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Last Notes

2026-06-01 07:42:23 GMT

Friends & colleagues, I have been advised that my instance has been over-run with Russian chatbots & so this afternoon will be transferring to a new instance.
As a result later today (and possibly into tomorrow) there will be a hiatus in posting while I work my way through the transfer protocol.
I will post from the new instance when the transfer is complete - you should find there is no need for you to do anything if you want to continue following my posts.
More on this later
#mastodon

2026-06-01 06:03:30 GMT

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Bite Size Economics No. 3
'markets are never free'
The idea that in some ideal world markets can be free misunderstands how markets work; they are dependent on property & contract laws shaped by the state (or in earlier times the local political authority).
Historically markets have operated without formal laws, but even then community trust & local authority set the norms for market interactions.
All markets are regulated the issue is how & by whom?
#BiteSizeEconomics #economics #markets

2026-06-01 05:42:17 GMT

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As noted at the bottom of the post, its a story in the FT... if you can get behind the paywall here's a link to the article.
https://www.ft.com/content/5c8a871f-9a49-45f4-9ac0-543a608a5a9d?syn-25a6b1a6=1

2026-06-01 05:28:09 GMT

In another hint of the slow but sure pivot away from the US engineered by the Tangerine Tyrant, it looks like the Norwegians, having rejected membership of the EU twice, are again (seriously) considering a move to join the EU in light of the changing global political environment.
There is of course 'many a slip twixt cup & lip' but even the serious consideration of such a move tells us much about how the USA's position in the global political economy is changing!
#EU #Norway #politics
h/t FT

2026-05-31 11:25:40 GMT

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The key issue here is how the creation of credit impacts on asset values & their treatment in the recording of inflation.... so, we are sometimes told that QE (a massive creation of credit) didn't really cause any inflation, but actually it did in asset markets (and continues to do so) but these (housing & shares especially) are not included fully in inflation measures, hence obscuring the role of credit creation (I'm not a monetarist but the effects are also not trivial)

2026-05-31 08:47:24 GMT

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I agree with your final point & also as noted earlier am not convinced incarceration is working in general, but as you point out 'victims must be given support and comfort, as well as knowledge that this won't happen again'... but this is not what seems to be happening here.

2026-05-31 08:02:23 GMT

While many of us are critical of the lack of custodial sentence for sexual assault by young perpetrators (given the seriousness of the crimes & the impact on the victims), this is not to argue that imprisonment of young offenders is working... it clearly isn't.
The care, offence, prison, reoffending cycle suggests that for a key group of young people whose circumstances are already dysfunctional, society is failing to extricate them from an environment that encourages criminality.
#politics

2026-05-31 07:39:39 GMT

Q. as Tony Blair says the public would back a 'rethinking of healthcare', we might ask why whenever a 'rethinking' of healthcare is proposed its always about how the private sector involvement can be expanded, not how we might better fund & support both existing public provision & the woefully underfunded preventative aspects of public health?
Its almost like politicians talking about health had already been bought up by private health care providers.... oh, hold on.
#NHS #health #healthcare

2026-05-31 07:15:28 GMT

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Bite Size Economics No. 2
'Money is trust'
Money is usually seen as a store of value or a means of exchange but these functions depend on its manifestation of trust.
We trust money is acceptable to others (in the form we want to use from paper money to digital payments); we trust its value is (at least in the medium term) relatively stable.
When our trust declines so does money's stability (inflation, barter exchange). So, without our trust money cannot work!
#BiteSizeEconomics #economics

2026-05-28 17:12:35 GMT

Ever greater numbers of young people are no longer seeking work according to ONS data.
Before we blame the benefits system or education.... perhaps we should think of this differently.
If we see employment as a 'service' to workers (which it sort of is, as well as being of benefit to employers!), then we should look at what sort of work is on offer.
In a market if demand declines the product (here jobs) is unappealing!
Look at the jobs on offer, not the prospective workers!
#workers

2026-05-28 05:49:04 GMT

There's been a lot of coverage of the forthcoming report by Alan Milburn on young people's work prospects, but what is refreshing is that he seems to be rejecting the usual victim blaming & rather focussing on the dysfunctional structures & systems that young people confront when trying to find their way into the workforce.
This change of emphasis is very welcome, but whether it will find its way into any policy responses is a different matter.
#workers #politics
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy026x9jpd0o

2026-05-28 05:41:23 GMT

Disappointingly, but all to predictably Jonathan Liew exercise a long critique of X (formally Twitter), but concludes that the 'utopian idea of the digital town square is dead for ever' without even mentioning Mastodon, which while not perfect (seem to me) to get quite a long way towards that ideal....
We've noted before how (wilfully?) blind to Mastodon mainstream journalists are, so we shouldn't be surprised, just disappointed (again).
#mastodon #SocialMedia
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/may/28/still-on-x-ask-yourself-why-platform-twitter-malign-actors-misinformation

2026-05-27 17:32:36 GMT

The reform of university financing & specifically the student loan system will only come when we reject the notion that most (or indeed all) the benefits of attending university are captured by graduates (the business model that sees them pick up the entire headline cost of tuition).
A university educated cohort is a major pubic good in many ways & so the Govt. *should* take on a significant proportion (if not all) the cost(s)....
#politics #universities
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2026/may/27/tax-on-ambition-graduates-tell-all-to-student-loans-inquiry

2026-05-26 17:26:18 GMT

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I know... its almost like in the C19th we had some idea how to manage civil engineering projects...

