The sixty-fifth Strand Group event launched a new paper for King’s College London and the Harvard Kennedy School’s Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government.
The article argues that the emergence of Canary Wharf was far from inevitable; in fact, it seemed almost inconceivable in the buildup to its announcement.
Former shadow chancellor Ed Balls is a Professor of Political Economy. Working with the Strand Group he continues to build on the teaching he has been doing as visiting professor since 2015.
Professor Jon Davis OBE is Director of the Strand Group at King’s College London. His research and work focuses on the contemporary history of British central government.
This innovative new module, in partnership with the Cabinet Office, focuses on the evolution of the British Civil Service and how its role has developed alongside the changing role of the state. World wars, the creation of the welfare state, as well as technological, economic and societal change has carved new functions and expectations of what government is there to do.
The Conservative Years is a brand-new module, building on the successful approach of ‘New Labour in Government’, and bringing its focus into even more ultra-contemporary historical study.
The module considers the New Labour governments from a historical perspective, tracing changes and themes across the thirteen years of Tony Blair’s and Gordon Brown’s premierships, using the rigour of the historical method. Special attention is given to the memoirs and diaries of the central protagonists, and a high-profile range of guests allow students to truly interrogate their sources face-to-face.
‘Chancellors and the Treasury: Managing the British Economy’ is the result of a unique collaboration between His Majesty’s Treasury the Policy Institute at King’s and the Strand Group. It studies the role and actions of the Treasury and its Chancellors since the Second World War up to the present day, through the context of the British economy.
The Programme is specially designed with student career paths in mind. We will focus on improving student knowledge, attributes and skills so alumni can flourish in a variety of roles.
The MA in Government Studies has a strong social mobility focus, with places provided on the programme from businesses such as Amazon Web Services and others.
Our fusion of academia and real-world expertise has been the cornerstone of the Policy Institute’s approach and the Strand Group’s success for over three decades.
At the sixty-first Strand Group event, in partnership with the Edward Heath Charitable Foundation, Michael Heseltine gave a speech on: ‘Memories of government – and of Britain’s membership of the EU.’ Kenneth Clarke was the respondent.
The sixtieth Strand Group event took place at King’s College London on Wednesday 1 March at 18.30. Professor Tony Travers gave a lecture on ‘London at a crossroads? The city’s government, economy and place within the UK.’
The fifty-eighth Strand Group event where the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Sarah Healey gave a lecture on ‘The Future Challenges for Digital Policy Making.’
The fifty-seventh Strand Group event took place on the 1 November in Edinburgh where the former Permanent Secretary of the HM Treasury, Lord Macpherson gave a lecture on ‘Treasury orthodoxy: fact or fiction?’
We bring together figures from government, business, journalism and academia to shed light on the economy, defence, intelligence, foreign affairs, the public sector and the machinery of government.
At the fifty-sixth Strand Group event the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Sarah Healey gave a lecture on ‘The History of Digital Policy Making’.
In this special episode of the Strand Group podcast, Sir Tony Blair answered our students’ questions on liberal intervention, the history of the Labour Party, how to deliver in government & more. With expert analysis from Dr Michelle Clement and John Rentoul.
In the third episode of The Strand Group Podcast we speak to the Chief Executive of the Centre for London, Dr Nick Bowes, Lecturer in London Studies at King’s College London, Dr Jack Brown and the Leader of the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, Cllr Elizabeth Campbell.
In the first episode of The Strand Group Podcast we speak to Professor Jon Davis, the Director of the Strand Group and John Rentoul, the Independent’s chief political commentator.
Ed Balls (King’s College London Professor & winner of the BBC’s Celebrity Best Home Cook), Angela Hartnett (Restaurateur and TV chef) & Rachel Johnson (Journalist and finalist on BBC’s Celebrity Best Home Cook) discussed their lives in food, family & politics.
Jack Brown untangles the complex strands of anti-London rhetoric and feeling, separating hyperbole and emotion from fact and examining why successive governments have failed to redress the balance. The result is a passionate but fair analysis of a centuries-old struggle, and a vision of a future in which nation loves capital once more.
Liz Mermin (director of episode 2), and series consultants Prof. Jon Davis and John Rentoul were joined by Ed Balls to discuss the making of the recent BBC 2 series.
The fifty-first Strand Group event, held in conjunction with the Bank of England and the King’s Business School. Sir Dave Ramsden gave a speech entitled: ‘Navigating the economy through the Covid crisis’
The fiftieth Strand Group event, held in conjunction with Haus Publishing, took place on Tuesday 27th April.
