ResPublica

ResPublica (from the Latin phrase, res publica meaning 'public thing' or 'commonwealth') is a British independent public policy think tank, founded in 2009, by Phillip Blond.[1][2] It describes itself as a multi-disciplinary, non-party political research organisation, whose aim is the creation of bold solutions for enduring socioeconomic problems.[3]

For other uses, see Res publica (disambiguation).

ResPublica
TypeResearch organisation
IndustrySocial and political research
GenrePublic policy
Founded2009 (2009)
FounderPhillip Blond
Headquarters15 Whitehall, Westminster, London, United Kingdom
Key people
Phillip Blond
ServicesPolicy analysis and solutions
WebsiteResPublica

ResPublica's ideas are founded on the principles of a post-liberal vision of the future, which moves beyond the traditional political dichotomies of left and right, prioritising the much needed recovery of the language and practice of the common good.[4]

History
Founder Phillip Blond speaking at a ResPublica event in 2018

David Cameron, then the Leader of the Opposition, spoke at ResPublica's launch in 2009 and, at that time, Philip Blond was said to be a major influence on him.[5]

Phillip Blond is Director of ResPublica.[6] Until 2017, Max Wind-Cowie was Deputy Director for ResPublica North.[7]

In 2011, ResPublica was forced to make staff redundant after financial troubles resulted in their inability to pay their rent for a time. Philip Blond was later criticised in the media over claims he 'raided' the coffers of his own think tank to pursue a jet-set lifestyle."[8]

ResPublica was operated by a company called The ResPublica Trust,[3] which entered insolvent Administration in February 2019. The assets were bought by The Respublica Partnership Limited in a pre-packaged insolvency.[9][10]

Notable publications

ResPublica's report "To Buy, To Bid, To Build: Community Rights for an Asset Owning Democracy", launched on 15 November 2010, listed strategies for privatisation under-performing public sector built assets.[11][12][13] Greg Clark MP, Minister of State for Decentralisation at the Department for Communities and Local Government, spoke at the launch, which was hosted at NESTA with the support of the Development Trusts Association.

As part of the report 'The Community Renewables Economy', ResPublica submitted evidence to the Energy and Climate Change Committee's Local Energy consultation, and to the Department for Energy and Climate Change's (DECC) Community Energy call for evidence.[14]

In November 2013, the motion "to move that this House takes note of the July 2013 report of ResPublica 'Holistic Mission: Social Action and the Church of England'", which was proposed by the then Lord Bishop of Leicester, Tim Stevens, was debated in the House of Lords.[15]

In July 2014, ResPublica's report 'Virtuous Banking: Restoring ethos and purpose to the heart of finance' was launched at the Financial Times by Sir Richard Lambert, Chair of the Banking Standards Review council.[16] The report featured proposals for a 'Bankers' Oath' which was reported on widely in the media.[17]

In September 2014, ResPublica launched 'Devo Max - Devo Manc',[18] serving as a roadmap for devolution for Greater Manchester with greater control over finances and an elected mayor. With the signing of the November 2014 Devolution to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority agreement in November 2014, these changes were adopted by the Government and the Combined Authority.

In February 2015, ResPublica published 'Restoring Britain's City States: Devolution, public service reform and local economic growth' at the UK Devolution Summit, jointly hosted by ResPublica and The Core Cities.[19][20][21][22]

In November 2015, ResPublica's interim report 'The Care Collapse: The imminent crisis in residential care and its impact on the NHS'[23] was released (followed up by 'Care After Cure: Creating a fast track pathway from hospitals to homes[24]), which projected that the loss of care home beds would cost the NHS £3bn. Later the Government released further funds for the sector in the 2015 Autumn Statement.[25]

Funding

In 2018, before its reorganisation in 2019, ResPublica was rated as 'broadly transparent' in its funding by Transparify.[26] In November 2022, the funding transparency website Who Funds You? gave ResPublica an E grade, the lowest transparency rating (rating goes from A to E).[27]

See also

References
  1. Sackur, Stephen, ed. (20 October 2009). "HARDtalk: Phillip Blond, Director of ResPublica". BBC News Channel. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
  2. Knight, Rob (3 November 2009). "ResPublica - new UK policy think tank". Drupal.org.
  3. "About ResPublica". ResPublica. Archived from the original on 11 April 2011. Retrieved 16 June 2010.
  4. "About us". ResPublica.
  5. Singleton, Alex (3 December 2009). "Is Phillip Blond now David Cameron's most influential thinker?". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 8 December 2009.
  6. "Our People". ResPublica. Archived from the original on 24 December 2018.
  7. "Max Wind-Cowie". ResPublica. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017.
  8. McGee, Simon (5 June 2011). "Cameron guru's think tank hit by cash crisis". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 22 March 2013.
  9. "Other Corporate Insolvency Notices - The Respublica Trust". The London Gazette. 31 January 2019. CR-2019-000309. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  10. "The Respublica Trust". Companies House. Company No. 07081565. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  11. "To Buy, To Bid, To Build: Community rights for an asset-owning democracy". ResPublica. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  12. Holt, Andrew (15 November 2010). "ResPublica launches asset owning report". Charity Times.
  13. Millington, John (14 November 2010). "Ultimate sell-off". Morning Star. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
  14. "Respublica responds to the Energy and Climate Change Committee's Latest Report". ResPublica. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013.
  15. "Video & Transcript: House of Lords debate of Holistic Mission report". ResPublica. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013.
  16. "Virtuous Banking: Placing ethos and purpose at the heart of finance". ResPublica. Archived from the original on 1 August 2014.
  17.  • McGregor, Jena (30 July 2014). "A Hippocratic oath for bankers?". The Washington Post.
     • "Today Programme". BBC Radio 4. 29 June 2014.
     • "Bankers 'must swear oath' after scandals, says report". BBC News. 29 July 2014.
     • "Bankers should be made to take 'moral oath'". Sky News. 29 July 2014.
     • Quinn, James (28 July 2014). "Should bankers have to swear an oath? Sir Richard Lambert seems to think so". The Daily Telegraph.
     • Baird, Roger (29 July 2014). "Make bankers swear oath to do good like doctors". The Independent.
     • "Video: Bankers change slowly". The Financial Times. 29 July 2014.
     • Griffith, Gabriella (30 July 2014). "Banker's oath? Pah, how about threaten them with ye old bag of adders?". City A.M.
     • "The Guardian view on the latest scandal in a rotten culture". The Guardian. 29 July 2014.
     • Fagleman, David (29 July 2014). "When it comes to the banks, financial stability isn't enough". Conservative Home.
     • "Bankers Should Be Made To Take 'Moral Oath'". LBC Radio.
     • Bennett, Asa (29 July 2014). "Bankers called upon to swear oath not to rip off their customers". The Huffington Post.
  18. "Devo Max - Devo Manc: Place-based public services".
  19. "UK city council leaders call for Scottish-style tax powers". The Financial Times.
  20. Owen, Jonathan (9 February 2015). "Big cities call for devolved powers to tax and spend". The Independent. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  21. Wheeler, Caroline (7 February 2015). "Leaders of UK's largest cities launch 'Magna Carta' grab for spending power". Sunday Express. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  22. Macdonell, Hamish (9 February 2015). "Cities need to have more power, insists think-tank". The Times. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  23. "The Care Collapse: The imminent crisis in residential care and its impact on the NHS".
  24. "Care After Cure: Creating a fast track pathway from hospitals to homes".
  25. "PU1865 - Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015 - November 2015" (PDF).
  26. "Round-Up of Transparify 2018 Ratings". Transparify. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  27. "Who Funds You? ResPublica".
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