SPERI In conversation with.....

David Willetts’ career began as a civil servant at 10 Downing Street under Margaret Thatcher. He was elected to Parliament in 1992 as the MP for Havant and was Minister of State for Universities and Science between 2010 and 2014, and attended Cabinet meetings. As Universities Minister he introduced a series of wide-ranging reforms including the introduction of £9,000 tuition fees. This event is a unique opportunity to listen to David Willetts’ discuss a wide range of issues; including education policy, the EU Referendum and the Conservative Party.

David Willetts’ career began as a civil servant at 10 Downing Street under Margaret Thatcher. He was elected to Parliament in 1992 as the MP for Havant and was Minister of State for Universities and Science between 2010 and 2014, and attended Cabinet meetings. As Universities Minister he introduced a series of wide-ranging reforms including the introduction of £9,000 tuition fees. This event is a unique opportunity to listen to David Willetts’ discuss a wide range of issues; including education policy, the EU Referendum and the Conservative Party.

Frances became the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in January 2013, the first woman ever to hold this post. With 54 affiliated unions representing 6.2 million working people from all walks of life, the TUC campaigns for a fair deal at work and for social justice at home and abroad. Professor Andrew Gamble, Professorial Fellow at SPERI, engaged Frances in conversation on a wide range of topics, including the changing role of unions in British society, their capacity to contribute to the building of a new political economy and their stance on several key policy issues.

David Marquand is a widely respected writer, hiostorian and political economist. he has had a varied and remarkable career, including being a Labour MP, Professor of politics in Sheffield, and Principal of Mansfield College, Oxford.

Andy Haldane is Executive Director of Financial Stability at the Bank of England. He has a reputation for razor sharp analytical thinking and has spoken widely about the cost of the recent banking crisis and regulatory matters.