Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government artwork

Government · Institute for Government

Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government

by Institute for Government

The first Labour government in 14 years is facing a daunting to-do list and complex challenges at every turn. Public services are under strain. The civil service is under pressure. And ministers must deliver the government’s missions and milestones. But could Keir Starmer’s plan to “rewire the British state” – through using AI and creating a “start-up” culture – turn these challenges into opportunities? So where is government working well and what is it doing badly? What can be done to make No10, the Treasury and the rest of government function more effectively? What can Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves do to achieve faster economic growth? What will Kemi Badenoch’s Conservatives and the other opposition parties do to hold the government to account? How might Donald Trump shape British politics – and how could the UK’s relations with the EU change in the years ahead? Get behind the scenes in Westminster, Whitehall and beyond on the weekly podcast from Britain’s leading governmental think tank, where we analyse the latest events in politics and explain what they mean. Every week on Inside Briefing, IfG director Hannah White and the team welcomes special guests for a thought-provoking conversation on what makes government work – and how to fix it when it doesn’t.

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

Mersey Mersey Me: Will Burnham pass his Labour conference test?

From meeting Donald Trump in New York to heading to his first Labour conference as prime minister, it's quite some week for Andy Burnham - so what does he need to do to m

Sep 25
47 min

The 72 million pound questions

With Westminster been rocked by the news of a record-breaking – and maybe game-changing – £72 million donation to Reform UK, new Lib Dem peer Tim Leunig joins the podcast

Sep 18
40 min

Is Ed Miliband rethinking UK foreign policy? 

Foreign secretary Ed Miliband has announced UK sanctions on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. So what does this change of position say about UK foreign polic

Sep 10
34 min

Burnham down the House - the new PM's Parliamentary debut

The summer recess is over. Parliament is up and running. And the new prime minister gave a mammoth statement in the Commons. There were no new policy announcements, but t

Sep 3
45 min

Totally Rewired - Can Burnham really do government differently?

Andy Burnham has clocked up a month mark in Number 10. As the long recess draws to a close and Parliament prepares to return, the Guardian's Kiran Stacey joining the podc

Aug 28
57 min

Mid-term prime ministers – Episode 3: Adjusting to the role

Every new prime minister arrives in No.10 with a view about what brought down their predecessor as well as a ringside seat to the downfall. So after convincing their coll

Aug 20
36 min

Mid-term prime ministers – Episode 2: The Transition

Becoming prime minister is a job like no other. The arrival of Andy Burnham is the latest in the UK’s recent history of prime ministers coming to the job mid-way through

Aug 13
40 min

Mid-term prime ministers – Episode 1: Preparing for change

Our first episode explores the recent history of mid-term changes of prime minister from John Major to Rishi Sunak. Speaking to senior officials and advisers involved, we

Aug 6
38 min

Andy Burnham: How is the new prime minister changing the direction of government?

One week on from becoming prime minister, Andy Burnham has now appointed his cabinet, reshuffled ministers, launched a series of machinery of government changes, and set

Jul 30
48 min

He wants to be adored – Burnham’s people-pleasing policy debut

Andy Burnham finally takes over No.10 with promises to focus on the cost of living and to make politics better. Can he succeed? Is he the ruthless leader portended by his

Jul 24
43 min

Full Time for Starmer: Can Burnham Find a Way to Win?

Keir Starmer has bowed out of his final PMQs. Andy Burnham is about to become Britain's next prime minister. But after two turbulent years in Downing Street, what went wr

Jul 17
48 min

Burnham, Binface and Starmer's final flight 

Reform UK may have dominated the headlines this week, but Westminster's attention is already turning to a far bigger political moment: the arrival of Britain's next prime

Jul 9
39 min

Northern Soul: Burnham's Manchester No10 plan 

The King of the North says he will remain - for some of the time - in his kingdom, but how will Andy Burnham's vision for a devolution circuit breaker - powered by a new

Jul 2
44 min

Brexit at 10: A decade of drama, deals and disruption

A decade after the UK voted to leave the EU, the IfG's Jill Rutter and UKICE's Anand Menon are joined by the BBC's Adam Fleming - the former Brussels correspondent and Br

Jun 29
53 min

What does Andy Burnham really stand for?

Keir Starmer has resigned. Andy Burnham is preparing for power. But what will a mid-parliament change of prime minister mean for the government? How should an incoming p

Jun 24
42 min

Burnham v Starmer: The King of the North heads South

As Andy Burnham returns to Parliament after winning the Makerfield by election, the Guardian's Rafael Behr joins the podcast team to discuss a huge week for British polit

Jun 19
44 min

The way you Makerfield

There is just a week to go until the people of Makerfield vote in what could turn out to be the most important by election in decades. More in Common's Luke Tryl joins th

Jun 12
32 min

Protests, politics and the killing of Henry Nowak

With the murder of 18 year old Henry Nowak sending shockwaves through Westminster and beyond, IfG senior fellow - and former BBC home affairs correspondent - Danny Shaw j

Jun 4
42 min

The Blair Necessities 

With a promise to abolish the position of Cabinet Secretary and scrap the Cabinet Office, Reform UK’s Danny Kruger has launched his party’s plans for reforming the civil

May 28
52 min

May 2026 elections: what are the implications for local government reorganisation?

How has England’s political landscape changed after the May 2026 elections? How will new local leaders go about their new roles? And what does this mean for the delivery

May 22
50 min

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