Evidence based policy making in an age of austerity

This paper reflects on the course of evidence based policy making (EBPM) in the United Kingdom over the last ten years: from the New Labour Government through the Coalition Government to the post 2015 Conservative Governments. A central focus is how the politics of austerity have shaped EBPM. Hayek’s theory of spontaneous ordering is introduced to examine whether EBPM since 2010 has taken a distinct course linked to the wider statecraft of austerity politics, the reduction in the role of the state and the preferencing of market based solutions. The paper finds the state or a ‘made order’ of EBPM to be resilient but under threat not just from austerity but also the rise of post-truth politics.