We live in a world where big ideas are disdained. The term ‘ideologue’ is hurled as abuse, and mainstream politicians … Continue reading “Review of ‘More Human’ by Steve Hilton”

The Economist, 11 April 2020 – Continued from part 1 (healthcare) – Up until 2016, the UK was one of the … Continue reading “An article from an unlikely future. Part 2: Decentralisation”

No major political party is interested in a radical decentralisation of power. The Conservatives, in particular, are scarred by their … Continue reading “Radically decentralising power to town halls may pay UK growth dividend”

‘Decentralisation. Decentralisation. Decentralisation’. It doesn’t have the same ring to it as Tony Blair’s ‘Education’ mantra, but there’s a significant … Continue reading “Decentralisation of government is desirable, but not sufficient for economic liberty”

Airport expansion is almost always unpopular among local residents. It is possible to build whole political careers on anti-airport sentiments, … Continue reading “Noisy tax havens: how to make airport expansion popular”

Apparently unaware of Ed Miliband’s recent announcements that a Labour government would cut the Housing Benefit bill by building more … Continue reading “Proper localism or proper centralism: a house divided cannot stand”

Every government retreats on some issue or other eventually, realising that the political cost outweighs the benefit. But for this … Continue reading “The planning reform that wasn’t: the coalition surrenders to the NIMBYs”

Several authors of this blog have welcomed the idea of the ‘Big Society’, as long as it stands for an … Continue reading “The Big Society and big government must not be mixed up”

Local government is arguably one of the fundamental institutions of a free society. It ensures that local people have a … Continue reading “Fiscal autonomy is the key to localism”