This weekend the Fabian Society will relocate from its home of over eighty years to new premises. From Monday 17th June 2013 our new mailing address will be: Fabian Society, 61 Petty France, London, SW1H 9EU Please note: during the relocation there may be problems reaching us via telephone or email. If you can’t contact…
Politics can be overflowing with gurus at times. And it’s sometimes hard to tell who might be a flash in the pan rather than the next Beatrice Webb. So it’s worth reflecting on those who have genuinely changed the political landscape, both its narrative and the practical politics that flows from the story they are…
Ed Miliband may have just pulled off the most unexpected trick of all: delivering a populist Labour stance on welfare. New research by the Fabian Society and the charity Crisis published today showed that there is overwhelming public support for a programme to tackle the root causes of housing benefit spending. Not only is this…
David Cameron came to power promising to protect the NHS and also badged his coalition as ‘the greenest government ever’. Both promises have, to a large extent, become a source of ridicule for the coalition. But on both the NHS and on the environment, targets are currently a source of real concern for the prime…
Introduction This short paper, based on data, examines how the marginal constituencies which will decide the next General Election voted in the 2013 local elections. The 2013 elections took place for the most part in the least Labour-inclined parts of England. They were disproportionately southern and rural, and as well as being areas of traditional…
They say that when you know you’re going to die, you don’t remember the deadlines or the car you had, you don’t wish you’d worked harder or saved more or eaten more fibre – you remember the kisses, the long sprawling days in the park with your friends, the people you loved and who loved…
The successes of Nigel Farage and UKIP in the recent local elections have already provoked much analysis. In particular, the three main parties are now engaging in an intensive period of soul searching as they think hard about how best to counter the numbers of voters opting for the anti-establishment, anti-EU party. A central component…
This is a tough time for communities up and down the country and for our politics. Given what people are going through, and the scale of the challenge we face, many wonder whether politicians have the answers any more. This is often fuelled by a feeling that too many decisions are being taken too far…
One of the most persistent myths in British politics is that Labour cannot be trusted with the economy. Following the financial crisis, the coalition parties revived and enhanced this myth with the mantra that Labour’s borrowing caused all our economic woes. Over and over we’ve heard that the previous government borrowed too much; that it…
Rachel Reeves has quickly garnered a reputation as a rising star since her election to parliament in 2010. With government cuts hitting women the hardest, Mary Riddell speaks to the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury’s and finds her response to ‘Osbornomics’ deeply rooted in her family background On arriving at hospital for her 12-week…
The problem we have when talking about welfare reform is that for many years Labour has failed to have a debate with itself about what we believe the welfare state is for and therefore what welfare reform is intended to achieve. Welfare reform has instead become a default term for cutting the welfare budget. If…
In the wake of the Francis Report into the shocking failures at Stafford hospital, it’s not an easy time to talk about Labour’s vision for the NHS. Of course we love the NHS – that is as true as the slogan is simplistic – but to truly be “the party of the NHS”, Labour needs…
Before examining spending choices around social security, we need to decide what we want from the social security system. At Child Poverty Action Group, it’s obvious that we want a system that prevents poverty amongst families with children. In order to achieve this, it’s clear that this needs to be a system that promotes sustainable…
What forms of supply-side reform would do most to boost UK growth over the medium to long term? Bizarrely, much of the recent debate has concentrated on reducing various forms of labour market regulation (procedures for unfair dismissal, health and safety, etc). The evidence base supporting such proposals is remarkably thin. The UK labour market,…
Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt has proposed new regulations under section 75 of the Health and Social Care Act. The Act became law last March after a long and hard-fought campaign, and these regulations (SI 257) are secondary legislation. This means they’re assumed to simply deliver the detail of the original Act and…
RT @sophie_kside: Looking forward to joining @youngfabians in Portcullis House later to discuss solutions to the #CareCrisis RT @steve_race: Thanks to @denmarkinuk and Ambassador Steffenson for hosting the @youngfabians reception with @DMiliband last night - a fantastic event.
RT @v_butler: Great @youngfabians policy commission event on the UK's care crisis tonight https://t.co/dmS4S6fiha @FelicitySlater RT @jhallwood: Should the UK intervene in Syria? If so directly or indirectly? Maybe not at all? Answer @youngfabians poll here: http://t.co/sHe6bWkuDJ RT @tessreidy: @DMiliband great speech last night, good to meet you again @youngfabians @denmarkinuk RT @FelicitySlater: Tonight, @PatrickDiamond1 joins @youngfabians for 'care crisis' policy discussion. Come along! https://t.co/ckPui6jRtH