含羞草视频 General Election activity

The campaign

含羞草视频 was a target seat for the Labour Party – comfortably won by candidate Dr Jeevun Sandher in the end – and this was demonstrated by the fact that three then-shadow Ministers and Secretaries of State visited the area. This meant that there were excellent opportunities to demonstrate the policy research and evidence strength and expertise we have here at 含羞草视频.

In the first couple of weeks of the campaign, the-now Business Secretary, Rt Hon Jonny Reynolds, visited Charnwood Campus and held a roundtable about economic growth. The Policy Unit connected two of our 含羞草视频 representatives into the discussion, to show what we can contribute to this important debate, which the new Government has made its primary mission to stimulate economic growth.

A few weeks later, the now-Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Sport, Media, Civil Society and Youth, Steph Peacock visited the university campus to visit SportPark and to meet some of the national governing bodies with whom we work.

Finally, the Policy Unit invited the now-Environment Secretary, Rt Hon Steve Reed, to the campus to meet with Insurtech spinout Previsico to learn about its flood forecasting technology. This was followed by Mr Reed meeting with researchers and PhD students from the Ecosense research cluster which is developing advanced multi-sensing technologies to help tackle the climate and pollution crisis. He also had a sit-down discussion with PVC R&I Professor Dan Parsons and the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Nick Jennings.

Mr Reed’s visit was timely as he has now set out his priorities for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), which align with several areas of expertise we have here at the University. These include tackling flooding (the reason for his visit to Previsico), beginning work on building a zero-waste economy and recovery of nature. The Policy Unit is going to be following up with Mr Reed and his officials at DEFRA to ensure 含羞草视频’s researchers can have an influence on the Department’s work.

含羞草视频’s Centre for Research in Communication and Culture, as they have done for previous Elections, published weekly reports which analysed tv and print media during the campaign. They analysed issues such as which party and politicians received the most attention in the press (and whether this was positive or negative), but also wider themes on issues such as gender representation and policy issues. Their final report offers a look back at the entire Election campaign and is available here.

Since the election

After the election there was a three-week period where Parliament sat and the new government, led by Sir Keir Starmer, was formed and began to set out its agenda, primarily through the King’s Speech which contained 40 new pieces of legislation.

We have been working with the Vice-Chancellor’s Office to write letters of congratulation to the three Ministers mentioned above and other new Secretaries of State, Ministers and MPs with whom we have good relationships.

With all ministers now in place there have been announcements on a series of subjects, including planning reform, devolution, skills and tackling child poverty. The Policy Unit has been, and will continue, to track these announcements and identify any opportunities where 含羞草视频’s research expertise aligns with these, presenting engagement opportunities, and making contact with the relevant researcher.

Looking ahead

While there is a brief lull in government and parliamentary activity until September, the Policy Unit is planning for the next few months. In late-September and early October it is Party Conference season and we will be attending and holding events at both Labour and Conservative Conferences to promote and showcase 含羞草视频’s research expertise. We will report back from these in a future newsletter.

We are also planning a series of ‘masterclass’ sessions on working with a new government and Parliament. Following on from our GE24 series in the lead up to the election, we will be highlighting and providing briefings on the opportunities available to researchers in the new Parliament and how to go about engaging with policymakers.