Ryan Shorthouse is a British writer, thinker and entrepreneur. He is the founder and Executive Chair of Bright Blue, an independent think tank for promoting Liberal Conservatism.

Life and career

Ryan Shorthouse was chief executive of Bright Blue from 2014 to 2023 and is now executive chair.[1] He was previously a Research Fellow for the Social Market Foundation and a part of the team that won Prospect magazine's Think Tank of the Year in 2012.[2][3] Before 2010, he was a researcher for the Rt Hon David Willetts MP during his tenure as Shadow Education Secretary, where he authored the Conservative Party's Childhood Review.

He is also a writer and political commentator, appearing regularly on television, radio, and in print.[4][5][6][7][8][9]

Shorthouse has written widely on social mobility,[10] education,[11] Childcare,[12] universities,[13] immigration,[14] housing,[15] economics,[16] welfare,[17] and political philosophy.[18]

Under Shorthouse's leadership, Bright Blue has grown significantly in size and impact. Bright Blue has raised over £5 million for its work, employed around 60 people and seen the adoption of over 50 original Bright Blue policies by the UK Government.[19] Broadly, under David Cameron, Bright Blue's work helped improve education policy, especially on childcare and universities. Under Theresa May, it secured significant changes to environmental policy, including being the first centre-right organisation to call for the UK to adopt a legal net zero emissions target. Under Boris Johnson, Bright Blue helped change the post-Brexit immigration system for workers and students.[20] Under Rishi Sunak, many of Bright Blue's ideas on reforming childcare support were adopted.[21]

Shorthouse is a trustee of Transforming Access and Student Outcomes in Higher Education, and a senior visiting fellow of King's College London. He is also a commissioner of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission. He is also a mentor of the Social Mobility Foundation and governor of a state secondary school in East London.

In November 2022, Shorthouse announced that he would stand down as director and step up to chair the think tank[22] Bright Blue is appointing a new CEO in 2023.[23]

Publications

Social Market Foundation

Bright Blue

Books

References

  1. ^ "Ryan Shorthouse - Bright Blue".
  2. ^ "Ryan Shorthouse - Social Market Foundation".
  3. ^ "Prospect think-tank awards 2012".
  4. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (22 December 2016). "Don't blame the elite – that's the politics of nihilism and envy". The Guardian.
  5. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (17 July 2017). "Brexit is Britain's chance to become a human rights superpower". The Telegraph.
  6. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (28 March 2014). "Liberals are well served by the Conservative Party". The New Statesman.
  7. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (25 July 2016). "Brexit provides the perfect opportunity to crack the immigration question". The Spectator.
  8. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (31 March 2017). "The right-wing case against populism". Prospect.
  9. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (16 March 2020). "Offer government loans to change economics of childcare". The Times.
  10. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (18 February 2020). "The professions are still very much a playground for the rich". The Times.
  11. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (12 March 2014). "'Exaggerated value of private education'". The Telegraph.
  12. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (30 June 2015). "The quality, not quantity, of childcare needs improving". The Spectator.
  13. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (20 February 2018). "Ryan Shorthouse: Slashing fees would be an unjust tax cut for wealthy graduates". The Times.
  14. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (25 July 2015). "Brexit provides the perfect opportunity to crack the immigration question". The Spectator.
  15. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (20 March 2018). "Ryan Shorthouse: A helping hand on the property ladder". The Yorkshire Post.
  16. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (21 November 2017). "This is Philip Hammond's chance to show he is a champion of a fair society". The Evening Standard.
  17. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (29 October 2017). "Universal credit can work, but it needs tweaks". The Times.
  18. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (1 July 2020). "What right and left alike fail to see: life is filled with randomness". Prospect.
  19. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (22 November 2022). "Ryan Shorthouse: Looking back after eight years at Bright Blue". Bright Blue.
  20. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan (4 January 2020). "Ryan Shorthouse: A new chapter for Bright Blue in 2023". Bright Blue.
  21. ^ Blue, Bright (March 15, 2023). "Bright Blue: There is some brightness in this Budget". Bright Blue.
  22. ^ "Ryan Shorthouse: I'm losing faith that our current politics can deliver for my generation. Here's a Conservative agenda for change". tConservativeHome. 2022-12-13. Retrieved 2022-12-13.
  23. ^ Lampier, Sam (2022-11-22). "Bright Blue: Ryan Shorthouse to step down as CEO of Bright Blue". Bright Blue. Retrieved 2022-11-24.
  24. ^ "Open Access: An independent evaluation". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  25. ^ "Family Fortunes: the bank of mum and dad in low income families". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  26. ^ "Risky Business: Social Impact Bonds and public services". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  27. ^ "A Future State of Mind: Facing up to the dementia challenge". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  28. ^ "Sink or Swim? The impact of the Universal Credit". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  29. ^ "A Better Beginning: Easing the cost of childcare". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  30. ^ "The Parent Trap: Illustrating the growing costs of childcare". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  31. ^ "The Class of 2010". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  32. ^ "Disconnected: Social Mobility and the Creative Industries". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  33. ^ "Funding Undergraduates". Social Market Foundation. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  34. ^ "Home advantage: A new centre-right vision for housing" (PDF).
  35. ^ "An agenda for action: Reducing racial inequality in modern Britain".
  36. ^ "A carbonless crucible? Forging a UK steel industry".
  37. ^ "A vision for tax reform in the 2020s".
  38. ^ "Greening UK Export Finance".
  39. ^ "Fast track? European climate diplomacy after COP26".
  40. ^ "Rightfully rewarded: reforming taxes on work and wealth" (PDF).
  41. ^ "No place like home: The benefits and challenges of home working".
  42. ^ "Driving uptake: Maturing the market for electric vechiles".
  43. ^ "Delivering net zero: Building Britain's resilient recovery" (PDF).
  44. ^ "Framing the future: a new pensions commission" (PDF).
  45. ^ "Emission impossible?" (PDF).
  46. ^ "Distant neighbours?" (PDF).
  47. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Helping Hand? Improving Universal Credit" (PDF).
  48. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "CLEARING THE AIR Reducing air pollution in the West Midlands" (PDF).
  49. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Individual Identity" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  50. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Britain breaking barriers" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  51. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "The future of London" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  52. ^ "Conservatism and Human Rights" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  53. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Going part-time" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  54. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Reducing poverty by promoting more diverse social networks for disadvantaged people from ethnic minority groups" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  55. ^ "Generation Game" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  56. ^ "How Ethnic Minorities Think About Immigration" (PDF). Barrow Cadbury.
  57. ^ Shorhouse, Ryan. "A Manifesto For Immigration" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  58. ^ Shorhouse, Ryan. "A Future Without Poverty" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  59. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "A Centre-Right Plan for Immigration" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  60. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Understanding How Conservative Voters Think About Immigration" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  61. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Give and Take" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  62. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Emission Impossible" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  63. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "Tory Modernisation 2.0: The Future of the Conservative Party" (PDF). Bright Blue.
  64. ^ Shorthouse, Ryan. "The Moderniser's Manifesto" (PDF). Bright Blue.

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