9. No-fault accident insurance

New Zealand

That “income insurance” initiative will be administered by a longer-standing New Zealand institution, the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC). As Starmer struggles to shrug off the “London lawyer” caricature, something like this could help him confront the culture of “safetyism” that protects bureaucracies over their clients, and attract freespirited voters.

Under the ACC system, other than when exemplary damages are warranted, the right to sue over accidents is waived in return for “no-fault” compensation. Premiums are paid in earmarked levies, for example on fuel (for motor accidents), on employers (for workplace injuries) and on employees (for accidents away from work). But they are not pure cost: much compensation would otherwise come from separate public funds.

The theoretical risk is that this dulls the fear of litigation, and so makes employers, clinicians and drivers cavalier about accidents. But this is trumped by practical consideration of “what works.” ACC decisions are made quickly (within a day for simple cases), first payments typically follow within a week, and public trust in the outcomes is high, at 67 per cent. All this compares favourably with claiming private insurance, let alone protracted court action, where legal fees can eat deeply into compensation. Moreover, freed of the blame game, bureaucrats and medics may be less inhibited in establishing and learning from mistakes.

Targeted on the right problems, a British ACC could conceivably save money. The NHS clinical negligence bill is over £2bn, with admin on top. Get the money out of the door quicker, with less process and less argument, and the only losers would be the lawyers—as Starmer should lose no chance to point out.

New car sales are over 90 per cent electric in Norway, allowing the government to focus on subsidies for mass-market rather than luxury vehicles