2026-05-26 17:19:02 GMT

To no-one's surprise, given the (justified) uproar about the sentencing in the Hampshire juvenile rape trial are now to be officially reviewed....
Certainly the boys themselves may have their problems, but these cannot outweigh the life changing damage & harm done to the victims.
For the Rule of Law to work justice has to be seen to be done, and in this case the Judge came nowhere near....
#politics #RuleOfLaw
https://www.theguardian.com/law/2026/may/26/court-of-appeal-to-review-sentences-of-teenage-boys

2026-05-26 17:13:52 GMT

As its is announced that HS2 spent £65mn on consultants in 2025 to figure out it 'reset', the most expensive railway in the world has become a classic example of what is wrong with the UK.
Mangers don't know what they're doing so hire consultant who will say whatever they think will maximise their fee;
The idea of the public good is evacuated of meaning & is only measured using monetised cost-benefit analysis;
the political cycle destroys everything it touches.
#HS2 #politics
h/t FT

2026-05-26 07:17:04 GMT

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Indeed, great (and important) point - boosted!

2026-05-26 06:04:21 GMT

The parallel between social media & smoking is gaining traction due to:
the similarity of usage level to harm caused (albeit of different sorts);
the role of business groups in trying to undermine regulation;
the move to regulate use based on age.
But unlike cigarettes the age-regulation of social media brings with it much higher levels of surveillance (to prove age online) for the rest of the population.... and here the metaphor radically breaks down!
#SocialMedia
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y7r9gqp6jo

2026-05-26 05:51:02 GMT

RIP Sonny Rollins
For jazz fans a towering colossus of the saxophone, Rollins work spanned be-bop to fusion, with his distinctive sound always taking the lead.
Famous for practicing on Brooklyn Bridge & memorialising it in music as well as providing the soundtrack for Alfie (a landmark British film), Rollins was one of those musicians who was alway there, always playing & always interesting.
A genius has left the stage
#jazz #music

2026-05-26 05:16:04 GMT

As a policy its never really seems to work, but Rachel Reeves has joined a procession of past politicians declaring that we should Buy British.
A well managed Buy British public procurement policy can have good Keynesian multiplier effects, but without a stronger legislative & incentive structure such invocations are usually largely ineffective due to other (cost, capacity & technological) considerations.... it also requires a stronger & funded surrounding industrial policy!
#economics
h/t FT

2026-05-25 17:13:46 GMT

To the sceptics among us the rash of prospective Initial Public Offerings from AI-related enterprises reflect not so much confidence in the future of AI & related technologies bit rather the actions of a group of promoters looking to cash out while the market is booming, searching for the fools to buy them....
(its said every speculative market needs fools; if you don't know who they are then its likely you; but watch out, booms only run until the last fool has invested!)
#AI #investment

2026-05-25 17:09:22 GMT

When the continuing negotiations produce something to look at, there is growing suspicion that by using their leverage over the Straits of Hormuz (and threats to US clients/allies around the Middle East), the Iranians may walk away with a pretty good deal (for the regime, that is), leaving the Tangerine Tyrant some vacuous claims to make but essentially a material loss.
If so, this will be yet one more marker of the geopolitical decline of the US; so much for the Art of the Deal, huh?
#Iran

2026-05-25 08:34:53 GMT

The Bear sums up the great Right wing hypocrisy in their 'discussion' of migration - its not the issue of migration that's the underlying problem, its who the migrants are... and of course we knew this, but good to have ti so summarily laid out!
(one might also see this instructive on why right wing 'ex-pats' who voted for Brexit, then were surprised to discover the EU was no longer quite so welcoming to their residency preferences).
#migration #politics #brexit
https://www.bearlypolitics.co.uk/p/the-great-migration-fannywobble
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/116/634/286/338/774/147/original/466a745cb376b495.png

2026-05-24 08:38:04 GMT

Why do (some) people find ReformUK Ltd appealing?
Well, we might focus on the state's contempt of ordinary people, exhibited from the Grenfell fire, to the Post Office scandal, from Windrush to the infected blood scandal.
The Fascist Frog is a charlatan, but his appeal to ordinary people ('I'm like you') despite being demonstrably) false is key... and this is why Zack Polanski's videos have seen the Green Party of England & Wales' support rise.
People are fed up with the contempt!
#politics

2026-05-24 08:26:42 GMT

Meanwhile in the Straits of Hormuz, the Iranians have established a toll system that sees payment in Renminbi and/or in kind (in various forms), despite the bluster of the Tangerine Tyrant.
In the end the US/Israeli attacks on Iran, will likely have raised the costs to shipping in the area (to Iran's benefit) & also revealed the leverage control of the Straits' can give... although as other routes/methods are developed for shipping oil out of the region, such leverage may not last.
#politics