Dr Jack Brown, author of ‘The London Problem: What Britain Gets Wrong About Its Capital City’, discussed his new book with Catherine McGuinness, Policy Chair at City of London Corporation as respondent.
The forty-ninth Strand Group event, held in conjunction with Allen Lane, took place on Thursday 22nd April. Sir Michael Barber, author of ‘Accomplishment: How to Achieve Ambitious and Challenging Things’, discussed his new book in conversation with the Rt Hon Tony Blair and King’s lecturer and researcher on reform and delivery in government, Dr Michelle Clement.
The forty-eighth Strand Group event launching a new paper for the Harvard Kennedy School’s Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government took place on Tuesday 23rd February.
The forty-seventh Strand Group event, held in conjunction with William Collins, took place on Thursday 11th of February. Suzanne Heywood, author of ‘What Does Jeremy Think? Jeremy Heywood and the Making of Modern Britain’, discussed her new book in conversation with Professor Ed Balls, followed by a Q&A.
The forty-sixth Strand Group took place on the 19 January when Iain Dale editor of ‘The Prime Ministers: 55 Leaders, 55 Authors, 300 Years of History’, discussed this new book alongside contributing authors Sir Anthony Seldon, Rachel Sylvester and Dr Jack Brown.
London’s Mayor at 20 combines expert opinion with reflections from those closely involved in setting up, running and working in the mayor’s office. Featuring a foreword by Tony Blair, who played a crucial role in the establishment of the mayoralty, and including interviews with Ken Livingstone and Sadiq Khan, this comprehensive analysis seeks to investigate how the government of London has developed and what the future holds for this modern metropolis.
The forty-fifth Strand Group event took place on Wednesday 25th of November when Lord Moore of Etchingham discussed the the thirtieth anniversary of Margaret Thatcher’s downfall as Prime Minister. This session also marked the paperback publication of Lord Moore’s “Margaret Thatcher: The Authorised Biography – Volume Three: Herself Alone.”
The forty-fourth Strand Group event took place on Tuesday 17th of November when King’s College London Visiting Professor Lord Adonis delivered the Roy Jenkins Centenary Lecture.
King’s College London Visiting Professor Ciaran Martin gave his inaugural Strand Group lecture on the subject: ‘Cyber weapons are called viruses for a reason: statecraft, security and safety in the digital age.’
The fourth Institute of Historical Research-Strand Group ‘Institutions of British Government’ research seminar took place on Tuesday 8 September at 18.00.
The forty-first Strand Group event launching a new paper for Harvard Kennedy School’s Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government on the prospects for a US-UK Free Trade Agreement took place via Zoom webinar.
With perhaps the world’s most iconic front door, 10 Downing Street is the home and office of the British Prime Minister and the heart of British politics. This is the story of the intimately entwined relationship between the house and its post-war residents.
The Department of Political Economy, the Policy Institute and the Strand Group are delighted to announce the appointment of Mario Pisani as a Visiting Professor at King’s.
A new academic year is a time of great anticipation for us at the Strand Group. It’s always a pleasure to lay out to the new students what we’ve been planning over the summer months to make their experience truly memorable – and often unique.
This blog series has been made possible by the declassification of prime ministerial archives through the Public Records Act. In partnership with the Cabinet Office, Strand Group PhD candidates and No.10 Researchers in Residence Michelle Clement and Ashley Sweetman had access to the files pre-release.
On Tuesday 5th March at 18.30 Dr Jon Davis’ and John Rentoul launched their new new book ‘Heroes or Villains?: The Blair Government Reconsidered’ at King’s College London
The thirty-fifth Strand Group took place on Wednesday 23rd of January at 18.30. Sir Michael Barber discussed: ‘Delivering Public Value: The Role of the Treasury’.
Dr Jon Davis delivered the inaugural, Institutions of British Government Seminar Series – in partnership with The Strand Group. Discussing, The Secret Sterling Crisis of 1968.
Happy New Academic Year! The first week of teaching for the new 2018-19 cohort provides an opportunity to share some exciting highlights ahead for new students – and for more seasoned friends of The Strand Group.
