General Election 2015: ResPublica responses to the Party Manifestos

14^th April 2015

All of the UK’s poltiical parties have now released their General Election Manifestos containing their plans, spending commitments, budget cuts, and priorities for the next five years in Parliament. But should we be expecting something more? The ResPublica team have penned their thoughts and spoken their minds finding that you will not just deficit reduction strategies coursing through the documents, but a deficit of ideas and ambition…

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Core Vote Strategy: 

BBC Radio 4 Today: Phillip Blond & Beth Rigby on the immovable polls

(2hr55mins) Director of ResPublica, Phillip Blond, joins Beth Rigby, Deputy Political Editor of the FT, to discuss the Core Vote Strategy employed by both Labour and the Conservatives.

BBC Radio Wales: Phillip Blond on the political parties’ likely failure to secure a majority

Phillip Blond, Director of ResPublica, joins BBC Radio Wales to discuss the impending election and the effect of the core vote strategy on the formation of a majority Government.

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Conservative Manifesto: Addressing the Conservatives reputational deficit – the case for a Tory wealth tax by Michaela Costello

As other journalists and commentators have noted, despite the impressive achievements of the Conservatives in coalition – jobs up, incomes increased and bureaucracy streamlined – the party still has a reputation for cut-throat ‘nastiness’ and serving entrenched privilege …

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Labour Manifesto: A more radical vision is needed by Ed Rennie

There are two valid criticisms of Labour’s manifesto. One mentioned by a Labour loyalist friend of mine who tweeted ‘Labour should have produced a shiny looking short-form manifesto alongside the real thing’.

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Finance: A number of ResPublica policy recommendations were taken forward by the Lib Dem Manifesto

Develop the UK banking sector to promote competition and innovation by:

• Accelerating growth of crowdfunding and alternative finance models, encouraging Local Authorities to use these platforms to improve credit access in their areas …

• Implementing findings from the recently commissioned study by the British Business Bank into the sustainability of Community Development Finance Institutions …

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Housing: Right to Buy, Wrong to Sell: Why the Conservatives’ ‘Right to Buy’ for Housing Associations will do more harm than good by Duncan Sim

It is further evidence of the priority now accorded to housing policy by the public and the media that much of the interest in the Conservative Party manifesto, published today, has focused on the proposed extension of the ‘right to buy’ policy to housing association (HA) tenants …

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Energy: Hot Air not Warm Homes: Why the Greens’ manifesto commitments on energy efficiency are not credible by Richard Sagar

In previous years the release of the Green Party General Election manifesto has not been accompanied with a great deal of interest from the national media, but with a growing share of the vote and with the outcome of the election staggeringly uncertain, the party may yet help to determine who forms the new administration …

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Health & Social Care: Phillip Blond joins the BBC Breakfast ‘Red Sofa’ tour in Dundee

BBC Breakfast presented by Louise Minchin visits Dundee, Scotland, to interview ResPublica’s Director Phillip Blond about devolved health and social care.

 

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