The Eurosceptics’ moment
14 December 2016
Dr Helen Parr, winner of the Hennessy Prize for essay writing on British politics, writes that it's time for Eurosceptics to to step up to their victory and extract Britain from the EU.
Parliament’s brief dalliance with the people
14 December 2016
Professor Charles Turner, runner up in the Hennessy Prize for essay writing on British politics, argues the referendum result leaves the executive hamstrung.
The roots of political populism
12 December 2016
Professor Thomas Osborne, winner of the Hennessy Prize for essay writing on British politics, argues that populism is a wholesale suspicion of the principle of representation itself.
Burke will be spinning in his grave
6 December 2016
Professor Philip Cowley considers the implications of the Supreme Court hearing on Article 50 for Parliament.
The Hennessy Essay 2016 winners announced
6 December 2016
The Mile End Institute is pleased to announce the winners of the Hennessy Prize for essay writing on British politics.
Subjectivity: The Next Challenge for Evidence-Based Policymaking?
29 November 2016
Mile End Institute Deputy Director Dr Helen McCarthy assesses methods for ensuring subjective experience is considered by policymakers.
The future of localism and devolution in England
29 November 2016
Professor Jane Wills, author of Locating Localism, on the changing shape of devolution and the potential for a new parochialism.
Richmond Park: Heathrow vs Brexit and the shape of politics to come?
29 November 2016
Nick Barlow explores how the forthcoming Richmond by-election could change the rules of British politics.
One year of EVEL: Evaluating ‘English Votes for English Laws’ in the House of Commons
28 November 2016
Daniel Gover and Michael Kenny assess the working of the English Votes for English Laws initiative in its first year of operation.
Explaining the pro-Corbyn surge in Labour’s membership
22 November 2016
In the course of a year and a half, Labour Party membership has increased massively. The number of full members has moved from 190,000 in May 2015 to 515,000 in July 2016 – an influx of 325,000 new members. Monica Poletti, Tim Bale and Paul Webb explore how we can explain the pro-Corbyn surge in this growth.
The silent devolution revolution
15 November 2016
Professor Francis Davis argues changes within the NHS may be the most radical decentralisation project under way in England - but little attention has been paid to them.
Call for papers: Citizens of the World? The Place of the International in British Politics since 1918
1 November 2016
Early career researchers are invited to submit papers for a symposium reassessing how debates about Britain’s relationship with the world have shaped and been shaped by domestic politics over the past century.
Lord Heseltine: “The forgotten people - the consequences of over-centralised power”
20 October 2016
Lord Heseltine was speaking at the Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London. The occasion was the second annual Peter Hennessy Lecture in political history.
Radical devolution can mend the broken fabric of Britain’s communities, says Lord Heseltine
20 October 2016
Britain’s centralised democracy has contributed to many of the most pressing problems in the country’s poorest communities, according to former Deputy Prime Minister Michael Heseltine.
The ‘Great Repeal Bill’: Constitutional Chaos and Constitutional Crisis?
10 October 2016
Sionaidh Douglas-Scott, Anniversary Chair in Law at Queen Mary University of London considers the potential repercussions of the prime minister's proposed 'Great Repeal Bill'.
Don’t be fooled, the Conservatives remain utterly divided on Brexit
5 October 2016
Dr Patrick Diamond argues that the Brexit vote has not laid to rest Conservative divisions on Europe.
The North remembers: why Conservatives still get a frosty reception
4 October 2016
As the Conservative Party meets for its annual conference, David Jeffrey assesses the party's difficulties in winning seats in the North.
Councillors are central to unlocking devolution’s transformative potential
4 October 2016
Mile End Institute researcher Andrew Walker argues that councillors need to be better involved in devolution to ground the project within civic society.
Crosland's lessons on equality
26 September 2016
As the Labour Party debates its future direction, Dr Patrick Diamond seeks lessons in Anthony Crosland's Future of Socialism on how social democrats should tackle the question of equality.
From #JezWeCan to #JezWeDid: Why Labour Party members still back Jeremy Corbyn
26 September 2016
Dr Monica Poletti explores how different views among older and newer Labour party members shaped the outcome of the leadership contest, using survey data from the Party Members Project.
Theresa May: beyond the metropolitan bubble
19 September 2016
Professor Francis Davis explores the people and experiences which will shape the policies of the new prime minister.
The Hennessy Essay 2016: applications open
10 August 2016
The Mile End Institute is pleased to announce the launch of a prize for essay writing on British politics in honour of our patron, the cross-bench peer and constitutional historian Lord Hennessy.
PostRefRacism - How Big a Problem is it Really?