At the eleventh meeting of the Mile End Group Sir Samuel Brittan and Lord Peston of Mile End discussed ‘The Changing Role of Government in Economic Policy: Searching for the Holy Grail if it Even Exists’
Baroness Jay of Paddington delivered the one hundredth and sixth Mile End Group where she discussed the ‘Constitutional Implications of Coalition Government’
Former Prime Minister Clement Attlee, was honoured with a statue unveiling at Queen Mary, University of London on April 4, 2011. Lord Mandelson was invited to unveil the repaired statue of Clement Attlee to commemorate Attlee’s achievements
Dr Michael Goodman delivered the one-hundredth and ninth Mile End Group where he launched his book, ‘The Official History of the Joint Intelligence Committee, Volume I’
To mark 50 years since the creation of the Defence Intelligence Staff, Lord Hennessy chaired a panel including Vice Admiral Alan Richards, Sir David Omand and Mr John Morrison discussed
Lord O’Donnell (Cabinet Secretary 2005-2011) gave the one-hundredth and seventh Mile End Group, the fourth Sir Michael Quinlan Memorial Lecture where he discussed, ‘Ethics in the Civil Service’
Professor David Miles of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee spoke on ‘Uncertainty and the Transition to a New Normal for Monetary Policy’, at the one-hundredth and third meeting of the Mile End Group
The British Ambassador to the Yemen, Sir Nicholas Hopton gave the ninety-seventh Mile End Group where he discussed, ‘Foreign Becomes Domestic: The Work of the British Ambassador to Yemen’
Dave Ramsden the Chief Economic Adviser to HM treasury gave the ninety-eighth Mile End Group where he discussed, ‘The Euro: 10th Anniversary of the Assessment of the Five Economic Tests’
The Attorney General Dominic Grieve gave the ninety-fourth Mile End Group on the subject ‘The Case for the Prosecution: independence and the public interest’
Baroness Williams gave the ninety-third Mile End Group, The Third Sir Michael Quinlan Memorial Lecture, on the topic of, ‘The Ultimate Weapon: Deterrent or Dinosaur?’
David Willetts, Lord Sainsbury & Lord Waldegrave gave the ninety-second Mile End Group where they discussed ‘Science Policy in the Real World’ with Peter Hennessy
Professor Peter Hennessy launched his edited collection of essays regarding ‘The New Protective State’ at the thirty-fourth meeting of the Mile End Group
At the eighty-eighth Mile End Group Lord Adonis launched his book ‘Education, Education, Education: Reforming England’s schools’. The book describes Lord Adonis’s quest to transform standards and opportunities in England s schools, and his ambition to make English education truly world class
The thirty-first event of The Strand Group took place on Wednesday the 12th of September. Royal Bank of Scotland chairman, Sir Howard Davies discussed: ‘Royal Bank of Scotland & The Financial Crisis : Ten Years On’
William Keegan, The Observer’s economics correspondent launched his new book, ‘”Saving the World?” Gordon Brown Reconsidered’ at the eighty-ninth Mile End Group
Sir Stephen Wall, the former Permanent Representative to the European Union launched his book; ‘The Official History of Britain and the European Community, Vol. II: From Rejection to Referendum, 1963-1975’ at the eighty-seventh meeting of the Mile End Group
Sir Nigel Sheinwald, the recently retired British Ambassador to Washington gave the eighty-sixth Mile End Group on the future prospects for UK/US relations after the 2012 US elections
Alastair Campbell was the guest speaker at the eighty-fourth meeting of the Mile End Group discussing the fourth volume of his diaries ‘Burden of Power’
Ben Hammersley, the British internet technologist, journalist, author and broadcaster gave the eighty-first Mile End Group discussing the growth of ‘Tech City’
Sir Gus O’Donnell & Lord Armstrong of Ilminster gave the seventy-seventh Mile End Group on the subject of ‘The theory and practice of taking the Cabinet Minutes’
The Chair of the Public Administration Select Committee Tony Wright gave the seventy-fourth Mile End Group on the subject, ‘The future of the House of Commons’
The seventy-third Mile End Group event was given by The Lord Speaker, Rt Hon Baroness Hayman, on the House of Lords one hundred years on from the 1911 Parliament Act.
The sixty-eighth Mile End Group featured a panel discussion Sir Nicholas Montagu, John McAuslan, Mark Addison discussing the relationship between Ministers and Permanent Secretaries
The Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt Hon John Bercow gave the sixty-ninth Mile End Group in the Houses of Parliament discussing the The Parliament Act of 1911
Sir David Omand, the first UK Security and Intelligence Coordinator, addressed the sixty-seventh meeting of the Mile End Group to discuss his book, Securing the State
The Policy Institute and the Strand Group are delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Simon Case and Clare Lombardelli as Visiting Professors at King’s.