2026-05-24 07:17:12 GMT

As Chase Foster & Jeff Frieden conclude:
'Economic insecurity remains a powerful driver of political discontent. The design of social policy therefore matters'...
When the protection of communities from the disruption of the global market & swift technological changes to work, is regarded as 'too expensive' or economically inefficient, then Right populism (and its mis-directed blame game) can prosper.
The welfare state remains a bulwark against the Right.
#politics
https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2026/05/18/welfare-spending-reduces-populism-support/
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/116/628/312/590/456/099/original/fb110847943fc615.png

2026-05-23 17:09:50 GMT

The Labour Party has presided over a rise in political prisoners in the UK (what else would you call people imprisoned for protesting about environmental issues or the situation in Gaza?).
When we wonder whether the Labour Party is the bulwark against the right that it still wants to present itself as, we might wonder how this differs from what a ReformUK Ltd Govt. might do?
And if you defend Labour as the better of two evils, then we really are lost!
#politics
https://www.theguardian.com/law/2026/may/23/anti-protest-sentences-rise-england-wales-political-prisoners

2026-05-23 07:14:51 GMT

More on the accelerating Ebola crisis in the DRC.
Without wishing to be alarmist (but accepting that it will sound that way) this is starting to remind me of the reports that were coming out of Wuhan in the January & February before we knew to call the health crisis about to engulf the world 'Covid'.
There's many way this may not come to pass, not least of all due to the lessons learnt during the pandemic six years ago, but nonetheless, I'm getting worried.
#ebola
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/23/ebola-virus-spread-drc-democratic-republic-of-congo

2026-05-22 05:52:51 GMT

My problem with the argument that progressive voters & parties should get behind Andy Burnham to defeat ReformUK Ltd, is its just one more example of Labour's entitlement; their view that they remain the key opposition to the far right.
Rather, Labour has legitimised & normalised rightest views & policies, and has been antagonistic towards any notion of the development of a progressive alliance.
How much longer should/can we accept Labour's (now pretty clearly) empty promises?
#politics
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/116/616/657/445/059/732/original/58ab468457962104.png

2026-05-21 17:35:42 GMT

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Yes, its all a bit odd isn't it

2026-05-21 17:20:25 GMT

So, the Green Party of England & Wales' candidate for the Makersfield by-election has pulled out for 'personal & family reasons'; as such a new candidate will now need to be found (pretty quickly).
Many might wonder if this is the first stage in the GPEW seeking to give Andy Burnham an easier ride in the by-election?
This, as has been discussed here over the last couple of days, is a potentially contentious move, if this *is* what it is.
#politics #greens #Makersfield
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq6pver77gpo

2026-05-21 17:14:29 GMT

In 1990 UK billionaires had wealth equivalent to 4% of GDP, now they have wealth equivalent to 22% of GDP... and have hollowed out the UK's economy where the fruits of labours effort & innovation are captured by an elite who are getting richer & richer while the rest of us are trapped in an economy that fails to provide even a basic level of wellbeing & comfort for many.
The Labour Party no longer has an answer to this, if it ever did!
#inequality #politics #wealth
https://equalitytrust.org.uk/news/ghost-gdp-billionaire-britain-and-the-hollow-economy/

2026-05-21 05:45:48 GMT

The Green Party of England & Wales looks like deciding not to make a major showing in Makerfield, to give Andy Burnham a better shot at winning the by-election.
A Green official told the FT:
'We do not want this one to go to Reform & to be quite frank we do not want Labour to be able to turn around and say ‘if you vote Green, you’re actually voting Reform’ because that will be used for the next three years...
[so] actually, this isn’t going to be a big priority or a Green target'
#politics

2026-05-21 05:30:43 GMT

We know the rise of the Greens & ReformUK Ltd has shifted voters away from supporting the Labour Party. The Economist used these results to match the age & work profile of workers to map this transition between 2021 & 2026.
The diagram below offer a (further) stark demonstration of why the Labour Party is wrong-headed in their aping of ReformUK, not least because their support from such wider base is moving to the Green Party of England & Wales.
#politics #Greens
h/t Andy Cotgreave/LinkedIn
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/116/610/894/740/573/915/original/663f9987c579afb1.jpeg

2026-05-20 17:31:55 GMT

Well, well, well, a housing provider that has been channelling state grants into its provision of social housing via a complex financial engineering model has (on going into administration) resulted in the potential privatisation of homes built with state grants.... while the grants look likely not be recovered.
Its not as if anyone could have predicted that involving private equity in social hosing might result in money flowing to 'investors' & not housing?
#housing
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/may/20/social-housing-investment-firms-heylo-administration

2026-05-20 17:15:17 GMT

The problem of trying to conduct policy by briefing the media is all too clear clear in the immediate reversal on a putative 'deal' to relax some supermarket regulations in return for voluntary procedures-capping;
Now, the Treasury now saying they were never going to announce such measure tomorrow anyway.....
Whatever one thinks of the policy itself this sort of cack-handedness does nothing to support confidence in the Govt.'s grip on economic policy!
#politics #supermarkets
h/t FT

