A new research report by public service reform think tank Localis shows that NHS and council workers believe private sector involvement in public services has affected the quality of public services and the core values that make up the public service ethos. The report, A New Public Service Ethos, supported by Grant Thornton UK LLP, […]
This note from the Chief Executive is from our November newsletter. You can read the newsletter in full here and register to receive it straight to your inbox on our homepage. I’ve carved out a little niche in the last week or so being an unintentional contrarian on the Troubled Families programme; in so much as I’m prepared […]
To launch the beginning of our new research project on The Making of an Industrial Strategy, Localis research fellow Jack Airey considers the rising numbers of the self-employed workforce, the trend’s regional variations; and how the Government’s emerging Industrial Strategy can help support such workers. The rise of the self-employed From Theresa May’s review of […]
Lessons to be learned from the Troubles Families programme In two articles for LGC and Public Finance, Localis chief executive Liam Booth-Smith writes on the lessons of the Troubled Families programme. A recent National Institute of Economic and Social Research report suggests that the programme has had no measurable effect on school attendance, employment or behaviour. For LGC, he […]
Since voting to leave the European Union, attention has been on the big issues of immigration and trade. However the forthcoming Great Repeal Bill, announced at Conservative Party Conference, will kick start the scrutiny of every line of European law; separating good from bad. Although this dissection won’t attract as much attention as the more […]
Writing for Inside Housing, research fellow Jack Airey outlines the case for national housing policy to be more locally permissive. You can read the piece in full here or below. Almost everyone wants a home of their own. Given the choice to rent or buy, 86% of British people would buy. It provides a financial […]
This note from the Chief Executive is from our October newsletter. You can read the newsletter in full here and register to receive it straight to your inbox on our homepage. Perhaps the silliest aspect of party conferences is the pseudo-psychic attempts at articulating their ‘mood’. How can anyone reduce hundreds of events, thousands of speeches, tens of […]
Commenting on the resignation of Lord Jim O’Neill from the Government, Liam Booth-Smith, Chief Executive of Localis, said: “Lord Jim O’Neill’s resignation from the Treasury is unfortunate as it will undoubtedly raise questions about Theresa May’s commitment to the Northern Powerhouse agenda, but I’d caution against over interpreting what this means. Government has still made […]
In a book review for LGC, Liam Booth-Smith writes on why, in or out of government, the fortunes of localism and the devolution agenda are tied to former chancellor George Osborne. Read the article in full here or below. In his 2012 book, The Austerity Chancellor, Janan Ganesh notes George Osborne was never “taken with localism, […]
Writing for City Metric in support of our new white paper ‘Turning Generation Rent into homeowners‘, Liam Booth-Smith writes on the case for government-backed 100% mortgages. You can read the piece in full here or below. “What ransom will property pay for the security it enjoys?” the Victorian liberal reformer Joseph Chamberlain once asked. When Birmingham’s man […]