Dan Corry spent decades at the heart of British government — as an economist in the civil service, a special adviser to Labour through opposition and into power, and as head of the Council of Economic Advisers at the Treasury. He was closely involved in shaping some of the biggest economic decisions of the Blair and Brown years, including the minimum wage and the response to the 2008 financial crisis. Yet most people will never have heard of him. That, as he explains, was often rather the point.

After 2010 he moved into the charity sector, leading New Philanthropy Capital — a charity focused on helping other charities understand and demonstrate their impact — for a decade, before returning to policy work as an independent expert.

In this episode, Paul explores how economic advice actually shapes government decisions — and what gets lost along the way. Michael explores what it takes to build lasting influence without a public profile, and what Dan has learned across three very different careers.

Key themes

• From civil servant to special adviser: how economic advice actually reaches — and gets filtered by — political decision-making
• The minimum wage and the 2008 financial crisis: what it looked like from inside the room
• Influence without a profile: why being happy not to take the credit is often the most powerful strategy
• Running the National Economic Council: Gordon Brown's crisis innovation, why the Treasury hated it, and why it faded
• From Whitehall to the charity sector: a very different world, with no balance sheet and a Goldilocks reserves problem
• What has gone wrong with economic thinking about regulation — and where the current government is struggling

Links:

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If this conversation got you thinking about your own career — whether you're just starting out, looking to move up, or wondering about a change of direction — Michael offers one-to-one coaching. Find out more at www.michaelkellcoaching.com.

Paul's recent books: Sunday Times bestseller Follow the Money: How Much Does Britain Cost? and Challenging Inequalities: How We Got Stuck and Where We Go Next