2026-05-19 20:34:24 GMT

In the slow moving programme to hold someone (anyone!) to account for the death at the Grenfell Tower fire, the police have reached the stage of passing CPS charges against 77 companies (and individuals) for potential wrongdoing.
However, trials are some time off & so once again we are left with justice still being delayed meaning justice is still being denied.
#Grenfell #politics
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/may/19/grenfell-fire-police-criminal-charges-companies-individuals

2026-05-19 17:41:09 GMT

Anyone who thinks the two stories related in the piece below about disabled people being marooned in hospital as their integrated home care package cannot be agreed, has nothing to do with budgeting is missing what is going on in the engineered crisis of the NHS & the care sector.
As always its vulnerable people who are trying to live their best lives (but needing support to do so) who are the target of spreadsheet wielding managers.
#disability #NHS #health
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2e2zvlyy38o

2026-05-19 06:10:19 GMT

For Andrew Malkinson, whose life was ruined by (as finally proved) a wrongful conviction, the fight for compensation for this life changing damage continues.
It seems like the Inquiry into his wrongful conviction will find both Greater Manchester Police (first) and the Criminal Cases Review Commission (later) made crucial mistakes that caused him to lose 20 years of freedom, so his case for compensation should be strong.
But how do you compensate for that?
#politics
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c74r1x7dj8go

2026-05-19 06:03:38 GMT

Q. what should the Green Party of England & Wales do in the Makerfeld by-election?
Should they reign back to give Andy Burnham a better chance but demand action of electoral reform (perhaps)?
Should they fight the seat on the grounds they could win... and any 'splitting' of the Left vote is Labour's problem not their's?
There are no easy answers here, but the vey fact this *is* an issue, actually reflects the rising success of the GPEW!
#Makerfield #Greens #politics
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/may/18/greens-andy-burnham-makerfield-byelection-reform

2026-05-19 05:43:07 GMT

You'll not be surprised the Pension Commission has concluded that low & medium paid workers are not saving enough for a 'comfortable' retirement;
Its no use telling them about the consequences of not paying into pensions if they haven't enough money to make a choice in any case.
The push of workers into self-employment has also reduced pension saving as the self-employed seldom (now) have made pension provision(s).
Low pay & precarious work has a long shadow.
#pensions #politics
h/t FT

2026-05-19 05:25:23 GMT

Are the projections of future battery usage associated with the shift to electrically driven vehicles too focussed on cars?
The CEO of Tianqi Lithium, Frank Ha has suggested that the shift in commercial vehicles, industrial machines & shipping has been under-estimated & may represent a major aspect of the transition to electrical power across the world... while clearly he's not disinterested, it is an interesting proposition as it suggests a further surge in battery demand.
#batteries
h/t FT

2026-05-19 05:19:46 GMT

If you wanted an indication of why the world needs the International Criminal Court, it now seems that while in Beijing the Tangerine Tyrant suggested to Xi Jinping might help coordinate a joint move against the ICC with Russia, with the TT claiming that it was in all three leaders' interest to see the Court neutered.
The ICC may not be perfect but if Trump, Xi & Putin all think its dangerous then we might conclude its doing something right?
#ICC #politics #InternationalLaw
h/t FT

2026-05-19 05:14:49 GMT

It now seems that in the last couple of years international university student registrations in the USA have declined by 20%....
Given that UK universities have been forced into a business model that emphasises the recruitment of foreign students this would have been a great opportunity..... but, of course, the Govt. is also doing its best to dissuade foreign students from coming to the UK, thereby undermining the very business model universities have been pushed into.
#universities #politics

2026-05-18 21:25:14 GMT

Your regular reminder that while UK politicians can discuss whether we should seek to rejoin the EU & what sort of 'red-lines' we might hold to.... actually the only view(s) that matters is the EU Commission's & EU Leaders' - and as not infrequently pointed out there is little appetite to cut the UK a deal - no, if we want to rejoin, we rejoin as 'normal' new member....
It would still be a good deal, but reconfirms Brexit as political self-harming!
#EU #UK #Brexit
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/18/no-tailor-made-deal-uk-eu-brexit-officials-rejoin

2026-05-18 21:17:44 GMT

Hmmm.... so now Andy Burnham is saying he will keep with Rachel Reeves (revised) fiscal rules *and* end austerity.
Looks like we've swiftly returned to having your cake and eating it territory unless he has a clever trick up his sleeve?
Well, I guess now we wait for the detail(s).....
#politics

2026-05-18 17:30:26 GMT

'A lot of working-class people, they don’t want a lot', says Martin a former miner. 'They want enough to get by & to have nicer things in life. To go on holiday & to have good food and things like that. They are not bothered about yachts and aeroplanes... They are just happy enough to get through in life with a job, a secure job to pay the mortgage & to look after their family'
And the problem is the UK *doesn't* achieve even that for many!
#inequality #politics
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/may/18/reform-voters-progressive-post-industrial-northern-england

2026-05-18 17:06:46 GMT

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Ok, you're convincing me.... I have no dog in this race, so happy to accept I was being too optimistic about the likely benefits up North

