffington Post, Tuesday 15 May. In a speech at the launch of ‘New Blue: Ideas for a New Generation’, an essay collection published by the Centre for Policy Studies and aimed issues that matter to younger… View Article
Michael Gove warns Tories need to move on from Margaret Thatcher
Michael Gove urged Tories to remake the argument for capitalism, reports The Telegraph, Tuesday 15 May. Speaking at the launch of ‘New Blue: Ideas for a New Generation’, Gove suggested young voters accosiated capitalism with “an economic system that seems to make the rich richer, and the poor poorer” and it was up to the Conservative… View Article
