IfG Events Institute for Government

AI-generated ‘deepfake’ audio clips of both London mayor Sadiq Khan and leader of the opposition Sir Keir Starmer have circulated on social media. A faked robocall impersonating Joe Biden was sent to voters before a primary election. The number of AI-enhanced images of politicians is increasing.
In a year when over two billion people in more than 50 countries will vote in elections, the use of AI technology – more widely accessible than ever – and disinformation could have a major impact on trust and integrity.
So what can be done to tackle this growing problem? What can political parties, government, media companies and civil society do to mitigate the risks of AI and ensure electoral integrity? And what steps can be taken ahead the elections of 2024 and then in the longer term.
We were joined by an expert panel, including:
• Professor Joe Burton, Professor of International Security in the Department of Politics, Philosophy and Religion at Lancaster University
• Louise Edwards, Director of Regulation and Digital Transformation at the Electoral Commission
• Chris Morris, Chief Executive of Full Fact
• Simon Staffell, Director of Government Affairs at Microsoft
The event was chaired by Jill Rutter, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government.

We would like to thank Lancaster University for kindly supporting this event.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The question of how to reform the House of Lords dominates discussions about the upper house, with less attention focused on its day-to-day activities. Since his election as Lord Speaker in 2021, Lord McFall of Alcluith has sought to champion its important role of revising legislation and advising the government, while ensuring the Lords remains on the path of modernisation.
Lord McFall has focused on parliamentary outreach and prioritised communicating the value of the House of Lords externally, bringing the devolved parliaments and Westminster closer. He has also worked with schools and universities, and launched a podcast, to demystify the upper house. 
What are public perceptions of the upper chamber and how have they changed? How has the Lords changed its ways of working? What kinds of links does it have with the devolved parliaments? And what might all of this mean for discussions about reform of the Lords?
Lord McFall addressed these questions and more in a keynote speech at the Institute for Government, before taking part in a discussion with the IfG’s Director Dr Hannah White and an audience Q&A.
Follow us on X (formerly known as Twitter) @IfGEvents and join the conversation using #lordspeaker.
Lord McFall of Alcluith became Lord Speaker in 2021, having served as senior deputy speaker for five years. He entered the Lords in 2010 after spending 23 years in the Commons as Labour MP for Dumbarton and later West Dumbartonshire. There, he served as a minister in the Northern Ireland Office, a government whip, and chaired the Treasury Select Committee between 2001 and 2010, including during the global financial crisis. Before entering politics, Lord McFall worked for over a decade as a teacher.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Treasury is perhaps the most powerful department in Whitehall. Its ownership of public spending means it has direct control over the money available to the rest of government, while the Treasury’s responsibility for tax policy gives it enormous influence over the finances of households and businesses.
But criticism of the department’s influence on government policy is almost as old as the institution itself, with frequent complaints about the “dead hand of the Treasury” or attacks on the department’s “orthodoxy”.
However, a recent IfG report found many of the fiercest criticisms to be overblown: many simply represent a dislike of a budget constraint. The department plays an important function in effectively managing public spending and guarding against financial disorder. It has also consistently been a champion of economic growth, though there is debate about how that is managed against its responsibility for managing government spending. While the department has clear strengths, there are clearly problems with how it functions. The Treasury often takes a short-term approach, is frequently accused of micromanaging other departments, and wields excessive influence over government policy relative to the rest of the centre.
So how can these problems be addressed? How much are they due to the relative weakness of other departments or the incentives facing Treasury ministers? And just what impact does the Treasury have on government policy making?
Our expert panel exploring these issues and more featured:
• James Bowler CB, Permanent Secretary of HM Treasury
• Anita Charlesworth, Director of Research at the Health Foundation and former Director of Public Spending at HM Treasury
• David Gauke, former Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
• Giles Wilkes, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government and co-author of Treasury orthodoxy, and former No 10 special adviser for industrial strategy
The event was chaired by Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist at the Institute for Government
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fraud is the UK’s most common crime. But despite 3.5 million incidents reported in 2022/23, 40% of all reported crimes, only one in a thousand results in a charge or summons. So why is there such a huge gap between preventing, detecting and prosecuting this crime – and what can be done to fix the problem?
A wide range of organisations have responsibility for tackling fraud, including the Home Office, National Crime Agency, Serious Fraud Office, City of London Police, Metropolitan Police Service, Financial Conduct Authority and the National Cyber Security Centre. However, there are problems with coordination, capacity and capability.
So what can government and others do to help prevent fraud? How can coordination among the various agencies responsible for tackling fraud be improved? And what steps could be taken to help increase detection and prosecution rates?
We were joined by an expert panel, including:
• Francesca Carlesi, CEO of Revolut UK
• Adrian Searle, Director of the National Economic Crime Centre
• Nick Stapleton, Co-Presenter of BBC Scam Interceptors
• Rt Hon Emily Thornberry MP, Shadow Attorney General
The event was chaired by Nick Davies, Programme Director at the Institute for Government
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From tackling low economic growth to addressing regional inequalities, from adapting to climate change to transforming public service performance, UK government is facing substantial and urgent challenges. But without radical reform of the centre of government, whoever wins the next election will repeat the failures of previous administrations. The next prime minister must transform No.10, the Cabinet Office and the Treasury.
On Monday 11 March, The Rt Hon Sir John Major KG CH and The Rt Hon Gordon Brown spoke at the Institute for Government to launch the final report of the Commission on the Centre of Government. It sets out a plan – ambitious but deliverable – for reforming the centre of government.
Over the last year the IfG’s Centre Commission has been speaking to people who have worked at the heart of government in the UK and overseas, to devolved governments, industry and civil society leaders and community leaders. Our conclusion is that the centre of government is not equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Fundamental change is needed – and it cannot wait.
The first part of the event featured opening speeches from Sir John Major and Gordon Brown. This was followed by panel discussion of the core recommendations of the report. For this discussion we were delighted to be joined by:
• Baroness (Louise) Casey, a Commissioner who supported the project, and a crossbench peer and former civil servant
• Lord (Gus) O'Donnell, former Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service
• Sir Anthony Seldon, Deputy Chair of the Commission on the Centre of Government.
The panel was chaired by Dr Hannah White, Director of the Institute for Government and Chair of the Commission on the Centre of Government. This event was supported by a grant from Charities Aid Foundation.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With the general election less than a year away, the Conservatives, Labour and all other political parties are drawing up their manifestos. Scrutinised by the media and voters, manifestos can shape debate, shift the polls, and play a major part in an election campaign – and shape what the winning part does in government.
While manifestos are described as a contract between a party and the people, the reality in government is often quite different. Pledges may prove difficult to deliver in practice, with unforeseen crises and the day-to-day challenges of governing seeing commitments fall by the wayside. In a coalition or minority government, parties may have to compromise.
So how do the parties develop and write their manifestos? What does a good manifesto actually look like? What are the questions that Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer will be considering when signing off on their manifestos? And just how important are manifestos during – and after – a general election campaign?
Joining us to discuss these questions and more were: 
• Andrew Fisher, former Executive Director of Policy for the Labour Party, and author of the 2017 and 2019 Labour manifestos 
• Robert Shrimsley, Chief UK Political Commentator and Executive Editor at the Financial Times
• Rachel Wolf, Founding Partner at Public First, and co-author of the 2019 Conservative manifesto
The event was chaired by Dr Catherine Haddon, Programme Director at the Institute for Government.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices