Policy Papers
History & Policy papers are written by expert historians, based on peer-reviewed research. They offer historical insights into current policy issues ranging from Afghanistan and Iraq, climate change and internet surveillance to family dynamics, alcohol consumption and health reforms. For historians interested in submitting a paper, please see the editorial guidelines.
Currently, 252 papers are freely searchable by theme, author or keyword, with new papers published regularly. Where possible, we publish papers to coincide with relevant policy developments. If you are a policy maker, civil society practitioner or journalist and would like to contact one of our historians, please contact [email protected].
You can download H&P policy papers directly from the Apple iBooks store to your iPhone, iPad or Mac. We also have an Amazon Kindle version to download to your PC for transfer to your Kindle via USB cable. Please consult your Kindle manual for further details.
Europe and Russia: the Longest War
Hugh Small argues that a new European version of NATO would be an inappropriate response to the conflict in Ukraine and the threat from Russia. The crisis has highlighted new technologies that change how war is waged. Another arms race would weaken Europe’s ability to withstand Russia’s encroachment. Europe needs to think in broader terms about its security, including reducing its current dependency on fossil fuels.
Read MoreNational Health Service policies and guidelines for mental healthcare for adults in England, 2000-2024
Claire Hilton argues that NHS mental health policy over the last quarter of a century has lacked well-researched, patient-focussed evidence tied to human rights. Services have been adequate for many mentally unwell people, but they have failed many others, including those with the most severe mental disorders, whose overall physical, mental and social wellbeing could be improved. Policy makers require deeper understanding of the realities of mental illness, patients’ needs and relevant research, and the will to steer mental healthcare out of the current quagmire.
Read MoreThe Gospel of Efficiency: DOGE and the UK Office of Value for Money in historical perspective
The establishment of the UK’s Office of Value for Money (OVfM) in late 2024 was accompanied by a claim that this new initiative would be ‘informed by lessons learned from the past’. Yet these lessons arguably point to the challenges posed by top-down efficiency changes and the creation of new entities. Instead, Michael Wetherburn suggests, the government might usefully draw on best practice from elsewhere within the public and private sectors, or bolster extant organisations like the National Audit Office.
Read MoreNew Labour and Street Homelessness 1997-2010
The Labour governments of 1997-2010 were highly successful in reducing the numbers of rough sleepers and in enabling resettled homeless people permanently to escape from the streets. David Christie and Nicholas Crowson argue that their approach has direct relevance to for the efforts of the current administration to tackle the problem of homelessness on a scale not seen since the 1990s.
Read More‘In All Our Footsteps’: access to the land in historical perspective
The government of Keir Starmer wants to enhance public access to the countryside. Previous Labour administrations have passed significant leglislation on this subject, and ministers and officials need to be aware of the lessons of these earlier initiatives. Glen O'Hara argues that these lessons from history include the importance of patience, story-telling, a sense of the local, an emphasis of positive rather than negative rights and the mobilisation of civic society.
Read MoreThe Feeding of Schoolchildren by the State
The Labour Government's plans for breakfast clubs are just the latest stage in a history of the state feeding children at school which stretches back for over a century. Policy in this area has been prompted by a far wider range of motivations than simply an altruistic concern for children's health, and debates about state-intervention have inevitably become politicised. John Stewart points to the importance of viewing new initiatives within the context of broader policies designed to tackle the structural problem of child problem, one that has proved depressingly persistent.
Read MoreWhy Thames Water is Top of Sue Gray’s Risk Register
The pollution of the Thames is not a new phenomenon. For much of the twenieth century it was tolerated so long as London's tap water was adequate. Privatisation clearly did not provide the solution. But John Davis argues that Thames Water's current financial difficulties may offer an opportunity for the government to take decisive action.
Read MorePlanning for the Bicentenary of the Abolition of Slavery and African Emancipation in 2033-38
As we approach the bicentenary of slavery’s abolition and African emancipation (2033-2038), crucial questions are surfacing concerning how the emergence of archival evidence and new research findings can be incorporated effectively into national and local memorialisation. Dr Michael D. Bennet and Dr James S. Dawkins argue for the creation of an independent historical advisory panel to help ensure that memorialisation across Britain avoids repeating the shortfalls of previous efforts at remembrance and facilitates a more linked-up programme of memorialisation between Britain and Caribbean nations.
Read MoreAsylum Barges in historical context: Britain’s prison hulks expose fault lines in today’s policy
As part of the Home Office policy of housing asylum-seekers on barges, the first 15 refugees boarded the Bibby Stockholm on 7 August 2023. The initiative invites a number of comparisons with the use of prison hulks in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. These historical echoes suggest that the current policy may be less cheap, popular and temporary than the government seems to assume.
Read MoreIncome Tax rates and popular attitudes: Lessons from post-war British history
It has become an accepted view that popular attitudes to tax became more negative in the 1970s and have remained so ever since. However, this is not supported by a recent study of the relevant evidence. There has been little overall change since the late 1940s. The public have consistently prioritised fairness in taxation and have also been concerned to maintain public services.
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About Us
H&P is based at the Institute of Historical Research, Senate House, University of London.
We are the only project in the UK providing access to an international network of more than 500 historians with a broad range of expertise. H&P offers a range of resources for historians, policy makers and journalists.
