Introduction: The Institute’s Better

1. Introduction: The Institute’s Better Policy Making theme 15

1. Introduction: The Institute’s Better

Policy Making theme This report is one of a collection which brings together research the Institute for Government has conducted under its Better Policy Making theme. There are two main strands: 1. High level reports that set out our approach and summarise our overall findings which include: This report, Policy Making in the Real World, assessing the past and current attempts to improve policy making; and a working paper, System Stewardship, which looks at the role of policy making in an era of decentralised and redistributed power. It also considers whether we have a realistic understanding of what policy is and what level of success it can achieve. 2. A series of Policy Success seminars, which reunite the main players to discuss past policies judged to be successful by members of the Political Studies Association. We have published individual case studies for the reunions held so far, and will bring them together to derive common lessons. These strands are brought together in a separate report, Making Policy Better, which sets out a more resilient process for policy making and recommends how to address systemic problems. Better policy making is clearly linked to the other themes of Institute work – a more effective Whitehall, leadership for government, new models of governance and public services, and parliamentary and political reform. It also develops our earlier work on applying behavioural theory to policy making. 3 The task of improving policy will not be accomplished overnight. In a recent speech, Tony Blair recommended that the Institute should “provide a continual education about the process of policy making”. 4 The Better Policy Making theme marks the start of that process. 3 Michael Hallsworth, et al. MINDSPACE: Influencing Behaviour through Public Policy, Institute for Government and Cabinet Office, 2010. 4 Tony Blair’s speech to the Institute for Government, 28 June 2010, transcript available at: http:www.instituteforgovernment.org.ukpdfstony_blair_addresses_institute_for_government_transcript.pd f 2. Why look at policy making? 16