Publications

Danny Dorling (2023): In this provocative and lucid contribution, Danny Dorling puts the decision to 'leave' in the context of four decades of bad policy making, which has accumulated a host of social and economic problems. Brexit was, in part, a response to these failures and their mounting grievances - but has failed entirely to answer a single one of these problems. But Brexit was also - as Dorling rightly emphasises - a story about the radicalisation of a particule form of reactionary English nationalism, which drew heavily on anti-immigration and 'sovereignty-ist' sentiment, in a wave of rule Britannia nostalgia.

Jeevun Sandher, Thomas Stephens (2023): High-quality, universal early years education is likely the highest-returning investment a government can make. These high returns come largely from improving social and economic outcomes for low-income children and their parents. The returns are so high that this investment pays for itself even when funded entirely through borrowing. The current, limited funding offer, where mostly middle and higher-income families gain 30 free hours of childcare, restricts the benefits to both society and the public finances. Ensuring every child has guaranteed access to early years education will lead to higher earnings, more growth and the Treasury gaining money in the long run.

Michèle Auga & James Hoctor (July 2023): Der jährlich aktualisierte Gewerkschaftsmonitor bietet Hintergrundinformationen, aktuelle Daten und Fakten und analytische Einblicke in die britische Gewerkschaftsbewegung.

Ed Arnold (2023): The UK and Germany are the European top defence spenders and top supporters of Ukraine in military, economic and humanitarian assistance. They have significant diplomatic, defence and security influence, and cooperation would maximise this influence. Enhanced cooperation would also signal that the UK and Germany are able to work together for the benefit of Europe and maintain unity through the challenges ahead.

Amardeep Singh Dhillon (December 2022): The 2019 election defeat of Corbyn’s Labour Party marked the beginning of a new era for the British Left, as the fragile coalitions which had cohered around the hope of a social democratic Labour government shattered. As the Left reoriented itself within Labour, trade unions and social movements, seismic events including the pandemic, increased state and police repression, and the so-called cost of living crisis presented challenges as well as opportunities for new modes of organisation. With levels of industrial militancy not seen in a generation, and glimpses of new organisational infrastructures having developed, among others, around COP, Kill the Bill and the cost of living crisis, there is evidence of a proactive, collective reorientation of the left beyond the defeat of Corbynism.

Daniel Allington, Harry Shukman, William Galinsky and Rachel Briscoe (2023): The spread of online misinformation is a key concern in a digitally-permeated society, prompting fears that engagement with it can lead, particularly among young people, to radicalisation and inter-group hate. This paper assesses the scale of the problem, and examines a range of tools and techniques intended to mitigate its impact, from online fact-checking services and content warnings to interfaith dialogue and state-mandated educational programmes. The most promising methods of confronting misinformation are likely those that engage people in the real-world and build lasting relationships across community divides beyond the internet. Interventions that take place solely online, on the other hand, are yet to deliver robust and easily scalable impacts.