![Alex Thomas](/sites/default/files/styles/wysiwyg_full_width_desktop/public/2022-12/alex-thomas-326x326.jpg?itok=h977P46U)
Alex Thomas
Programme Director
Alex's recent work
![](/sites/default/files/styles/medium_card_desktop/public/2024-06/michael-gove.jpg?h=58c8a5e7&itok=F7AEMu7V)
What made Michael Gove one of the most consequential ministers of recent times?
The next government should pay close attention to Michael Gove's approach to government.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/medium_card_desktop/public/2024-06/keir-starmer-angela-rayner-labour-manifesto-2XBT8R3-1504x846px.jpg?h=d46ee4cc&itok=MRndlzDO)
How Angela Rayner operates as deputy prime minister is a core question for Labour
Keir Starmer needs to decide what kind of deputy prime minister he might need in government.
![](/sites/default/files/styles/medium_card_desktop/public/2023-10/rishi-sunak-keir-starmer-composite-party-conference-2023-1504x846px.png?h=07e9081f&itok=bKrGZRC6)
The parties should focus on substance as well as sales ahead of the election
Election fever is hotting up in the aftermath of the local elections.
All work
Decision making in a crisis
This report examines decisions made in three areas: economic support, Covid-19 testing and the lockdown.
The biggest challenges for the new cabinet secretary are coronavirus and civil service reform
The question is whether Simon Case can lead the civil service through coronavirus, Brexit and its own reforms
Confusion over local coronavirus lockdowns shows a government failing to learn from mistakes
The government needs to get slicker at imposing local lockdowns
Civil service reform goes mainstream
To make progress, the government needs to change the incentives for civil servants, welcome scrutiny and be prepared to devolve power.
National security adviser
The national security adviser is the central co-ordinator and adviser to the prime minister and cabinet on security, intelligence, defence, and some f
The coronavirus pandemic is a significant moment for civil service reform
Ministers should support a strong civil service, but there are no quick or easy answers
Cabinet secretary
The cabinet secretary is the most senior civil service adviser to the prime minister and cabinet.
The government’s coronavirus announcements outpace its ability to deliver them
Ministers’ rhetoric will undermine public confidence if they consistently fail to deliver
The prime minister is right to apply his Brexit management model to coronavirus
The prime minister’s new coronavirus cabinet committees, based directly on the model he used to “get Brexit done”, should help improve government co-o
Government reaches for the tsars in its coronavirus response
Appointing outsiders is a good addition to a fragmented health system, but it is important that their remit and terms of appointment are clear.