9 August 2016
Lee Jones considers how well-founded claims of a spike in racist incidents since the EU referendum really are.
What does the Tory grassroots want from Prime Minister Theresa May?
13 July 2016
With his colleagues in the Party Members Project, Professor Tim Bale examines what Tory party members want and expect from Prime Minister Theresa May.
War guilt, Blair and the Chilcot Inquiry
12 July 2016
While the Chilcot Report does not accuse Tony Blair of war guilt for Iraq, his responsibility for the war and its consequences is in question. In this blog post, Dr James Ellison, of QMUL's School of History and the Mile End Institute, reflects on the historical significance of the Iraq Inquiry and whether Blair should be blamed.
After Brexit: British democracy in crisis
4 July 2016
Dr Helen McCarthy, Deputy Director of the Mile End Institute, writes about what must be done to renew and repair our "broken democracy".
Brexit: Democracy under stress
29 June 2016
Gianfranco Baldini, Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Bologna, considers the impact of Brexit on the country's institutions
Democracy and Disconnect: Brexit in Historical Perspective
27 June 2016
As part of the Mile End Institute's referendum instant analysis, Dr Robert Saunders, Lecturer in Modern British History at QMUL, considers the historical context of the vote.
The Cameron Illusion
27 June 2016
Following David Cameron's resignation, Dr Robert Saunders, Lecturer in Modern British History at Queen Mary University of London, profiles the prime minister who remains an enigma.
Brexit: Where now for Britain?
24 June 2016
As part of the Mile End Institute's referendum instant analysis, Dr Paul Copeland, Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at QMUL's School of Politics and International Relations, considers the next steps for post-Brexit Britain.
Brexit: The morning after, by Professor Michael Kenny
24 June 2016
Professor Michael Kenny, Director of the Mile End Institute, considers the implications of the UK vote to leave the European Union.
Simply unstoppable or a self-inflicted wound?
22 June 2016
Professor Tim Bales reflects on David Cameron’s path to the EU Referendum
Sovereignty, Brexit and the Reason Britain Joined in the First Place
17 June 2016
Vote Leave’s slogan ‘Take Back Control’ makes British sovereignty, and its recovery, the foremost reason for an out vote in the EU referendum. At the Mile End Institute's Great Sovereignty Debate Dr James Ellison suggested that the history of Britain, Europe and sovereignty should make Vote Leave more cautious about their claims of fortune from freedom.
A union in need of a moral vision
14 June 2016
Following the Mile End Institute's Great Sovereignty Debate, Professor John Charmley argues the EU has lost touch with its founding Christian purpose.
Research and the policy process: A policymaker's view
14 June 2016
Following the Mile End Institute's event How to advise government?, Niva Thiruchelvam, a Deputy Director in the Home Office argues that it is a good time for researchers to engage with policymakers.
What next? UK politics after the referendum
13 June 2016
Professor Andrew Gamble considers the likely scenarios following the UK's referendum on EU membership.
Sovereignty, Brexit and Power: Lessons from 1975
13 June 2016
Following the Mile End Institute's Great Sovereignty Debate, Dr Robert Saunders reflects on the role the issue of sovereignty has played in the campaigns in 1975 and today.
The Great Sovereignty Debate: What is sovereignty?
8 June 2016
On the 6th of June, the Mile End Institute hosted ‘The Great Sovereignty Debate’, a series of three panels reflecting on the upcoming EU referendum and the question of sovereignty. The second panel of the afternoon turned to look more broadly at the concept of sovereignty, and the various legal and political interpretations of the term that are at play in the current debate around EU membership.
The Great Sovereignty Debate: Self-government for the UK – inside Europe or the world?
8 June 2016
On the 6th of June, the Mile End Institute hosted ‘The Great Sovereignty Debate’, a series of three panels reflecting on the upcoming EU referendum and the question of sovereignty. The first panel of the event considered the issue of sovereignty within the context of the present European Union, and what an exit from the EU might look like for the UK.
The Great Sovereignty Debate: Sovereignty - the public view
8 June 2016
On the 6th of June, the Mile End Institute hosted ‘The Great Sovereignty Debate’, a series of three panels reflecting on the upcoming EU referendum and the question of sovereignty. The third panel of the afternoon turned to look at polling and public opinion on the issue of Europe, both now and in the 1975 referendum, with the input of three leading psephologists.
Applications open for MEI studentships
27 May 2016
The Mile End Institute is offering three bursaries for students from East London from the Schools of History and Politics & IR for the academic year 2016-2017.
Questioning Decline: Britain and the World After 1945
17 May 2016
James Southern assesses the discussions from the Mile End Institute's post-graduate organised conference 'Questioning Decline'.
