The Winter Of Discontent 2.0

Inside Briefing with the Institute for Government

Institute for Government

News, Politics, Government

4.6 • 252 Ratings

🗓️ 16 December 2022

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The worst concurrence of public service strikes since the 70s is rocking the Government’s authority. Does the Government’s refusal to talk look too unreasonable, and can Labour maintain its own precariously tough line? Plus NHS reform is back on the agenda. What does Steve Barclay have in store? And a whistle stop tour of what’s coming up in 2023. Our special guest today is Rachel Sylvester, columnist and interviewer at The Times. “These strikes just add to the impression that Rishi Sunak is losing his grip and the Government is losing control.” – Rachel Sylvester “The Government’s line that its hands are tied by the pay review bodies is pretty disingenuous.” – Nick Davis “Most voters, if they had to choose between a politician and a nurse, will back the nurse.” – Rachel Sylvester Presented by Alex Thomas with Nick Davis and Nick Timmons. Audio production by Alex Rees and Robin Leeburn. Inside Briefing is a Podmasters Production for the IfG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello and welcome to Inside Briefing, the podcast from the Institute for Government.
0:14.1	I'm Alex Thomas, your stand-in podcast host for this week.
0:18.6	Christmas is nearly here, but for many people it is not the season to be jolly,
0:22.5	anything but. Striking train drivers, striking nurses, striking postmen, baggage handlers,
0:27.8	bus drivers, driving examiners, UK border force staff. The list goes on and on. So what's going on?
0:34.2	Why are so many striking? What's the government trying to do about it? And will it succeed? And is this a winter of discontent to match discontented winters of the past?
0:42.5	We'll wade into the industrial action and try to make sense of the situation.
0:46.2	There's a subject that we haven't discussed for a while, but comes around, importantly, every few years,
0:50.7	NHS reform and restructuring, which is back in the news, with a report this week
0:54.4	saying that Health Secretary Steve Barclay is clearing a flaw of the Department of Health
0:58.3	and Social Care to move in senior officials from NHS England. So is that true? And what does
1:04.0	it mean if he does? We'll dial up IFG Senior Fellow, Nick Timmins, a man who understands the NHS
1:08.9	better than pretty much anyone.
1:12.0	And as the year draws to a close and Parliament prepares to close its doors for the holidays,
1:15.3	we will take a look at the state of play in Westminster and ask what next year brings.
1:20.1	So to discuss this, I'm joined by an IFG colleague who, unlike most of us,
1:24.0	seems to have fended off the festive flu or maybe just holding it off until Christmas
1:28.4	Day. That's Nick Davis. Hello, Nick. And I'm delighted that we're joined today by Rachel
1:33.2	Sylvester, columnist and interview at the Times. Hi, Rachel. Are you surviving the Christmas
1:37.1	Party circuit? Yes, hi. It's great to be here, not at a Christmas party. Let's start with the
1:43.3	strikes. Rachel, this is becoming a big problem for the Prime Minister.
1:46.5	Yes, I think it just adds to this sense that the government's losing a grip and events
	...

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