2026-05-18 14:34:48 GMT

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The Q. I guess is whether a multi-city North of England bid might be able to square that circle - I'm sure you'd say no, but I did wonder (hence the post)

2026-05-18 06:05:45 GMT

While I understand why London's Mayor might criticise the development of an Olympics bid focussed on the North of England, the idea that this is a wasted opportunity gets the logic the wrong way round; the wasted opportunity would be if London (again) gained the investment & activity involved in hosting rather than that being focussed on the North.
Let's not continually fall for the logic that only London has the infrastructure required for global events!
#politics
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/may/17/london-mayor-sadiq-khan-plans-north-of-england-olympics

2026-05-18 05:44:54 GMT

In Birmingham, ReformUK Ltd, the largest party has declined to form a local administration (there's no prospective coalition partners), while Labour (the previous administration) will not form any coalition, leaving the Green Party of England & Wales to the (impossible?) task of forming an administration for the largest local authority in Europe.
Might this be Reform looking to avoid any more mistakes in local Govt. while giving the Greens a 'fools errand' likely to fail?
#Birmingham
h/t FT

2026-05-17 18:26:55 GMT

Whatever you think about the levels of profitability in the UK's economy, one thing is clear voters are vastly over-estimating how much firms make in profits.... but perhaps most telling (in this misunderstanding of what is going on) is the apparent perception that the NHS makes a profit (although there is a chance respondents didn't properly understand the Q.?).
(And of course this was carried out by the right wing Inst. for Economic Affairs, no doubt to prove a point!)
#economics #business
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/116/591/318/023/277/570/original/8aa16f671765fac5.png

2026-05-17 10:01:18 GMT

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Yes, I think there's a growing recognition that this 'long game' of conflation is a major contributor to the manner in which the two are now seen (politically) as interchangeable even when there are formal declarations that they are not;
its another case of patient engineered inculcation (which one might compare to the similar sorts of 'campaigns' in fiscal & public economics - see for instance the long-running critique developed by Simon Wren Lewis of 'media macro').

2026-05-17 08:45:38 GMT

When Yvette Cooper rejected legal advice & wrote a column criticising Palestine Action, while activists were being tried, did she (as the defence alleged) interfere with the judicial process making a fair trial more difficult or as the Judge concluded only risk 'causing some prejudice to these proceedings, but that is different from deliberately flouting a reporting restriction order'?
I think the defence was right; it was an attempt to prejudice the trial!
#politics
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/may/17/yvette-cooper-palestine-action-article-despite-cps-warning-trial

2026-05-17 08:37:32 GMT

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If it was an isolated instance I might agree, but (accepting there is always the issue of confirmation bias), this goes along with a range of other posts I've made over the last couple of years on foreign owned/managed firms in some sectors outperforming home-owned/managed enterprises, as well as a range of other instances of the UK's rubbish management both in the private & public sectors.... so maybe the world 'evidence' is a summary exaggeration but the underlying analysis is frequent

2026-05-17 08:31:35 GMT

David Lloyd Owen (water policy consultant) says:
'You can classify the water companies into four groups: worst by a country mile are those owned by private equity, the not-for-profit companies are quite weak, the public limited companies are second best – but, intriguingly, the best are Wessex & Northumbria, which are owned by foreign companies that run utilities themselves'!
Yet more evidence the UK's real problem is its dysfunctional culture of management?
#water #managerment
h/t Observer

2026-05-17 08:03:56 GMT

This weekend is demonstrating an unwavering truth of political reporting...
Media commenters & analysts decry the chaotic psychodrama of leadership challenges & churn in the top job (with tales of its negative impact on UK politics & economics and the UK's international standing)... yet;
they find it hard to hide their glee at filling their papers (and online presence) with speculation, profiles of possible contenders & argument(s) around 'new starts' for the Govt.
[grinds teeth]
#politics

2026-05-16 21:46:42 GMT

Ahmed Najar argues:
'Criticism of Russia is not treated as hatred towards Russians. Opposition to American wars is not automatically framed as hostility towards Americans as a people. Protest against the Chinese government is not assumed to be anti-Chinese racism.
Only when it comes to Israel does this distinction repeatedly collapse.
That collapse carries consequences'
#politics
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2026/5/16/britain-is-losing-the-ability-to-tell-anti-semitism-from-dissent

2026-05-16 17:10:56 GMT

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Its certainly contributing to the stagnation but it is not the only aspect to the problem - a lack of increase in productivity plus a major problem with financial resources being directed into property (which one might argue, I accept, is part of the distribution issue) alongside more amorphous problems like the UK's problem wth 'management' and the de-valuing of much productive education.... and so on - all of these compound or are compounded *by* maldistribution

2026-05-16 10:06:18 GMT

Make of this what you will, but it will be no surprise that politicians, journalists & business-people rank pretty low on those we expect to tell the truth....
Of course, the fact that nurses rank so highly is an echo of the secular religion that of the NHS that remains in place despite the engineered crisis of the last decade(s).
Overall, it indicates a major problem of trust with our political class; we think they are essentially a bunch of liars! It does little for democracy!
#politics
https://cdn.masto.host/zirkus/media_attachments/files/116/583/681/441/230/817/original/75ba8e23a13c3c2a.png

