Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government

Sir Mark Sedwill’s departure as Cabinet Secretary after weeks of sniping has startled Westminster, with many fingers pointing at Dominic Cummings. No Cabinet Secretary has ever been forced out of office like this before, least of all in the middle of a national crisis. What does Sedwill’s resignation mean for reform of the Civil Service? Is the centre of government facing evolution or revolution? And are we seeing the politicisation of the Civil Service? “It’s extraordinary for civil servants to be talking about reform in the middle of a national crisis.” – Cath Haddon Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Cath Haddon and Alex Thomas. Audio production by Robin Leeburn.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There’s a new three-word slogan in town: “Build, build, build.” As the Government unlocks more sectors of public life, Boris Johnson is keen to finally put COVID-19 behind him and get on with governing. But will questions of competence and Cummings continue to cast a pall over the Government’s agenda? Plus: Will the Robert Jenrick affair blow up into an old-fashioned scandal? And is the Brexit extension deadline the real deadline?  “The Government still has some extraordinarily difficult questions on the economy coming up.” – Joe Owen “The idea that ‘If we announce it, it will happen’ has been a big failing of Government in this crisis.” – Jill Rutter Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Joe Owen, Jill Rutter and Raphael Hogarth. Audio production by Alex Rees.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How did the Government end up completely wrong-footed by a footballer in the issue of extending free school meals? Are ministers getting broad enough – and sufficiently independent – scientific advice when it comes to quarantine and the 2m Rule? Will the folding of the “world-beating development agency” DFiD into the Foreign Office mean damage British soft power? And will insourcing probation reverse the “total disaster” of outsourcing?  “The Marcus Rashford episode shows a lack of political antenna in Downing Street.” – Jill Rutter “A government with an 80-strong majority is now being pulled around by its backbenchers.” – Cath Haddon “What we’re seeing now is that the attitude that the private sector is ALWAYS best was wrong.” – Tom Sasse “The Government says it has diversity of thought. But they don’t have a lot of diversity of experience.” – Jill Rutter Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Cath Haddon, Jill Rutter, Tim Durrant and Tom Sasse. Audio production by Alex Rees.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Is the Government running scared of a full public inquiry into the Coronavirus crisis? When and how should it happen and what questions should it ask? And how do you stop a fact-finding investigation from turning into a blame game? Also veteran politics commentator, host of the Rock’n’Roll Politics podcast and author of The Prime Ministers: Lessons of Leadership Steve Richards joins us to discuss the state of the Government’s implementation game. And how should Keir Starmer develop his Parliamentary repertoire to keep Boris Johnson on his toes? “An inexperienced Cabinet chosen largely for its loyalty to Brexit has found itself faced with the biggest crisis since 1945.” – Steve Richards “You’ve got to start learning those lessons now in case we get a second wave in the autumn.” – Cath Haddon “The Government are already paranoid, neurotic about a possible inquiry… I think they’ll try to avoid it.” – Steve Richards “If you’re legally obliged to hand over your emails it changes your calculus as a civil servant.” – Alex Thomas “Governing is wholly different from getting a strong headline in tomorrow’s papers.” – Steve Richards Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Cath Haddon, Emma Norris and Alex Thomas. Audio production by Alex Rees. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump, Facebook, the economy, the Presidential election and the unprecedented tumult in the US following the killing of George Floyd. The New York Times’ London bureau chief MARK LANDLER talks to Bronwen Maddox of the IfG. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The return of Parliament-in-person was met with dismay as disgruntled MPs were forced to conga through Palace of Westminster, and distanced or shielded Members were sidelined. Will remote voting have to return, and are Wales and Scotland doing digital democracy better than England? Rowland Manthorpe, Tech Correspondent from Sky News, joins us to explain.Plus: Is the Government’s slipshod use of data in the COVID fight storing up trouble for the future? And what do the tumultuous events in America mean for democracy in the USA? Mark Landler of the New York Times sets out the enormity of these historic events.  “Not everyone likes technology til they try it… but perhaps we shouldn’t throw it away in a reactionary way.” – Hannah White “The conga of MPs was as long as 89 London buses. That’s hardly social distancing.” – Gavin Freeguard “Compared to the Commons the Lords looks like a go-ahead organisation right now.” – Hannah White Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Hannah White and Gavin Freeguard. Audio production by Alex Rees.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Could the Government ever have controlled the fallout from Dominic Cummings’ breach of COVID travel rules, and is it too late now? Why is Boris Johnson so bound to his key advisor? And with SPADs more centrally vetted than ever, do a majority of No.10 staff owe more personal loyalty to Dominic Cummings than to the Prime Minister? Special guest Tim Montgomerie joins us to discuss a defining week for the Johnson government. Plus: might the UK change its mind on an extension with the EU after all? “Dominic Cummings is a genius – but nobody’s perfect.” – Tim Montgomerie “One surefire way to shut down debate inside government was to say ‘Dom doesn’t like that’. I’ve always feared that the Reign of Terror would lead to a Reign of Error.” – Tim Montgomerie Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Hanna White, Jill Rutter and Georgina Wright. Audio production by Alex Rees.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bonus extended interview: The Trump administration’s response to the COVID emergency has been widely decried as inconsistent and unequal to the enormity of the task. DAN BALZ of the Washington Post tells the IfG’s Bronwen Maddox how decades of “hollowing out” government were compounded by the President’s suspicion of a “Deep State” to produce a crisis in state effectiveness. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the COVID lockdown eases, will the blame land on ministers, scientists, advisers, Public Health England or Number Ten? What can the drama of the Brexit Parliament teach us about running the Palace of Westminster when it reconvenes – physically – for the post-COVID era? A new IfG report digs into the detail. And is America’s chaotic responsive to Coronavirus a result of the hollowing-out of US government institutions? Special guest Dan Balz of the Washington Post explains.  “When there are major communications moments that affect people’s lives, the ‘dipping your toe in the water’ approach doesn’t really work.” – Alex Thomas “The Brexit Parliament really exposed the system’s weakness in dealing with major political problems.” – Joe Marshal Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Alex Thomas and Joe Marshal. Audio production by Alex Rees.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Has the Government lost control of the unlocking narrative? Boris Johnson’s new advice confused much of the country, but how will it translate into real-world rules and regulations? Plus we discuss the new IfG report into the torrid relationship between Government and Civil Service during run-up to Brexit. Did tussles over Brexit damage the relationship between the Executive and and those who put its policies into action? Iain Martin, Times columnist and editor of Reaction, is this week’s special guest.  “Boris is a journalist. He should have remembered a golden rule: Don’t do anything complicated on a Sunday for Monday’s papers…” – Iain Martin  “When you have 27 million tuning into to a Prime Ministerial statement on TV, that’s a new level of engagement for Government.” – Joe Owen Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Gemma Tetlow, Joe Owen and Maddy Thimont-Jack. Audio production by Alex Rees.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices