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1. Choices and challenges for UK foreign policy

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
02-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
The new British government has come to power at a time of profound geopolitical, economic, ecological, and technological transformation. A major state-on-state war continues to rage in continental Europe. In Africa, the Sudanese civil war has created the largest humanitarian crisis on record. While the recent Israel-Hamas ceasefire brings hope for wider de-escalation in the Middle East, the consequences of the 7 October 2023 attack and subsequent destruction in Gaza will be with us for the foreseeable future. To all of this, the inauguration of President Trump adds a layer of uncertainty. Meanwhile the West struggles to decide how best to deal with the changing nature of competition with China, with rapid technological and ecological change, and with a disparate Global South increasingly hedging its bets in terms of choosing between the West and assertive challengers to the existing order. Confronted with such a complex environment, there is more need than ever for timely, research-based evidence on which to base future policy choices. That is precisely what this report seeks to do. We asked leading experts on contemporary world politics each to analyse the major challenges confronting the UK in a key policy area, to summarise existing UK approaches, and to lay out the key choices facing the government today.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Politics, Geopolitics, and Strategic Competition
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

2. The Brexit Files: from referendum to reset

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
01-2025
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
For the past decade, UK in a Changing Europe has provided impartial, research-based analysis on a number of issues, but most particularly on UK-EU relations. Since before the 2015 General Election, we have evaluated those relations, traced and explained the tortuous Brexit process, and attempted to assess the impact that Brexit has had on the country. This report brings together some of the best scholars working on these issues to consider a number of these questions on the 5th anniversary of the UK ceasing to be a member of the European Union.
Topic:
Bilateral Relations, Elections, European Union, and Brexit
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

3. Migration to the UK after Brexit: policy, politics and public opinion

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
Immigration, while far less salient than it was in 2016, is becoming a key political and policy issue again. This report not only analyses what has changed in terms of both outcomes and public opinion but considers how a future government might respond to the issue of migration, and the kinds of tradeoffs they will have to address. The report, which brings together authors from British Future, the Institute for Government, the Migration Observatory, the Social Market Foundation, and the KCL Policy Institute, among others, provides a comprehensive review of changes in policy, outcomes, and public opinion that have reshaped the landscape. The report shows the next government faces a number of challenges as the large post-Covid spike in arrivals has pushed immigration to the top of the political agenda again. Numbers peaked at the end of 2022, with 1.15 million long-term international migrants (those planning to stay at least a year) arriving in the UK over the previous 12 months, although net migration is likely to fall very sharply over the course of 2024. A new model for ‘humanitarian migration’ has emerged in the years since Brexit, with large inflows of migrants fleeing conflict in Ukraine and political oppression in Hong Kong. With a range of expert contributors, the report looks ahead at the choices for the next government, covering integration, asylum, the role of AI in helping us understand public views on immigration, humanitarian migration routes, student migration, economic migration, the legacy of the Windrush scandal, and much more.
Topic:
Migration, Politics, Public Opinion, and Brexit
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

4. UK-India relations

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
04-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
The emphasis on Global Britain which followed the referendum of 2016 led to a significant shift in British foreign policy. Alongside the quest for new trade deals, the Indo-Pacific tilt also marked something of a reorientation. And both trends involved a greater focus on links with India. UK in a Changing Europe has partnered with the King’s India Institute to put together this report assessing the state of the UK-India relations. It underlines the density of ties between the two countries and the various drivers that might shape relations going forward. It covers trade, migration, cultural ties, Indian politics and the diaspora, the role of the diaspora, British Indian voters, upcoming elections in the UK and India, and the future of UK-India relations.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Bilateral Relations, and Trade
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, South Asia, and India

5. The state of the UK economy 2024

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
01-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
The state of the UK economy is always an important matter, but it is all the more so in what looks likely to be an election year. This UK in a Changing Europe report takes stock of the UK economy in order to assess how it can break from the current economic and political ‘doom loop’. The report provides a constructive framework to address the need for a longer-term, joined up approach in policy areas, ranging from education to immigration, to public services and artificial intelligence. It shows that there is no single silver bullet for the problems facing the UK economy, however a number of themes have emerged. The UK has long been plagued by short-termism and political instability which needs to be addressed. Edited by Senior Fellow Professor Jonathan Portes, it brings together leading UK academics on the economy from universities across the UK, the Migration Observatory, the Institute for Fiscal Studies and other research institutions.
Topic:
Education, Industrial Policy, Migration, Economy, Tax Systems, Macroeconomics, Trade, Artificial Intelligence, Housing, Labor Market, Public Service, Productivity, and Net Zero
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

