Alex Walker
Senior Researcher @re-state.bsky.social
Interests include devolution, governance, democracy, trust
- My first Re:View is out - I look at Kent county council's struggle to find big spending cuts, what it says about the difficult work of public service reform, and whether the next ‘grand theory’ of public management could come from the periphery rather than the centre.
- The Re:View is out! This week, Senior Researcher, @alwalker.bsky.social, reflects on the quiet demise of Local-DOGE. Could the next big ideas in public service reform come from local government rather than Whitehall? Read on for Alex's take. bit.ly/4aj1PkY
- Reposted by Alex WalkerThe only way Labour can win the next election is by governing well. That might not be enough, but it’s the bare minimum. The questions to be asking about any potential new PM are “what is their agenda and can they achieve it?” Not “do they currently poll well?” Or “can they handle a media round?”
- The government announced today that the pride in place programme is being expanded to a further 40 neighbourhoods. I wrote something last year for @bennettschool.cam.ac.uk on the political appeal of the programme and what it's intended to achieve: www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/blog/unpacki...
- Reposted by Alex WalkerNEW REPORT - Capital at risk London is a global capital. But it doesn't have the governance to match. The Mayor is much less powerful than his international counterparts, with too many boroughs which hold too much influence. The city needs reboot. 🔗👇
- Re:State is on Substack! Must read first post from @stkaye.bsky.social featuring F. Scott Fitzgerald and the new white paper on police reform. Can the government square "From the local to national: a new model for policing" with the commitments it made in the devolution white paper?
- We are now on Substack! From now on, our weekly newsletter the Re:View will be published there. This week, @stkaye.bsky.social writes about the Government's policing reforms: the first move away from devolution that we've seen in a long time. restate.substack.com/p/the-review...
- Reposted by Alex WalkerListen to me talking about my book (out now!) with an excellent panel:
- 🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 The second referendum campaign revisited 🇪🇺 Labour MP & founder of Remain Labour @andrewlewinmp.bsky.social, @anandmenon.bsky.social & @morganj0nes.bsky.social join @alaintolhurst.bsky.social to look back at the anti-Brexit movement following the EU referendum 🎧 Listen: pod.fo/e/383e5e
- Latest Re:State 'meetings with mayors' is happening today! Sign up to hear Simon Kaye in convo with mayor of the v interesting North East Combined Authority, Kim McGuinness. us06web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
- Some job news - excited to share that I've started a new position as a Senior Researcher at @re-state.bsky.social! I'll be working on the fantastic 'Re:Imagining the Local State' programme, and thinking about the future of local government and devolution.
- Two good related pieces out today on civic renewal - one from James Plunkett on how to do it (what he calls 'communitarian statecraft'), and the other from Jack Shaw on improving the visible state of the public realm: jackshaw.substack.com/p/a-politics... samf.substack.com/p/power-to-t...
- Reposted by Alex WalkerThis is why there's a whole chapter in my book about the damage the grid has done to policy making.
- Reposted by Alex Walkerwikipedia turns 25 today! the last unenshittified major website! backbone of online info! triumph of humanity! powered by urge of unpaid randos to correct each other! somehow mostly reliable! "good thing wikipedia works in practice, because it sure doesn't work in theory" - old wiki adage
- There'll be lots of attention on the campaigns in Scotland and Wales over the next few months, but it's worth also looking ahead to a potential situation in which the UK and devolved governments are all led by different parties, and what this might mean for intergovernmental relations and policy:
- Reposted by Alex WalkerAs ever, worth reading Joël ‘reality over rhetoric’ Reland.
- My assessment of Starmer's latest EU gambit. His rhetoric on "alignment" may be getting bolder but the trade-offs remain the same. The UK will not get much closer alignment with the single market unless it accepts free movement + budget contributions. ukandeu.ac.uk/new-year-sam...
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- Wrapping up for Christmas with a piece looking back at how the UK government has approached devolved relations since Labour took office, and looking ahead to 2026 and the upcoming elections in Scotland and Wales. www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/blog/uk-inte...
- Interesting piece on the history of post-war place-based policy (which spells out some clear lessons for the government's pride in place programme)
- Reposted by Alex WalkerWe're looking for a Professor of Public Policy to join our senior leadership team. They'll play a leading role in teaching on the School's postgraduate courses, & make a significant contribution to its research & research leadership. Apply by 9 February 2026: www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/profess...
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- Can confirm this is an excellent role! You'll be joining a fantastic team at an exciting time and working on some really interesting stuff. Plenty of time to apply over the Christmas break!
