Stuart Astill is a consultant and academic with a strong interest in government and, particularly, political analysis. He is Principal Consultant at IOD PARC, a leading global specialist provider that helps organisations to assess what works and why, and develops and facilitates processes that enhance future performance. He is also a Research Associate at the Public Policy Group of the LSE and recently visiting lecturer in the Department of Politics at the University of Sheffield. Working on contributions to an edited book on Complexity and Public Policy. Preparing material for two books; one goes to the heart of the fundamental questions about how markets and state intervention fit alongside pragmatic constraints in government; another on how quantitative based methods that are often seen as using unattainably advanced mathematics can be clearly presented and made accessible to influence political analysis more widely. The views in this blog are his own and not those of any of his employers or clients.