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Matt Dykes

Matt Dykes

I’m a Policy Officer at the TUC, covering issues around transport, public service reform and civil society. I’m responsible for the TUC’s work on public service reform and have led the work on the TUC’s response to the Open Public Services white paper, as well as authoring the TUC’s report Civil Society and Public Services: Collaboration not Competition. I’m particularly interested in the relationship between public services and civil society, social enterprises, mutuals and co-operatives.

I’ve been at the TUC for 8 years and was formerly policy officer for our London region and national youth officer. I have previously worked for the Mayor of London as well as several years in the civil service. I’ve been an active rep for both PCS and UNISON, and was also a founder member of Justice for Colombia.

  • Public services

    Public Services Open for Business

    11th July 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    So we finally have it.  After months of delays, the Government today launched its ‘Open Public Services’ white paper. There’s little new here.  Most of its recommendations are gleaned from initiatives already announced in regard to health, education, mutuals and localism.

    What the white paper does do, however, is re-affirm the Coalition Government’s commitment to the marketisation of all public services outside of national security and the judiciary.  We are back in the territory the Prime Minister occupied in the heady days before the Health and Social Care Bill unravelled.

    David Cameron was adamant:

    This white paper says loud and clear that it shouldn’t matter if providers are from the state, private, or voluntary sector

    A clearer message to the market could not be given.  Public services are open for business.

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  • Public services

    Promoting an alternative vision of public service reform

    21st June 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    This week UNISON published ‘Mutual Benefit’ an excellent new report looking at the issues of mutuals, co-operatives and social enterprises running public services. The report rightly raises many of the concerns that the TUC shares about the threats posed by this government’s market-led agenda.

    But it also points to an alternative approach to public service reform, raising arguments that have been conspicuous by their absence in the current policy debate.  We believe there’s real value in exploring these arguments further.

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  • Economics

    The end of the line for UK rail production?

    16th June 2011 — Filed under: Economics

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    “We want the words ‘Made in Britain,’ ‘Created in Britain,’ ‘Designed in Britain,’ ‘Invented in Britain,’ to drive our nation forward. A Britain carried aloft by the march of the makers. That is how we will create jobs and support families” – George Osborne, Budget Statement, March 2011

    Bombardier Transportation, part of the French-Canadian global manufacturing group, is the last remaining train manufacturer in the UK and the heart of a rail engineering and production supply chain which constitutes one of the largest manufacturing clusters in Europe.  It employs 2,600 workers at its main plant in Derby, and more in its production centres in Crewe and Plymouth.  It builds trains for London Underground, UK rail and overseas markets.  It has formed groundbreaking learning agreements with its unions.

    You would think that this is exactly the sort of company that will spearhead the government’s drive to rebalance the economy towards production industries and export-led growth. Well, think again.

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  • Public services

    What can we learn from European public service mutuals?

    13th June 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    Co-operatives UK have published a new report looking at the experience of mutuals delivering public services in Europe.  It is one of the more useful contributions to the growing debate around public service mutuals and well worth a read.

    There are a number of lessons that can be drawn from the European experience.  There are three that struck me in particular.  Public service mutuals succeed when they meet specific community needs, where the state supports and nutures them and where models are clearly defined.

    The poorly defined and market-orientated model proposed by the Coalition fails on all accounts.  Which probably accounts for the lack of interest from the public and resistance from the workforce.

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  • Public services

    What the Big Society really means (again)

    23rd May 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    Another week, another Big Society relaunch.

    On the back of further evidence that the general public is still failing to get the message, David Cameron used his speech in Milton Keynes today to once again set out what the Big Society means and how his government plans to support it.

    I’m not entirely sure that the prime minister made things that much clearer.  But one thing’s for sure, the market for public services remains integral to the Big Society vision.

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  • Economics

    Three quarters of economic development projects axed in last 12 months

    20th May 2011 — Filed under: Economics

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    New research by the Local Government Chronicle demonstrates that the full impact on regional economic development resulting from the Government’s abolition of RDAs.

    Using Freedom of Information requests, LGC have revealed that, across eight RDA regions, 2,841 separate regeneration, economic development and business support projects have ended in the past twelve months as a result of £1.36 budget cuts.   In addition, over 1,800 RDA staff have lost their jobs.

    This represents a reduction in economic development activity of 73% from 2010.

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  • Economics

    McNulty report: Ignoring the elephant in the room while barking up the wrong tree

    19th May 2011 — Filed under: Economics

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    Apologies for the mixed animal metaphors but both apply particularly well to Sir Roy McNulty’s report on value for money in the UK rail industry, published today.

    Given the scale of the public subsidy and the painfully high fares inflicted on passengers, the review offered a great opportunity to address the long standing problems within the privatised rail industry.

    It is disappointing that this opportunity has been squandered. 

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  • Public services

    The Big Society market – who are the winners?

    18th April 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    “Charities and social enterprises play a hugely important role in delivering high-quality, efficient NHS services, and a policy of enabling whoever is best-placed to deliver could see them do more, to the immense benefit of NHS patients and taxpayers. We need to seize that opportunity, and leave debates about privatisation where they belong – in the last century.”

    These are the words of Sir Stephen Bubb, the Chief Executive of ACEVO, one of the Government’s preferred voices from the community and voluntary sector.

    At a time when the vast majority of ACEVO members are faced with spending cuts, job losses and service reductions, Sir Stephen sees a wealth of opportunity in the Government’s push to create a market for public services. Without wishing to sound too “last century”, I’d like to suggest to Sir Stephen that debates about privatisation seem increasingly apt.

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  • Public services

    A mutual loathing?

    14th April 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    “I want to talk today about our plans to set public sector workers free, to let them take control of their organisations, turn them into mutuals and have more control and autonomy over how things are run”.

    So said Francis Maude in November last year as he launched the Government’s drive to enable more public sector workers to create mutuals that will take over the running of services they provide.

    But are public sector workers embracing the brave new world of the mutual?  Events at MyCSP this week would suggest not.

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  • Public services

    Job losses, scepticism, re-branding a flagship initiative … no, this isn’t the Health Bill

    8th April 2011 — Filed under: Public services

    Matt Dykes Matt Dykes

    The attempt this week to win over public and professionals alike to the Government’s reforms of the NHS brought to mind another recent re-branding exercise where David Cameron tried to salvage a flagship policy in the face of overwhelming scepticism.

    Yes, I’m talking about the Big Society.

    As with the NHS, so with the Big Society.  The Prime Minister nailed his personal colours to the mast.   He told us of his “passion” and his “100% commitment” to his “mission” to “try and build a bigger and stronger society whatever is happening to public spending.”

    But evidence continues to suggest that the Big Society remains crippled by the devastating impact of the Government’s cuts on the voluntary sector and the resulting levels of sceptism among the workforce and general public.

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