The Conservatives take a pounding in the local elections and Labour are taking councils in former Brexit heartlands. But there’s a crumb of Tory comfort in Ben Houchen’s victory in the Tees Valley mayoral election – and Labour fail to take key target Harlow. As results continue to roll in, what do the last votes before the General Election mean for Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer? Plus we are approaching a cliff-edge moment on departmental budgeting… good job there’s an IfG paper for that. Emma Norris, Akash Paun and Ben Paxton are joined by our special guest, political journalist Rache ..read more

Liz Truss is back, with her new book providing journalists with all sorts of extraordinary insights into her retrospective arguments about why her premiership collapsed. But what legacy has Truss left the Conservatives in the polls and what does this tell us about how voters view the party? Polling expert Will Jennings joins the podcast team to take a deep dive into the current state of the polls, how polling works and what the forthcoming election might mean for trust in our politics. Plus: The prime minister’s flagship smoking ban has passed its first parliamentary hurdle, but also exposed s ..read more

Is the Foreign Office still a department built to deliver the UK’s global priorities in the 21st century or is it out of date in the way it looks and works? Is David Cameron’s comeback as foreign secretary turning out to be a surprise success and what has it meant for the UK’s diplomatic clout? And just how complicated is the civil job of servants when they are asked to work on controversial government foreign policy – particularly when it relates to military action or weapons sales. Former ambassador and No10 adviser Tom Fletcher, the co-author of new headline-making report into the future of ..read more

A weak No.10 Downing Street compulsively micro-manages. The Cabinet Office is bloated and unwieldy. The Treasury dominates decision-making. And prime ministers often find that the levers of power aren’t working. So what is going wrong with the centre of government? What can be done to fix it? And, as a general election approaches, what difference would a re-designed centre mean for either Rishi Sunak or Keir Starmer? A new Institute for Government report – the result of a year-long commission on the centre of government – has examined the problem and come up with some radical recommendations f ..read more

The Spectator’s Isabel Hardman joins the IfG podcast team to discuss Conservative party plots – and weigh up just how much trouble Rishi Sunak is in. Rachel Reeves has been making headlines with a major speech on the economy. So what did the shadow chancellor say, and does Labour have a plausible plan? Plus: Who wants to be a member of a men-only private members’ club? Hannah White presents, with Jill Rutter and Giles Wilkes. Produced by Candice McKenzie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices ..read more

A general election is getting closer – and whoever forms the next government needs to be prepared. The campaign will dominate time and resources, but the job of being in government begins almost as soon as the votes have been counted. Preparing for Power, a special six-part series from the Institute for Government, takes you behind the scenes to find out how our politicians, their advisers and officials block out the noise of a general election campaign to get ready for what comes next. Episode 6 explores the first days, weeks and months of a new government. What is like to be at a prime minis ..read more

A weak No.10 Downing Street compulsively micro-manages. The Cabinet Office is bloated and unwieldy. The Treasury dominates decision-making. And prime ministers often find that the levers of power aren’t working. So what is going wrong with the centre of government? What can be done to fix it? And, as a general election approaches, what difference would a re-designed centre mean for either Rishi Sunak or Keir Starmer? A new Institute for Government report – the result of a year-long commission on the centre of government – has examined the problem and come up with some radical recommendations f ..read more

Jeremy Hunt’s budget was a massive day in Westminster – and a big moment for the country. But what difference did it really make to the government’s fortunes – and to people’s pockets? Straight after crunching the numbers, studying the forecasts and making sense – or trying to – of the chancellor’s statement, the IfG public finances team gathered in the studio to record a special livestreamed episode of Inside Briefing.  What have we learned from the chancellor’s big announcements and what choices did he make? What did the new OBR forecasts show about the UK’s economic prospects ..read more

A general election is getting closer – and whoever forms the next government needs to be prepared. The campaign will dominate time and resources, but the job of being in government begins almost as soon as the votes have been counted. Preparing for Power, a special six-part series from the Institute for Government, takes you behind the scenes to find out how our politicians, their advisers and officials block out the noise of a general election campaign to get ready for what follows once the votes are counted. Episode 5 explores the role that manifestos play in – and after – an election campai ..read more

Tom Baldwin joins the Inside Briefing team on the day his long-awaited biography of Keir Starmer is published. So what does the book reveal about the man who wants to be the next prime minister? How did Starmer’s upbringing – and his complicated relationship with his father – shape the politician he became? Do the book’s revelations give us a sense of what will define the general election showdown between Starmer and Rishi Sunak? And can political biographies affect how people think about politicians – and will this one answer the questions ask about the Labour leader? Plus: Lee Anderson is ma ..read more