Matthew Flinders is a 125th Anniversary Chair and Professor of Politics and Public Policy at the University of Birmingham, and Vice President of the Political Studies Association of the United Kingdom. His main research interests are governance, public policy, anti-politics and democratic change. He is currently focused on progressing the scientific study of policy success, as part of an international project on ‘positive public administration’.
The notion of being ‘positive’ (but not naïve) about the achievements and potential of democratic politics has formed the foundation of Prof. Flinders research, writing and teaching. His book, Defending Politics (Oxford University Press, 2012), has been translated and published all over the world, and formed the basis of a three-part series on BBC Radio 4. In relation to teaching, back in 2010 he worked with the then Speaker of the House of Commons to develop and pilot the first university module in the world to be formally co-taught and accredited by parliament. Not only is this module now taught in 25 universities in the United Kingdom, but it has allowed students to observe the inner workings of day-to-day politics and to gain a level of experiential understanding that could never be achieved solely by reading and discussing the topic.
Professor Flinders served as Chair of the Political Studies Association (2014-2016), was a member of the Economic and Social Research Council (2018-2020), and was chair of the Universities Policy Engagement Network from 2020-2023. In 2025 he was appointed to the Advisory Panel for the Government’s independent Police Leadership Commission and he currently chairs of sub-panel 19 (Politics and International Studies) for REF2029.
In April 2026, he was awarded the Sir Isaiah Berlin Prize.