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From mad cows to herd immunity: the moral and political pitfalls of scientific uncertainty in epidemiological crises
Modern governments have tended to rely heavily on a ‘follow the science’ response to epidemiological threats. However, epidemics are moments of both scientific uncertainty and social crisis. This poses challenges for determining fair and effective policies. Using historical examples, Adam Wright show how scientific advice is often narrowly defined and indeterminate during epidemics and why…
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The British Welfare Citizen: Past, Present and Future
What should the rights and balancing duties of the modern welfare citizen be? Steven King looks at the longer history of welfare policy and how it may inform current debates on the matter.
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The Business of Sustainability in the Nineteenth Century
Little did Gro Harlem Brundtland know that her 1987 UN report, ‘Our Common Future’, would spawn a whole new industry: that of sustainability. Yet the roots of sustainable business, and its cousins, ESG, DEI and other non-financial measures of impact, go back not just decades but centuries. We explore how the innocence of Victorian entrepreneurs…
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How can it be anything but political?: Keir Starmer and an ‘island of strangers’
On Monday 12 May, Keir Starmer announced his government’s plans to reform the immigration system, tightening rules on who may reside in the UK. Although quickly denying any political incentive, the timing of this announcement and his use of language are all too reminiscent of future policies that Reform UK under Nigel Farage are offering.…
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Why Reeves and Kendall’s Welfare Budget Cuts are doomed to fail
Steven King looks both ahead and to the past when considering Rachel Reeves and Liz Kendall’s plans for welfare budget cuts. Why are such plans always doomed to fail?
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What can Keir Starmer’s Labour learn from New Labour? Part Two
In the concluding episode of this two-part series, Steven King and Glen O’Hara discuss what can Keir Starmer learn New Labour.
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What can Keir Starmer’s Labour learn from New Labour? Part One
Steven King and Glen O’Hara discuss what lessons Keir Starmer might learn from the last time Labour was in government.
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Roundtable: Britain’s Sicknote Culture
In this episode, first recorded in September 2024, Steven King and Cat Gower are joined by historians Dr Geoff Monks and Dr Carol Beardmore to discuss Britain’s ‘Sicknote Culture’. Is it merely the media’s latest fixation or is it symptomatic of something bigger? Be sure to subscribe to the Policy Factory podcast wherever you listen…
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Steven King discusses Fraudulent Lives: Imagining Welfare Cheats from the Poor Law to the Present
In this episode recorded in September 2024 Steven King and Cat Gower discuss King’s latest book, Fraudulent Lives: Imagining Welfare Cheats from the Poor Law to the Present (Montreal, 2024) and how his research into Britain’s past welfare systems has shaped his thoughts on directions for future welfare policy provision. Listen on Substack and Apple Podcasts. For…