2026-05-16 08:05:57 GMT

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I agree up to a point; but while distribution is clearly an issue, if we look at GDP per capita (which doesn't factor in distribution, as many complain), we are down in the mid-20s (and slowly falling) rather than being the sixth (or seventh) largest economy in the world, which is how those using absolute GDP data present it.... better distribution might help the immediate issues of social depravation, but would not change the ongoing situation that I presented in the post

2026-05-16 07:37:41 GMT

As predicted, Keir Starmer's position has weakened sufficiently & the resulting intra-party political calculations have shifted so that Labour's NEC having only three months ago blocked Andy Burnham from standing in a by-election for Labour, have now voted through his candidacy to confirmed through a swift (and likely unopposed) candidate selection during next week.
Now the Q. is: will have actually win the by-election? Or will the Greens (or perhaps ReformUK Ltd) steal it?
#politics
h/t FT

2026-05-16 07:21:31 GMT

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We essentially have two choices:
cut our cloth accordingly - accept our global position and organise our political economy accordingly; or,
seek out strategies that can underpin world class sectors (such as universities) while accelerating areas where we can be world class (green energy perhaps).
There is some move on the latter but the current plight of the university sector is indicative of the underlying problem with our political class' views on what matters.

2026-05-16 07:12:11 GMT

The key problem of British politics is how to manage a country where the population expects a higher standard of living than its increasingly second league status can provide.
In one way or another we all suffer from a form of post-imperial, post-industrial entitled hubris.
The world has moved on leaving the UK with pockets of excellence dwarfed by sectors are far from world class.
Few politicians understand this or have a good plan to escape our predicament (if there is one?).
#politics

2026-05-15 09:54:33 GMT

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Indeed, I'm sire that is right; but of course there is a secretion bias in the Cubans who live in the USA - not by any means necessarily representative of Cubans living on the island - and of course the problem before 1959 was the corporation that effectively ruled over the country were not controlled by Cubans but rather (as would also be likely now) run for the interested of US shareholders.

2026-05-15 05:51:32 GMT

Having visited The Music is Black exhibition on a recent (rare) trip to London I completely agree with this positive & enthusiastic review - it is a great experience (anchored in, as I posted about a couple of weeks ago, an immersive soundscape that responds to where you are in the exhibition). Well worth the trip to Stratford.
#museums #music #London
https://theconversation.com/the-music-is-black-a-british-story-its-little-wonder-this-emotional-exhibition-took-over-four-years-to-complete-282780

2026-05-15 05:36:49 GMT

The BBC is reporting that many hotels in the USA are not seeing the demand for rooms during the FIFA World Cup that they expected, citing the political environment, rising costs associated with the conflict in the Middle East & transport costs.... but what is missing from this report is the rise in hotel prices associated with the World Cup that was reported earlier this year.
This looks like basic economics; hotels put up their prices, demand fell!
#football
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn0p2532xn4o

2026-05-15 05:18:02 GMT

Nearer to (his) home, the Tangerine Tyrant has renewed his interest in 'transformation' in Cuba; the CIA director was in Havana yesterday to demand 'fundamental changes' to the regime & the economy of the island.
Given the original driver for the Cuban Revolution was the plight of the island's economy when run for the benefit of US corporations & the mafia, it would be a sad winding back of the clock if the island once again became beholden to a bunch of grifters.
#cuba #politics
h/t FT

2026-05-15 05:05:41 GMT

I see Cranfield University is 'merging' with Kings College London, with a very positive spin about positive synergies being served up by the BBC....
However, I cannot but under whether this is actually a defensive move (on behalf of Cranfield) for some (here) unspecified economic/budgetary reason - given the current travails of the university sector.
Would be interested in any insider views on the 'merger'.
#universities #education #science
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cnvp7gpygq4o

2026-05-14 21:10:32 GMT

If the rich are the most dangerous minority, it also needs to be said (as Steve Keen does) that:
'The most dangerous sincere believers on this planet are not religious extremists, but mainstream economists. They will destroy capitalism, precisely because they falsely believe that it is indestructible'!
However, for those of us brought up on Karl Marx, the idea that capitalism has within it the seed(s) of its own destruction (here in the guise of economists) is hardly news.....
#economics

2026-05-14 17:27:07 GMT

The care system is broken & only continues to run in any way at all because of unpaid carers.... they (we) need to be better supported, better funded & resourced, and perhaps most importantly respected fro what we do not treated like criminals by the DWP.
Louise Casey may well recognise all this, but its hardly new; what is actually needed urgently is a strategy for a positive change across the many dimensions of care.
#care #politics
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/may/14/millions-of-unpaid-uk-carers-living-in-agony-says-louise-casey

2026-05-14 17:22:46 GMT

And so once again Labour's NEC get the chance to either block or allow Andy Burnham to take a run at returning to the House of Commons....
It will be interesting to see how this drama plays out.... especially now Wes Streeting claims he wants a wide field for the Labour Party to choose their next leader from.
#politics
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/may/14/labour-mp-to-stand-down-to-allow-burnham-run-for-byelection-amid-leadership-row

