This report shows how the UK Government's existing spending review process fails to align government spending with strategic priorities and long-term value for money. It recommends resetting the approach to spending reviews and introduces more effective ways of managing public spending.

This report, drawing on previous Institute for Government reports, highlights the four areas that offer the greatest opportunity for the new UK Government to ensure that its fiscal policy best helps deliver its priorities and ends by setting out how these could be enacted in legislation.

Fiscal policy-making in the United Kingdom has been far from perfect. Problems like short-termism, policy churn and gaming of the system are often blamed on fiscal rules. This report examines whether that is fair, or whether these issues are rooted more deeply in the underlying fiscal framework. It also makes recommendations for strengthening fiscal policy-making.

This report examines the UK Treasury’s role in designing and delivering economic support schemes – as well as the problems that undermined government decision making. It draws on over a year of research and conversations with former Treasury officials and others who worked with the department during the COVID-19 pandemic.

UK households are experiencing a severe cost of living crisis. Annualised bills for a typical household are currently rapidly. The UK government has already provided some support, but more is likely to be needed. This paper lays out the government’s options.