IfG DevoLab

IfG DevoLab #1: How devolution can address health inequalities

This event is part of the Institute for Government's Conservative Party Conference 2025 fringe programme.

Speakers:

Baroness Barran MBE, Shadow Minister for Education
Dr Kieran Mullan MP, Shadow Minister for Justice
Cllr Abi Brown OBE, Deputy Leader of the Local Government Association Conservative Group

This event was chaired by Nick Davies, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.


How should the Conservative Party rethink its vision for public services?

This event is part of the Institute for Government's Conservative Party Conference 2025 fringe programme.

Speakers:

Mayor Paul Bristow, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
Professor Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Manchester
Cllr Louise McKinlay, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Communities, Economic Growth and Prosperity at Essex County Council

This event was chaired by Akash Paun, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.


How can mayors improve skills and productivity to drive regional growth?

This event is part of the Institute for Government's Conservative Party Conference 2025 fringe programme.

Speakers:

Rt Hon Lord Willetts, Chair of the Regulatory Innovation Office and former Minister for Universities and Science
Helen Bower-Easton CBE, Director of Communications at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
Professor Nigel Brandon OBE, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Professor of Sustainable Development in Energy at Imperial College London
Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government
Giles Wilkes, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government

This event was chaired by Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist at the Institute for Government.

This event was held in partnership with Imperial College London.

Industrial strategy, tariffs and global trade: Is the government's strategy working?

Local government reorganisation and public service delivery

IfG DevoLab #2 How can mayors and strategic authorities secure investment into regional economies EDIT

Productivity Pitches #8: Spreading innovation across public services

As well as the election of a new government, the last year has seen the appointment of a new cabinet secretary and eight new permanent secretaries to lead departments.  

How will this new leadership cohort change the civil service? What should they prioritise as they get to grips with their new departments? And how can they build the most talented teams to deliver the government’s priorities?

To explore these questions, with a particular focus on the Civil Service Commission’s role in recruiting senior leaders and developing the talent pipeline, the IfG was delighted to be joined for a panel discussion on civil service leadership and change by:

Atul Devani, Civil Service Commissioner and entrepreneur
John-Paul Marks CB, First Permanent Secretary and Chief Executive of HM Revenue and Customs
Baroness Gisela Stuart, First Civil Service Commissioner 
Baroness Stuart spoke briefly to consider the opportunities and challenges for the civil service. She spoke to the Commission’s strategic priorities for 2025–27.  

The event was chaired by Alex Thomas, Programme Director at the Institute for Government. 

Leadership change in the civil service: How can new permanent secretaries deliver for government?

The IfG DevoLab is a new initiative from the Institute for Government dedicated to exploring the innovations enabled by devolution, learning from the results, and sharing the lessons so that places can take better decisions about how to use devolved powers and budgets.  

On 6 November, the IfG hosted its third IfG DevoLab event in Leeds, at which speakers from three regions set out how the powers and profile of mayors are being used to improve transport connectivity within and between their regions. 

The three case studies presented at IfG DevoLab #3 were:

‘Improving transport connectivity in West Yorkshire’, by Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, Leader of Bradford City Council and Chair of the West Yorkshire Transport Committee
‘Connecting Liverpool City Region through Merseyrail’, by Huw Jenkins, Lead Officer - Transport Policy at Liverpool City Region Combined Authority
‘Mayoral partnerships with Great British Railways’ by Richard Crabtree, Head of Mayoral Partnerships at Shadow Great British Railways 
The three speakers were joined by Tom Bridges, UK Government Business Leader at Arup, for a broader discussion of how devolution can improve transport connectivity, how the government can support innovation and learning, and whether there is a case for further devolution in this area.

This event was chaired by Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government. 

Insights from this discussion will inform a published policy briefing containing the three case studies and a synthesis of key lessons.

We would like to thank Arup for kindly supporting this event.

We are also grateful to our strategic partner L&G for its wider support of the IfG DevoLab series. 

IfG DevoLab #3: How devolution can improve transport connectivity

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IfG DevoLab #2 How can mayors and strategic authorities secure investment into regional economies EDIT

Institute for Government

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