The EU Referendum: What is Sovereignty?
6 May 2016
In the run-up to the Mile End Institute's Great Sovereignty Debate, QMUL academics reflect on what sovereignty means in different contexts.
Government leaflet didn’t swing voters in 1975 – and probably won’t in 2016
18 April 2016
Back in 1975, when Harold Wilson’s Labour government wanted to persuade voters of the merits of staying in the European Economic Community (EEC), they sent out a pamphlet – Britain’s New Deal in Europe – to every household. Lindsay Aqui says that historical precedent does not bode well for the Government's 2016 campaign.
David Cannadine: Does Good Policy-Making Need Historians?
12 April 2016
This is a transcript of Professor David Cannadine's remarks at the Mile End Institute's event, Does Good Policy-Making Need Historians? at the British Academy
Margaret Macmillan: Does good policy making need historians?
6 April 2016
This is a transcript of Professor Margaret Macmillan's remarks at the Mile End Institute's event, Does Good Policy-Making Need Historians? at the British Academy.
Devolution: A state of the nation assessment
16 March 2016
For all the focus on Europe, it could be devolution that is the critical constitutional change of our era. Ahead of the Budget, Andrew Walker looks in depth at the prospects for radical change in local government.
MEI Publication: Britain and the European Union Lessons from History
14 March 2016
The Mile End Institute has published Britain and the European Union: Lessons from History, examining how the UK's applications for membership and the 1975 referendum influence today's debate.
Sunday trading and the limits of EVEL
11 March 2016
This week, MPs defeated the government by 317 votes to 286 on its proposals to relax Sunday trading rules. But although the policy would have applied only in England and Wales, the votes of Scottish MPs proved decisive. Daniel Gover and Michael Kenny discuss the territorial dimensions to this episode, and why the recent ‘English Votes for English Laws’ reform did not help the government to pass its legislation.
Call for Papers: Questioning Decline, Britain and the World after 1945
3 March 2016
The Mile End Institute, in association with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, will host a conference which interrogates the concept of “decline” in post-war Britain. The call for papers is now open to post-graduate students.
The digital archive: challenges for historians
29 February 2016
Shane Dillon, who attended the Mile End Institute's conference Contemporary Political History in the Digital Age, reflects on the issues raised during the discussion.
Political History in the Digital Age: Mapping the Road Ahead
29 February 2016
Dr Helen McCarthy considers some of the lessons from the Mile End Institute's conference on Contemporary Political History in the Digital Age
The party prepared to lose to win
23 February 2016
The newly formed Women's Equality Party is fielding candidates in the forthcoming London, Scottish and Welsh elections. Dr Rainbow Murray considers how it can hope to shape the political agenda.
Renegotiation strategy: then and now
22 February 2016
In this post, Lindsay Aqui - PhD Candidate at QMUL - takes a closer look at the negotiation and political strategies used by David Cameron and Harold Wilson.
Lessons from 2015: Labour
12 February 2016
The Mile End Institute held a discussion on 9 February to mark the publication of The British General Election of 2015 by Philip Cowley and Dennis Kavanagh. Here Spencer Livermore, Visiting Fellow at QMUL's School of Politics and International Relations and Director of Labour's 2015 campaign, reflects on the election.
Lessons from 2015: Conservatives
12 February 2016
The Mile End Institute held a discussion on 9 February to mark the publication of The British General Election of 2015 by Philip Cowley and Dennis Kavanagh. Here Matthew d'Ancona, Visiting Fellow at QMUL's School of Politics and International Relations and columnist for the Guardian and Evening Standard reflects on the 2015 campaign.
Asking the Right Questions about Gender Equality: An Historian’s Perspective
12 February 2016
Dr Helen McCarthy, Senior Lecturer in History, Queen Mary University of London discusses the issue of gender inequality in the workplace
Polling reveals undecideds' negative views on EU
5 February 2016
Professors Philip Cowley and Tim Bale analyse the remarkable polling data they have gathered on MPs' attitudes towards the European Union and discover that those who say they are undecided on the EU referendum share a lot in common with those who plan to vote 'Leave'.
Merit vs Equality? The argument that gender quotas violate meritocracy is based on fallacies
18 January 2016
In this blog post, Rainbow Murray argues that merit and quotas in political recruitment are not mutually exclusive and says quotas are essential to a creating a meritocratic system which makes politics open to everyone.
Lessons from the 1975 business campaign
13 January 2016
At the Mile End Institute conference, Britain and Europe: The Lessons from History, Neil Rollings, Professor of Economic and Business History at the University of Glasgow, assessed the extent of change in business attitudes towards the EU since 1975.