Professor Tony Travers gave a lecture on ‘A Comparison of London and New York Public Transportation Systems’ at the fifty-seventh meeting of the Mile End Group. The event was held at The Guildhall in the City of London
Professor Sir Roger Williams delivered the forty-seventh Mile End Group at the Science Museum discussing ‘Civil Nuclear Energy since 1945: The Lessons’
The famous novelist, Baroness James of Holland Park, gave the fourth of the series of Women in the Lords lectures on ‘Police and the Public in the 21st Century.’
A distinguished panel of Peter Jay, Philip Connelly and Peter Armstrong met to discuss their memories of Sir William Armstrong at the forty-fifth Mile End Group
Baroness Williams of Crosby gave the second lecture in the Women in the Lords series discussing ‘Britain’s global role in the world in the next decade.’
The thirty-ninth meeting of the Mile End Group was given by Sir Richard Mottram, former Permanent Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence on ‘The New Security Architecture’
Former head of the Prime Minister’s delivery unit Professor Sir Michael Barber gave the thirty-sixth Mile End Group discussing his book, ‘Instruction to Deliver’
The thirty-first meeting of the Mile End Group brought together a panel of Lord Donoughue, Baroness Williams, Lord McNally, Adam Raphael, William Keegan, Hugh Stephenson, Peter Jay and Sir Alan Bailey to discuss the IMF crisis in 1976
At the twenty-ninth meeting of the Mile End Group Professor Peter Hennessy launched his book ‘Having It So Good: Britain In The Fifties’ he was introduced by the first man to run the sub-four minute mile Sir Roger Bannister
Sir Kevin Tebbit, former Permanent Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence discussed the long-term context of the terrorist challenge at the twenty-eight meeting of the Mile End Group
The first Anthony Sampson Memorial Seminar brought together Lord Browne of Madingley and Sir Kevin Tebbit as his respondent on the theme of oil and politics
Dr Andrew Blick and Lord Lipsey gave the twenty-second Mile End Group entitled, ‘The Rise and Rise of the Special Adviser: From Thomas Balogh to David Cameron’
Professor George Steiner and Professor Peter Hennessy gave the The Michael Young Memorial Lecture (in association with the Young Foundation): ‘On Meritocracy’
The twenty-first meeting of the Mile End Group launched Peter Riddell’s book ‘The Unfulfilled Prime Minister’. Peter Riddell was joined by Robert Hill.
The Financial Times’ Philip Stephens and Professor Peter Hennessy discussed British foreign policy from Suez to Basra at the nineteenth meeting of the Mile End Group
Lord Butler of Brockwell discussed his report ‘The Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction’ at the eighteenth meeting of the Mile End Group. Sir David Omand acted as respondent
Professor George Jones (LSE), discussed ‘The Aides of British Prime Ministers from Walpole to Blair, 1721 to 2005’. David Willetts MP acted as the respondent
At the thirteenth meeting of the Mile End Group Professor Michael Barber the head of the Prime Minister Delivery Unit and Associate Editor of the Times Peter Riddell discussed ‘How the Prime Minister gets things done; Peter Riddell’
The tenth meeting of the Mile End Group brought the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Sir Kevin Tebbit and the Associate Editor of the Times, Peter Riddell together to discuss ‘Contemporary Whitehall Reform: Good and Bad’
The first ever Mile End Group was held at Queen Mary. The title was ‘Whitehall reform 1970-74′. Dr Jon Davis was joined by Sir Robin Mountfield (former Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office)
At the sixth Mile End Group Chair of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party Dianne Hayter and journalist John Rentoul discussed ‘The Fight-Back of the Labour Right 1981-84′
Stephen Lovegrove, Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Defence, addressed the 27th meeting of King’s College London’s Strand Group on Tuesday 20th March 2018
The twenty-sixth event of King’s College London’s Strand Group took place at Bush House on Thursday 15th February 2018. King’s Visiting Professor Ed Balls and Peter Sands launched their Harvard working paper, titled, ‘Time for Clarity: The Views of British Business on The Path to Brexit’
Sir Dave Ramsden, Deputy Governor of the Bank of England and King’s Visiting Professor, gave a lecture entitled ‘Monetary Policy from End to End: Define, Decide, Deliver’, marking the 25th event of the Strand Group. The event was held at Bush House, King’s College London
On the evening of 14 November, Lord Adonis, Chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission and King’s Visiting Professor, delivered his inaugural lecture as Visiting Professor at King’s to a packed Strand Group event at the Guildhall in the City of London
On 12 June the Strand Group hosted their final event of the academic year, inviting Visiting Professor Ed Balls and Peter Sands, former CEO of Standard Chartered, to present their new Harvard research paper, ‘Making Brexit Work for British Businesses’
On 2 May, the Strand Group hosted a half-day conference to mark the 20th anniversary of the New Labour government’s decision to give the Bank of England operational independence in 1997
Professor Sir Lawrence Freedman and Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield spoke at the twenty-first meeting of the Strand Group at the British Academy. The topic of the meeting was ‘Historical Research and Political Accountability: Trident, the Falklands and Iraq’
Sir Amyas Morse, the Comptroller and Auditor General of the National Audit Office spoke about the implications of central decision-making on the delivery of frontline services at the twentieth meeting of The Strand Group on the 7th February
To launch Ian Beesley’s book, ‘The Official History of the Cabinet Secretaries’, the current Cabinet Secretary, Sir Jeremy Heywood was joined by four of his predecessors, Lord Wilson, Lord Turnbull, Lord Armstrong and Lord Butler.