2026-05-14 17:13:04 GMT

If Robert Shrimsley (FT) is right (he is), and, 'Britain is not ungovernable. It has just been very badly governed. In particular, it has endured a decade of woefully inept leadership. An era of slogans in place of details'.... the bigger Q. (bigger that the travails of this current Govt.) is why is this the case?
Only by understanding why we have such a dysfunctional politics can we start to change it.
Many will point to media ownership... and that has to be a major factor!
#politics

2026-05-14 13:16:54 GMT

So, Wes Streeting has resigned as Health Secretary, which for many (whatever comes next) may be a good thing... he has also (as yet) not broken cover on a leadership challenge.
My guess is his team are seeking to Angela Rayner's team to see if they can buy her off with a senior post - perhaps even Chancellor (or maybe not)?
No doubt all will become clearer as the day(s) progresses.
#politics

2026-05-14 11:32:28 GMT

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Yes, term limits seem to me to be a good way of limiting the corruption.... however the issue of salaries is almost the opposite; too low pay means they are amenable to 'other payments' because in the elite in which they mix, they feel themselves to be poor - rather higher salaries bit no second jobs or other income would be a better option - pay them well, but don't allow them (for their limited terms) any other income

2026-05-14 07:41:00 GMT

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Yes the amateurism of British politics has long been evident

2026-05-14 06:05:36 GMT

John Kampfner, suggests politicians fail to really deal with problems because:
'They worry about the markets (with reason); they fret about conventional media & social media (with less reason). They wait for bad things to happen, trying to anticipate what their critics might say of them in case they put a foot out of line. It’s a self-fulfilling spiral'!
There's more to it than this, but this seem to capture an important aspect of our political problem(s)!
#politics
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/may/14/europe-big-problems-japan-taiwan-care-systems

2026-05-14 05:31:52 GMT

As we wait for next weeks GDP data to drop (or perhaps we don't) Bloomberg is reporting (I have this second hadn't via LinkedIn, I'm not a Bloomberg subscriber) that people at the Bank of England doubt the veracity of the data (even on its own merits);
so we now seem to have the situation where the Office of National Statistics seems unable to produce data that convinces its neighbouring institutions.
The notion of the economy 'flying blind' will be becoming more common...
#economics

2026-05-13 20:22:14 GMT

Keir Starmer vs. Wes Streeting is about as politically interesting as two bald men fighting over a comb.... its a classic bit of change but no change, and suggests the Labour Party is clueless about why people are abandoning them.
Then the (more interesting) Q. is how would Andy Burnham vs. Wes Streeting play out, if Streeting gets past an increasingly truculent Starmer?
Or perhaps Burnham wouldn't have the appetite for a second leadership challenge in this Parliament?
#politics #LabourParty

2026-05-13 05:43:26 GMT

I'm not trying to keep up with the turmoil at the top of the Labour Party, but I think its safe to conclude two things:
1. Keir Starmer will be unlikely to lead the Labour Party into the next election;
2. But, he is unlikely to go quietly & may well cause even more damage to Labour's standing in his manoeuvring to stay in No.10.
Of course, for the Green Party of England & Wales the key strategy should be to allow the Labour Party to keep making mistakes unhindered.
#LabourParty #politics

2026-05-13 05:22:15 GMT

The UK's political & social-economic elites are more often educated at private school than the rest of the population....
Given, the problems the UK finds itself in (and the demand for 'change') perhaps we might wonder whether the underlying issue isn't productivity or management but rather the educational background of our political & business classes?
Perhaps that's what needs to change?
#politics #inequality #education
For more data from the Sutton Trust see:
https://elitistbritain.suttontrust.com
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2026-05-12 17:20:38 GMT

How worried is the Govt. that Palestine Action protestors have the sympathy of juries?
enough to hide from the jury the fact that they would e sentenced not as criminals (having been convicted of criminal damage) but rather as terrorists.
At best, its a grossly unjust manipulation of procedure, and at worst brings the justice system into disrepute as juries are being lied to (albeit by omission).
This Govt.'s 'respect' for the rule of law seems ever weaker!
#politics
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/may/12/palestine-action-activists-elbit-protest-terrorist-connection-ruling

2026-05-12 12:16:01 GMT

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What this all comes down to is the relationship between society, politics & taxation.... while you will fundamentally disagree with it, I think I've mentioned Liam Murphy & Thomas Nagel's great book The Myth of Ownership: Taxes & Justice, which starts from the position that as money itself originates with the state, rather than taxes 'stealing' money from voters, tax is merely the withheld portion of the money the state extends to voters as a benefit.... worth a read!

