Business, trade unions and civil society organisations are often itching for a better relationship with the government so that the full weight of their resources, expertise and insight can be utilised to tackle the challenges we face as a society. Over the years, many have presented options for how to get there and there are pockets of excellent practice. But in 2024, the incoming government inherits (amongst other challenges) a picture of mistrust and poor communication between central government and organisations that sit beyond the state.
The new government will be mission-driven, we’re told. The Prime Minister has been clear that his government will work in partnership, not just with business but with civil society too, and that partnership to deliver missions ‘isn’t just an invitation. It’s an ask.’
Can missions provide the opportunity to deliver better partnerships? And if so, how?
The promise of missions as a theory of government
Over the last year we have partnered with the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, led by Professor Mariana Mazzucato, and together we have boiled down what we think a missions approach should look like as a practice of government for the UK (published in May 2024).
Missions present a new mode of economic and public service reform which allow for the government to partner more equitably for shared impact. Kirsty McNeill MP recently described it as “being less about us sitting on opposite sides of a rectangular table and more about all of us sitting around a circular one, looking at the same information and issue.”
Setting a clear vision provides stability in the policy landscape which can make partnering with the government more attractive. And if missions are long-term, ambitious – even audacious – they create space and inspiration for non-government actors to get on board, to stretch themselves and to innovate towards shared goals for social, economic and environmental change. Missions also provide an opportunity to forge new relationships between state and citizen directly, in identifying and shaping the missions. And finally, they can and should enable genuine devolution; animated by a collective mission led with purpose from the top, local, regional and sub-regional governments could be the first instigators of a missions approach in practice.
Developing practical ideas for meaningful partnerships
Over the coming months we’ll publish a series of short pieces exploring practical ways that the government can work in meaningful partnership with others to deliver its missions.
We start from the assumption that the UK needs a reset in the relationship between all layers of government, businesses, trade unions, charities, social enterprises, community groups and civil society more widely, which:
- Adopts a sophisticated power analysis of society, understanding precisely where the levers for change lie, and where different actors are best placed to instigate change (including identifying the things that only central government can do).
- Understands that local and regional government is the main delivery vehicle of missions, with the centre focused on empowering the whole of government, including the civil service, to make partnership working habitual and instinctive.
- Invests in innovations for deeper democracy so that citizens themselves can engage in mission design and implementation, with intentionality about which approaches are appropriate in each instance.
- Utilises the levers of the state to direct resources (financial and non-financial) and encourage activity in service of those shared missions.
- Crowds in the rich insight and expertise of external partners at the core of policy design, communications and delivery, especially specialist organisations who can reveal patterns and experiences that the government might otherwise be unaware of.
Two drum beats at once
The new government will need to come back from a difficult recess with the sophistication to be able to set in motion two drum beats at once: to mend and improve politics today, and to earn the trust of society to work towards a different future. Both require deep partnership with businesses and civil society of the kind we are exploring with this work.
In recent weeks we have seen the importance of a strong civil society in tackling and resisting racist, Islamophobic and extremist violence. This inflection point could – with time, honesty, leadership and integrity – provide a window for radical reform, not only to respond to the violence, but to address root causes such as systemic racism and inequality, public discourse around migration, and disinformation online. As explored in Mission Critical 01, right-wing actors have been successful in using disasters to create coalitions that enable them to push through pro-corporate measures – what Naomi Klein referred to in 2007 as the ‘shock doctrine’ – and progressive governments could build the same capability for different purposes, to create a sense of urgency and motivation towards a positive vision for a more equal society, together.
As a society we need to connect long term, ambitious missions to what people are experiencing today, and that is only possible if missions are owned by the whole of society, not just by the whole of government.
This programme is deliberately a work in progress. We’re showing our workings in the open at the start of the work, rather than just at the end. As a forum of practitioners and experts, we want to hear from you. Please reach out if you would like to get involved in the work.
And if you’ll be in Liverpool for the Labour Party Conference, join us on Monday 23rd Sept, 17:15 – 18:15, at the Hilton Liverpool City Centre, for a panel discussion on Governing in partnership: How can Labour collaborate with business and civil society to create lasting change? Further details can be found here.
