Name: Fixing Britain’s Failed State
Start: 2025-10-15T17:00:00+01:00
End: 2025-10-15T19:00:00+01:00
Location: Urban Sciences Building

$Fixing Britain\u2019s Failed State$

Join us for a exciting evening debating Sam Freedman’s book 'Failed State: Why Britain Doesn’t Work and How We Can Fix It'.
About this Event

Join Insights North East and the Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies (CURDS) for this exciting event debating Sam Freedman’s book ‘Failed State: Why Britain Doesn’t Work and How We Can Fix It’.

Sam Freedman will present the arguments from his book that Britain’s state is failing due to hyper-centralisation, the executive dominance of Number 10 and the Treasury, and media-driven policymaking. To fix the problems, Sam proposes rebuilding local government, strengthening parliamentary scrutiny, and rethinking the civil service.

Sam will present the arguments and potential solutions and engage in debate with our panellists:

Martin Brookes, Chief Executive, VONNE
Adrian Dougherty, Assistant Director, Inclusive Futures, North East Combined Authority
Sarah Longlands, Chief Executive, Centre for Local Economic Strategies
Sajda Nawaz-Bhatti, Head of Policy and Performance, Newcastle City Council
Andy Pike, Sir Henry Daysh Chair of Regional Development Studies, Newcastle University
Chair: Professor Jo Fox, Pro-Vice Chancellor, Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Newcastle

We look forward to welcoming you on 15 October.