Tim Durrant

@timdurrant.bsky.social

6338 Followers 1989 Following

Interested in how government works and how it can work better 🏳️‍🌈

A timeline showing key moments from Starmer's premiership
A panel at the Institute for Government
Again, some want to see this as proof that Starmer and his team are behaving in nefarious ways. But government has always relied on communications that are not accessible to all and that leave no formal trace: the spoken word is the original disappearing message. Much of government happens informally, and there are good reasons for lots of information to remain protected. While WhatsApp is the latest technology that facilitates this communication, this will always be a feature of government and it is naïve to expect otherwise. What matters is that ministers take decisions on the basis of detailed advice, and that the nature of that advice and the resulting decision are properly recorded and communicated (and preserved for posterity). Using WhatsApp along the way, even with disappearing messages turned on, is not inherently a problem.
The result was many different supporters working in silos. “It was lots of different players on the pitch, and they were all running around in their own little circles, because he didn’t actually captain the team,” one said.
"When I look back at those days [Brexit debates], I think they were a combination of extraordinary events that we’re unlikely to see again. What was legal had become intensely political, and the two were very difficult to extricate." Robert Buckland, Solicitor general (2014-19)
"My no-deal preparations were that there was going to be mass unemployment. I was obviously a marked woman for being too anti-Brexit. But I could see mass unemployment around the corner if we left without a deal." Amber Rudd, Secretary of state for work and pensions (2018-19)
"The crucial thing that changed after was that there was huge preparation for a post-EU world. So, developing the Agriculture Bill, the Fisheries Bill, working out what a transition would look like, all of the no-deal planning that I had a role in" George Eustice, Minister for agriculture, fisheries and food (2015-19)
“I think the [Scottish] independence referendum, my party’s continued success over many years and fears of another independence referendum and what that might mean, have led to a sense of Westminster trying to put devolution back in its box. Brexit has definitely provided some of the tools to do that in the name of something else.” Nicola Sturgeon first minister of Scotland (2014–23)
"As Northern Ireland secretary, if you’re going to break international law whichever way – you’re either going to break the international law of the Good Friday Agreement, or of the Withdrawal Agreement that’s not actually complete – that’s a no brainer. I don’t want to break international law at all, but if I’ve got no choice, I’m not breaking the Good Friday Agreement." Brandon Lewis, Secretary of state for Northern Ireland (2020-22)
"I feel that at the heart of the problem was a significant number of MPs trying to stop us from leaving. That's what led to the continual stalemate" Theresa Villiers, Secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs (2019-20)
[on DExEU ministers] "None of us were responsible for the negotiation and our direct instructions were ignored" Steve Baker, Parliamentary under-secretary of state for the Department for Exiting the EU (2017-18)
"Theresa [May]'s a very good person and in different circumstances she would've been a very good prime minister… But the problem was she was a Remainer trying to carry out a Brexit thing, and there's a sort of intuitive understanding that you just can't get by reading a book." David Davis, Secretary of state for exiting the European Union (2016-18)
"We lost – and let’s not beat about the bush, we put our case forward, we talked about all the disasters, people looked at it and 52% of them said, “Actually, we’ll live with that and we’ll come out of it” – you’ve got to get on and deliver it." Mark Garnier, Parliamentary under secretary of state in the Department for International Trade (2016-18)
"I was amazed that collective responsibility was lifted. It had never happened before, and I was really impressed with David Cameron… he called all of the junior ministers in, round the cabinet table and he said to all of us 'we're going to do this referendum and you will have to do what you believe is right for your country.'" Andrea Leadsom, Secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs (2016-17)
"Whitehall did a really crap job of negotiation. I mean, really crap. I think it’s partly because they sympathised with the European view and assumed that was reciprocated." David Davis, Secretary of state for exiting the European Union (2016-18)
Scottish FM John Swinney speaking at a conference
An IfG infographic with different scenarios for the Labour leadership following the Makerfield by-election later this month
A gov.uk update: The King has been pleased to approve the following appointments: Nesil Caliskan MP as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Natalie Fleet MP as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Home Office Catherine Atkinson MP as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice Preet Kaur Gill MP as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department of Health and Social Care Gen Kitchen MP as Comptroller of HM Household (Government Whip) Deirdre Costigan MP as Junior Lord of the Treasury (Government Whip) Shaun Davies MP as Assistant Whip, House of Commons Miatta Fahnbulleh MP, Jess Phillips MP, Alex Davies-Jones MP and Dr Zubir Ahmed MP have left the Government.
A chart showing how many ministers have resigned under different prime ministers; Starmer has seen the most ministers resign by this point in his premiership
A graphic showing the different stages of a Labour leadership contest
A quote from Steve Baker: I've held the future of this country in my hands more times than I can remember. I have decided on my own authority which way votes in the House of Commons would go. I've at times put over 70 MPs through the rebel lobby by sending one WhatsApp message.
A quote from former minister Steve Baker: It is the job of officials, however inconvenient, to warn ministers of what the consequences might be of their chosen course of action.
If all additional salaries were to be allocated to the most senior rank available, this would result in one additional salary at Secretary of State rank, three additional salaries at Minister of State rank, and seven additional salaries at Parliamentary Secretary rank.