On Wednesday 26 October The Strand Group and HM Treasury remembered one of the most momentous and traumatic episodes in its institutional history. Academics, politicians and officials past and present came together to mark 40 years since the UK government’s request for financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund in the autumn of 1976.
On Thursday 20th October 2016, Sir John Kingman the former second permanent secretary gave a lecture to the Strand Group entitled; ‘The Treasury and the Supply Side’
Ed Balls, former Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer and King’s Visiting Professor, launched his new book, Speaking Out, at the 14th meeting of the Strand Group on the 12th September 2016.
The journalist and military historian Sir Max Hastings gave the sixth Sir Michael Quinlan Memorial Lecture on Wednesday 13 July, at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Daniel Mulhall, the Irish Ambassador to the UK spoke at the 12th event of the Strand Group on Wednesday 11 May 2016, where he set out the Irish case, as a concerned neighbour, of the impact of Britain leaving the European Union.
Lord Willetts the former Minister of State for Universities and Science gave his inaugural lecture on Thursday 28 April 2016, setting out 100 years of science policy. He was joined by the President of the Royal Society Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan.
Dame Margaret Hodge, MP for Barking gave her inaugural lecture on Wednesday 2 March 2016, reflecting on her experiences as Chair of the Public Accounts Committee for over 5 years
The UK’s Chief Medical Officer, Professor Dame Sally Davies, spoke about the future of antibiotics at the eighth event of the Strand Group. Dame Sally used the occasion, held during the first World Antibiotic Awareness Week, to highlight the pressing global threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and advocate political action at all levels to contain it.
Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield and Dr James Jinks launched their new book, The Silent Deep: The Royal Navy Submarine Service Since 1945, at a Strand Group event at King’s College London on Monday 9 November.
Charles Moore, former editor of the Daily Telegraph and the Spectator, celebrated the release of his new book, Margaret Thatcher – The Authorised Biography: Volume Two, Everything That She Wants, at King’s College London on Tuesday 20 October.
The Rt Hon Oliver Letwin MP spoke at a reception held in Downing Street
to mark the launch of Margaret Thatcher and Number Ten, an exciting new contemporary history project produced The Strand Group.
Sir Iain Lobban gave the fifth Sir Michael Quinlan Memorial Lecture on the topic: ‘The Shifting Sands of the Intelligence and Security World:
A Moral Sense’
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair joined Sir Michael Barber, at King’s College London to discuss how best to run a government. Sir Michael was the inaugural Head of the Downing Street Delivery unit in Tony Blair’s Government between 2001 and 2005.
Sir Nicholas Macpherson, the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury and one of several newly appointed Visiting Professors at King’s College London delivered a timely lecture on ‘The Treasury and the Union’ on 19 January 2015.
The second meeting of the Strand Group, the signature events series of the Policy Institute at King’s College London, took place at the university’s Strand campus on 27 April. Sir Dave Ramsden, Chief Economic Adviser to the Treasury, Head of the Government Economic Service (GES) and recently-appointed Visiting Professor to King’s addressed a diverse and distinguished audience on ‘50 years of the Government Economic Service’.
A new video history
10 Downing Street
The Policy Institute at King’s
King’s College London
Hewlett Packard
Margaret Thatcher and No.10 is an innovative contemporary history project, produced by the Policy Institute at King’s College London in collaboration with No. 10 Downing Street.