6. The UK in a Changing Europe guide to UK-EU relations

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
09-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
The 2019 election was meant to ‘get Brexit done’. But, five years on, Brexit matters as much as ever. Its economic effects are only just becoming clear. We are still grappling with various outstanding issues, ranging from Gibraltar to border controls to implementing new arrangements in Northern Ireland. There are deadlines in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) which means aspects of the relationship must be renegotiated. EU rules and regulations continue to have implications for UK businesses and consumers. And the UK government is keen to ‘reset’ relations and add new areas of cooperation. Relations with the EU may not have figured much in the recent election, but it will continue to be an important area of public policy for the foreseeable future. This guide is intended as a snapshot of where we have got to with Brexit and what the prospects are for UK-EU relations. It provides a short, accessible assessment of what Brexit has meant for the UK and what options the current government has in terms of ‘resetting’ its relationship with Brussels.
Topic:
Bilateral Relations, Elections, European Union, Brexit, and Trade
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, and Northern Ireland

7. General election 2024: manifesto analysis

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
06-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
Manifestos provide an opportunity for political parties to lay out their plans for government. While not binding in any legal sense, a government is often judged, at least in part, by its success or otherwise in implementing the policies promised in the manifesto. At a time of increasing distrust of politicians, of falling faith in politics, and of concern about the proliferation of false or misleading information, it is more important than ever to ensure that manifestos are subject to scrutiny. This is what we attempt to do in this report. In it, Full Fact and UK in a Changing Europe have joined forces to produce a series of evidence-led, research-based assessments of the policies the Conservative and Labour parties say they will implement if they are to win the next election. The report contains chapters on growth; public spending; tax policy; living standards; housing; education/schools; further and higher education; energy and net zero; environment and farming; health; managed migration; small boats and asylum; security, defence and foreign affairs; the Union; and relations with the EU. The contributors are leading experts from a range of organisations including the Resolution Foundation, the Royal United Services Institute, the Health Foundation, the LSE, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the Migration Observatory and the National Foundation for Educational Research.
Topic:
Elections, Public Policy, and Manifesto
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

8. UK-EU regulatory divergence tracker: sixth edition

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
02-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
UK in a Changing Europe’s series of regulatory divergence trackers provide an overview of where and how the UK has used its newfound regulatory freedoms to diverge from EU regulation. It identifies and analyses the most significant cases of divergence between the UK and EU which have taken place since Brexit. It explains what the changes are, what impact they are having, and likely further consequences. This is the sixth edition of the divergence tracker, covering developments since October 2022. There are six cases of active divergence (where the UK or some part of it changes its rules), 13 of passive divergence (where the EU changes its rules and the UK, or some part of it, does not follow), two of active alignment (where the UK and EU take the same regulatory steps in parallel), and five of delayed divergence (where either side postpones an upcoming case of divergence). This edition of the tracker finds that the UK has engaged in less active divergence over the past quarter. This is due in part to political instability, but also to Prime Minister Sunak’s emphasis on calming the markets and projecting a wider sense of political stability. The new administration has signalled its ambition to reform EU legislation, though in a more targeted manner than under the two preceding premierships.
Topic:
European Union, Regulation, Brexit, and Divergence
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

9. Where next? The future of the UK-EU relationship

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
01-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
Six and a half years since the Brexit referendum, UK relations with the EU have still not settled into a coherent and consistent pattern. Partly, this is because the process of leaving itself took so long. Partly, too, because there is much still to resolve, not least whether the treaties signed will be fully applied. This report examines the contours of that relationship. It assesses both where we have got to and how the relationship might evolve. The reports sets out the state of play on trade, migration, public opinion, as well as the various party positions on the relationship. It also highlights the deadlines and decisions on the horizon in a number of areas, such as financial services, electric vehicles and fisheries. Finally, it examines the ways in which the TCA could be deepened, and steps that might be taken beyond the TCA – both unilaterally and through increased cooperation with the EU – concluding that changes to the relationship are likely to be slow and incremental.
Topic:
International Relations, Migration, Treaties and Agreements, Public Opinion, European Union, Economy, and Trade
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

10. The state of public opinion: 2023

Author:
UK in a Changing Europe
Publication Date:
12-2023
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
A lot has changed since Boris Johnson celebrated ‘smashing’ the 2019 election. Since then, we’ve faced a global pandemic, two wars, and spiralling inflation and interest rates. Britain has lived through a tumultuous period. The same period saw Labour choose a new leader, whilst the Conservatives elected two. ‘Levelling up’ became the latest buzzword. ‘Partygate’ was followed by a series of allegations about impropriety at the top of government. Nineteen by-elections took place, for reasons ranging from resignations to recall petitions. As the cost-of-living crisis worsened, voter concern about the economy rocketed, whilst interest in Brexit declined. As we approach the next general election, understanding what the public makes of these developments, and how opinion and voting behaviour has shifted since December 2019, is crucial. This new UK in a Changing Europe report brings together over 45 of the UK’s top public opinion experts. They analyse both short and long-term trends that have shaped public attitudes and voting behaviour and will continue to do so in the run up to the next general election and beyond. The 36 contributions cover political parties, the four nations, key policy issues, voting behaviour and Brexit.
Topic:
Politics, Public Opinion, Elections, Brexit, and Polls
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe