Catherine Needham – The Conversation

Adam Vaughan/EPA

September 30, 2026

Burnham delivered honesty and emotion – but what about the promises? Our experts assess his plans

Catherine Needham, University of Birmingham; Chris Grover, Lancaster University; Elliott Johnson, Northumbria University, Newcastle; Hannah Bunting, University of Exeter; Jacopo Torriti, University of Reading; Peter Urwin, University of Westminster, and Steve Schifferes, City St George's, University of London

The prime minister wants fixing the crisis in social care to be the defining mission of his premiership.

Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey. Liberal Democrats/Flickr

June 11, 2024

Kate Hamblin, University of Sheffield and Catherine Needham, University of Birmingham

The Lib Dem manifesto addresses many of the key areas in social care that need reform. But it doesn’t say how the party would pay for them.

PA Images /Alamy

September 7, 2021

Catherine Needham, University of Birmingham

The government proposes to fix social care and rescue the NHS in one go. The levy it proposes risks only scratching the surface

Oh, the regret. EPA/Facundo Arrizabalaga

May 31, 2017

Catherine Needham, University of Birmingham

One policy above all others will haunt the Tory election campaign to the bitter end.

All smiles at 11 Downing Street. EPA/Facundo Arrizabalaga

March 8, 2017

Michael Kitson, Cambridge Judge Business School; Andrew Gunn, University of Leeds; Catherine Needham, University of Birmingham; Donald Hirsch, Loughborough University; Geraint Johnes, Lancaster University; Ian Greenwood, University of Leeds; Jonquil Lowe, The Open University; Kevin Farnsworth, University of York; Michael Devereux, University of Oxford, and Simon Wren-Lewis, University of Oxford

Philip Hammond delivers his last Spring Budget on the state of the UK economy. Our panel of experts dissect what it says.

Many families do provide care but it can be difficult. Shutterstock

February 13, 2017

Catherine Needham, University of Birmingham

The idea of family care is nice, but there are limits to what it can provide.