2026-05-12 10:14:20 GMT

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Yes, chaotic & reactive nationalisation cannot ever be better than strategic & reasoned assessment of the shape & requirements of the state in such areas

2026-05-12 10:13:13 GMT

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If anything in the UK we're seeing exactly the opposite - the general impoverishment of over half the population has left the ground very open for left politics - and while some would no doubt characterise that as the politics of envy, others looking at the plight of the poor might regard it as the politics of necessity

2026-05-12 07:29:45 GMT

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but don't discount nostalgia as the driver for political positioning.... (see Brexit)

2026-05-12 06:08:17 GMT

For years there have been concerns that one or more English universities might fall into administration.
In the past when this has looked to be a real prospect, mergers & take-overs of vulnerable institutions have been stage managed by regulators;
but now, it would seem with so many institutions in various level of difficulty, the 24 institutions most at risk are more likely to close than to be rescued via consolidation.
Things are getting grim in HE!
#universities
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce3p93j3823o

2026-05-12 05:49:51 GMT

One way to be clear about the geographic wealth inequality in the UK is to look at inheritance tax receipts (remembering that only about 5% of estates pay IHT at all).
What we see is that such wealth is skewed towards London & SE England, which is no surprise but what perhaps is, is that across the London region IHT tax receipts were higher than totals for Scotland & Wales, together!
No wonder the rich were quietly backing the Farmers 'farm tax' protests!
#politics #wealth #inequality
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2026-05-12 05:38:22 GMT

Since 1945, British Steel has been nationalised (1949), privatised (or had nationalisation 'reversed') (1952), nationalised (1967), privatised (1988), followed by a period of a succession of new owners from around the world... and now the Labour Party is going to (re)nationalise
To say, the UK has not got a clear idea how best to maintain a functioning steel industry is an understatement.... although the global commercial environment *doesn't* make it easy, to be fair.
#steel #economics

2026-05-11 16:53:57 GMT

The media seems relatively uninterested in the £5m in crypto-currency given tot he Facist Frog, but a lot more interested in the council tax affairs of Zack Polanski.
On one level this is a metric of how seriously the Right take the threat from Polanski & the Green Party of England & Wales.... on another level, given what happened to Jeremy Corbyn at the hands of an antagonistic media, we might have hoped he would have put his now house (boat) in order ahead of the game?
#Greens #politics

2026-05-11 12:47:37 GMT

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Yes, I'd agree with all of that

2026-05-11 08:54:14 GMT

The Campaign for a Living Wage, run for 25 years by Citizens UK & its predecessors, is in many ways a great success; putting pressure on firms to raise the wages of the lowest paid.
But, without in any way gainsaying what they have achieved, this is really dealing with a symptom of the problems with the UK's low wage model of capitalism.... so while this is necessary & valuable work it remains sadly insufficient to really transform the UK's economy
#workers #economics
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/may/10/uk-living-wage-campaign-marks-25-years-of-success

2026-05-11 05:33:30 GMT

Hmmm... Tim Leunig (NESTA) suggests that one way round the UK's current problems with Gilt's rising yields would be to issue a proportion of public debt as €-denominated bonds, which would:
reduce the likely interest paid;
also make £-denominated bonds more attractive by reduction of issue(s);
sidestep the risk of a run on Gilts driven by sterling-focussed assessment of risk(s).
What he doesn't note is it would also be a good sign of alignment with the EU!
#economics #politics
h/t FT

2026-05-10 17:30:14 GMT

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Fair enough - thanks for exploring the issue & being clear about the strength (or otherwise) of that particular criticism - much appreciated

2026-05-10 16:59:55 GMT

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Fair point; not quite sure what the best comparator would be, not least as one might argue that the set going private have been so cheery picked as to distort comparisons (in practical terms if not theoretical ones)?

2026-05-10 16:58:00 GMT

At a rally in London today to protest against anti-semitism, the Fascist Frog (who you will recall has been accused of anti-semtiism when he was younger) was invited as ReformUK Ltd's representative & excluded the Green Party of England & Wales (and its leader Zack Polanski).
As the GPEW observed:
'It does feel like the world is upside down when Reform are invited to be part of an initiative to tackle antisemitism but the Green Party — and its Jewish leader — aren’t'!
#politics
h/t FT

2026-05-10 16:43:12 GMT

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Err... the UK has a wide range of firms domiciled in the UK & providing gambling of all sorts - on income tax; yes there are some marginal rates that high but the overall tax take (excluding consumption taxes) is not the lowest but neither the highest among comparator countries.... you are gift that non-domiciled taxation was changed recently, but this is a relatively minor issue despite the hoo-ha in the financial press.

2026-05-10 16:40:26 GMT

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Hmmm... yes, I can see that; when I was talking about the free-rider problems I was thinking explicitly about the patients being pushed back to the NHS with complications - I guess the Q. is whether dealing with the consequences of the complications (if we are to be economically brutal) is more or less than an initial successful procedure within the NHS facility?

2026-05-10 15:35:01 GMT

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Interesting:
1. yes, agree; would need to be carefully structured if developed;
2. its already there, surely?
3. this is the classic free-rider & collective action problem as regards public goods, isn't it?

2026-05-10 10:54:06 GMT

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Well, of course to an extent it is a tax haven (through its connections with UK territories that are), we do have legalised gambling, we have relatively low taxes & the capitalist desire for cheap labour has been fulfilled.... yes still the economy is in a pretty poor state