Tapp responded: “I find the framing of this absolutely absurd – it is nonsense. There have been years in planning from the officials and ministers. This has been in the public domain for some years. Second sentence highlighted
Keeping the peace | Starmer has sent a letter to MPs that sets out how he wants to include them more in policymaking in the future and admits that he needs to change the “culture” of his administration, according to the i paper. As part of the shake-up, he promised to engage more substantially with his backbenchers to “shape the agenda” and said No 10 would work more closely with departmental, regional and national groups of the Parliamentary Labour Party as well as its equalities groups.
A graphic showing information about the event - also available at: https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/events/working-in-the-think-tank-sector-2026/
Hannah White from IfG introducing Darren Jones’s speech
A man giving a speech in room full of people
The King has been pleased to approve the following appointment: Josh Simons MP as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. He will remain Parliamentary Secretary in the Cabinet Office.
A panel of people in a grand room
An IfG live blog post from Jill Rutter, titled "Keep the chancellor away from the Treasury" What will Rachel Reeves and her officials be doing in the last few hours before the budget? In earlier eras, chancellors could change their minds down to the wire (though the Red Book would be printed over the weekend) and rewrite their speech. That could mean laborious retypes and recollations. That led to an instruction in the Treasury’s own budget day manual to “Keep the chancellor away from the Treasury” after the budget had been presented to the cabinet in the morning. Chancellors would be dispatched to St James’s Park to be photographed feeding the ducks, while Treasury officials frantically compiled printed copies of the budget speech. No indication yet that this is the plan for this morning! But if you see Rachel Reeves heading into the park, you know that another bit of Treasury orthodoxy still rules.
A group of people on a panel listening to a man speaking
An update from gov.uk called "Uploading data to the National Fraud Initiative"
Senior officials in one of these local authorities attributed their strong performance to a few factors. First, they said that stable political leadership over many decades meant that members were able to take a longer-term view during austerity, meaning they were less inclined to make knee-jerk, short-term cuts to balance budgets in-year. Second, recent localised economic growth – driven by rising
A written statement from Ashley Dalton MP, health minister: Exercise Pegasus will be the largest ever simulation of a pandemic in UK history and will involve participation from every Department, the devolved Governments and representation from arm’s length bodies and local resilience fora. The exercise is due to take place from September to November 2025, led by the Department of Health and Social Care and delivered with the UK Health Security Agency. Core exercise days have been confirmed for 18 September, 9 October and 30 October, simulating the first phases of a pandemic: emergence, containment, and mitigation. A fourth phase—recovery—is also planned for 2026. The UK Government have committed to communicating the findings and lessons of the exercise as recommended by the covid-19 inquiry and a post-exercise report will be delivered in due course.
Michael Shanks MP as Minister of State in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero Chris McDonald MP as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Department for Business and Trade Liz Lloyd CBE as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and the Department for Business and Trade, and Baroness in Waiting (Government Whip) His Majesty has also been pleased to signify His intention of conferring a Peerage of the United Kingdom for Life on Liz Lloyd CBE.
A table from the IfG showing the parliamentary private secretary roles that newly-appointed ministers held before being appointed - the original table is available at https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/live-blog/starmer-reshuffle-september-2025
Chart from the Institute for Govt showing the degree of change in the reshuffle
Senior Labour figures tell Keir Starmer to stop making mistakes
The King has been pleased to approve the following appointments: The Rt Hon Darren Jones MP as Minister of State (Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister) at the Cabinet Office. James Murray MP as Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Daniel Tomlinson MP as a Parliamentary Secretary (Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury) in His Majesty’s Treasury.
The government should work closely with these users of transparency information to ensure it is as useful as possible for them. Understanding how information might be used allows government to publish it in the most useful way. This will help avoid what the Cabinet Office described as “lots of data, little insight”.65 Officials aiming to make information public should work with potential users to understand when, and how often, it should be published; what format for publication may be most accessible; and what level of detail is necessary.
Better collection and transparency around data is a prerequisite to improve trust, but it also requires a government that is willing to talk about what that data shows and what it means, and to push back against malign use of it.
A parliamentary question from Baroness Finn: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Statement by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 21 July (HLWS867), what legal mechanism will be used to require a minister to repay severance payments following a breach of the Business Appointment Rules. Answered by Baroness Anderson, 31 July 2025: The Ministerial Code is clear that the Business Appointment Rules apply to former ministers after they leave office. Ministers will also be expected to sign waivers to confirm that they will repay their severance payment in the event they are found to have seriously breached the Business Appointment Rules.
A headline from a gov.uk press release in all caps: PERMANENT SECRETARY DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS APPOINTED
A panel of speakers at the Institute for Government