• Research Briefing

    Ebola Outbreak 2014

    The 2014 Ebola outbreak started in Guinea in December 2013 and now Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia are all severely affected. It is the largest outbreak to date, at the time of writing there were over 9,000 confirmed or suspected cases. This note provides an overview of the disease, the international and UK responses to the 2014 outbreak and an outline of some of the experimental treatments being considered for use.

  • Research Briefing

    UK-USA Mutual Defence Agreement

    The Mutual Defence Agreement allows the US and UK to exchange nuclear materials, technology and information in order to improve their atomic weapon design, development and fabrication capabilities. The most important part of the MDA is due to expire at the end of 2014 and therefore an amendment treaty, which will extend this deadline to 2024, must be ratified by both States and brought into force by the end of this year.

  • Research Briefing

    European Union (Referendum) Bill

    This Private Member’s Bill was introduced to the Commons on 2 July 2014 and requires the holding of a referendum on the UK’s continued membership of the European Union (EU) before the end of 2017. This Paper has been prepared as a guide in advance of the second reading on Friday 17 October.

  • Research Briefing

    Mitochondrial donation in Parliament

    Earlier this year, following a consultation on draft regulations, the Government announced that they would be laying regulations before Parliament to allow for the introduction of new techniques to prevent the transmission of serious mitochondrial disease. Parliament will have an opportunity to scrutinise the draft Regulations and will be asked for its approval before they

  • Research Briefing

    Whatever happened to Zimbabwe?

    For over 10 years the crisis in Zimbabwe weighed heavily on the minds of British policy-makers and featured regularly in news bulletins. Yet over the last year or so, the country appears to have disappeared from view. Why? Well, plenty else has been going on. But it is also perhaps because the hopes for change

  • Research Briefing

    Organisational reforms to the immigration system since 2006

    The UK Border Agency has been replaced by the Home Office directorates ‘UK Visas and Immigration’, ‘Immigration Enforcement’ and 'Border Force'. In July 2014 the National Audit Office found that there has been mixed progress in addressing the concerns that had led to the abolition of the UKBA, and concluded that it is too early to detect an impact of organisational improvement on customers and stakeholders. Her Majesty's Passport Office has also been brought under direct Home Office control, with effect from 1 October 2014.

  • Research Briefing

    Common Threads Among UKIP Voters

    Speculation regarding the how, why, and who of UKIP successes over recent years has continued to amass over the four months since the 2014 elections. Yesterday’s by-elections in the constituencies of Heywood and Middleton and Clacton have added further fuel to the debate.

  • Research Briefing

    By-elections 2010-15

    The by-election in Rochester and Strood on 20 November 2014 was the 21st since the 2010 General Election. UKIP took the seat from the Conservatives with a majority of 2,920, pushing the Conservatives into second place.

  • Research Briefing

    Recall of MPs Bill 2014-15

    The Recall of MPs Bill 2014-15 was introduced on 11 September 2014, and is scheduled to be debated on second reading on 14 October. There was a commitment to legislate to introduce a power of recall in the Coalition Agreement, and a draft bill was scrutinised by the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee in 2012.

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