Category Archives: Top500

This pandemic has highlighted the need and opportunity for a radical rethink of health and social care. The NHS is 75 years old but the demands placed upon it are way beyond anything foreseen at its creation . It is not integrated with social care which is fragmented and under resourced. The demands for resourcesContinue reading “A reformed system of health and social care for the 21st century”

With the pandemic has come an age of remote working and remote possibilities. With many employers not requiring office space until later this year or indeed never this presents a unique opportunity to repurpose the building for good causes. Councils could seize this opportunity to solve other crises such as homelessness. This can be aContinue reading “Unused office buildings can be repurposed for good causes”

I will present two challenges and two opportunities that have resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. Together they create the ideal conditions for a policy initiative that will profoundly enrich the lives of children around the country, re-forge the bonds of local communities, and provide engaging and fulfilling employments to millions. One dramatic effect of COVID-19Continue reading “Two post-COVID opportunities and challenges”

Citizenship is a privilege (or a right with responsibilities). The membership fee is taxation. If we are all in it, we should all pay. Some non Doms flew here during lockdown and are overstaying. The USA is already doing this.     1085-1

I believe we have a ‚’once in a lifetime‚’ opportunity to reset the health and wellbeing agenda by switching the focus to wellness ‚’ staying well, maintaining optimum health ‚’ and this being the prime responsibility of the individual, though with encouragement and indeed incentivisation from the state. For many years now, we‚’ve not hadContinue reading “An opportunity to create a paradigm shift towards individual responsibility for health/wellness”

One of the economic consequences of the pandemic has been an increase in homelessness and rough sleeping (Streetlink reports a 76% increase in rough sleeping in London).Homelessness results in degradation,despair and dramatically reduced life expectancy.The average age of death for a rough sleeper is 47 compared to 77 for the population as a whole. AccordingContinue reading “Increased rough sleeping and increased litter as a result of the pandemic”

In July 2020, the Foreign Secretary and the National Cyber Security Centre publicly condemned the Russian Intelligence Services for attempting to steal COVID-19 vaccine research and development from organisations in the UK and elsewhere. This announcement highlighted two intertwined challenges: firstly, the continued threat of espionage through the modern domain of cyber. Secondly is theContinue reading “Malicious cyber activity directed against the UK during COVID-19 and an opportunity to strengthen defences.”

One of the perennial challenges of government is coordination across services. In areas such as child welfare you may have central government, local government, health, education, police, fire brigade and social services all involved across the policy and delivery space. Not to mention the involvement of the charity, private and voluntary sectors. There have beenContinue reading “How do we capture and build on the opportunities for breaking out of organisational silos?”

A little like the rocks being exposed at low tide, if there is one issue that COVID-19 has revealed and highlighted, it is the extent to which isolation has spread into many elements of our society and the damage it is doing to the nation‚’ s health, particularly its mental health. The challenge is toContinue reading “The Development of Bespoke Flexible Housing Aimed Specifically at Reducing Social Isolation.”

The UK policy response to covid19 – and that of many other countries too – has been characterized by a siloing of epidemiological and economic advice; and also with the economic component kept private and away from scrutiny. SAGE forecasts and deliberations excluded economics [eg tendency of people to respond to risk] and economists. HMT/OBR/BoEContinue reading “To join up epidemiological and economic public policy analysis and advice”