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- Important piece on the challenges facing evidence-informed policy and how researchers and universities should respond (including acknowledging uncertainties and trade-offs, a wider understanding of what counts as evidence, and stronger connections between unis and local communities)
- It's time to get science back into policymaking Misunderstanding & hubris have broken public trust in governments’ use of science, but it can be restored. @michaelkenny.bsky.social & @dianecoyle1859.bsky.social discuss 'how' in their comment for @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...
- Reposted by Alex WalkerExcellent to see this from The Economist. We are slow walking into a constitutional crisis driven by the electoral system, and very few people are taking it seriously enough yet.
- Welcome to slot-machine Britain! Our cover this week is on First Past the Post, the voting system that turns multi-party politics into a lottery. Featuring our new modelling of British elections: www.economist.com/interactive/...
- Exciting new MPhil at the Bennett School - applications open!
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- Reposted by Alex WalkerDevolution is essential for empowering our communities, councillors & mayors - but also our MPs. Read why in my opinion piece for @labourlist.bsky.social✍️ Do you agree? labourlist.org/2025/11/no-m...
- Reposted by Alex WalkerGov just published a new list cabinet committees. In short, looks like (1) big vote of confidence in Darren Jones from the PM, (2) existing missions + immigration are top of the government's agenda, (3) PM wants things to happen faster, and (4) Rayner's priorities perhaps no longer front of mind?🧵
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- Reposted by Alex WalkerNothing like a communiqué being issued promptly! Surely worth the wait…
- Good to see the government moving toward giving mayors this (relatively modest) fiscal power. As @jillongovt.bsky.social & @tompope.bsky.social argue here, more local revenues will support strategic authorities to become a mature tier of government: www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/rach...
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- In my view it doesn't make sense to have Police & Crime Commissioners in the context of mayoral devolution being rolled out across the country - among other things, mayors have a higher public profile and this should help better integrate services But an important "if" from @jimmcmahon.co.uk below
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- Reposted by Alex WalkerTory policy is to revoke permanent residence (ILR) for everybody who does not earn £38k - deporting most nurses who have ILR This is put in the video as "who is unlikely to contribute more than they cost" NB: video does not say EU settled status is exempt No govt since Idi Amin has done this
- Reposted by Alex WalkerEXC: English councils will still be poorer in 2029 than they were in 2010, according to the IfG. Report finds councils are increasingly providing social care and little else. Libraries, youth services, parks, all falling by the wayside. www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
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- New blog for @bennettschool.cam.ac.uk on the pride in place strategy I explore why the government is going quite big on this and has adopted the language of pride in place, and look at whether it marks a real shift in power away from the centre www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/blog/unpacki...
- Reposted by Alex WalkerThe map below shows how far behind France and Germany we are in mass transit. In France, every place with over 150,000 people has some form of tram or metro. But if mayoral areas can 'become builders' as @tracybrabinmayorwy.bsky.social puts it in the foreword, we can turn this around. 🧵 1/9
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- Two great opportunities being advertised here at @bennettschool.cam.ac.uk! (Feat. me looking serious and determined)
- Reposted by Alex Walker'Democracy is not just about voting, but it is also about thinking through the issues and working out what you think.' Our Deputy Director, @alanrenwick.bsky.social, appeared on David Runciman's Past Present Future podcast to talk about referendums. Listen on YouTube 👇
- Reposted by Alex WalkerIs there a reason I ask that the Times are using a picture of asylum seekers in a boat to describe rules for migrants who came on legal routes such as skilled worker visas for doctors?
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- Interesting FGF report on regional growth and devolution - lots of common ground with our recent @bennettschool.cam.ac.uk report on collaborative territorial government (which gets a shout out) In particular, both reports argue for a more substantial role for the Council of the Nations and Regions
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- Reposted by Alex WalkerThis country made significant progress against racism in my lifetime - but we did not do so by chance. There is a visible visceral regression in experiencing of overt racism because the toxic fringe with the most extreme views have a sense of permission & impunity www.easterneye.biz/racism-in-uk...
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- This is a great piece from @morganj0nes.bsky.social on the importance and growing prominence of Labour's community empowerment agenda The government needs to focus on getting the right neighbourhood governance model and making sure the reality lives up to the rhetoric
- Labour has been quietly going quite hard on "community empowerment" – possibly because it's one of the few halfway coherent theories knocking around the party about how to tackle anti-politics. I've spoken to a lot of people about it for @newstatesman.com: www.newstatesman.com/comment/2025...
- The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill had its second reading yesterday. My thoughts here for @bennettschool.cam.ac.uk on why it's significant, where the gaps are, and where it could go further www.bennettschool.cam.ac.uk/blog/the-eng...
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- Reposted by Alex Walker‘Let us not risk getting trapped in the last war.’ My piece for @pbe.co.uk on why the wellbeing v GDP framing has run out of road pbe.co.uk/insights/bey...
