Well, I suppose they renamed the Department of Defense to the Department of War, so probably about time to rename the Department of Health to the Department of Disease.

I fully endorse this. Political leaders are falling prey to AI hype, and seem to lack any kind of help from reputable sources who could counter the false claims of tech CEOs. Where are their science advisers???

"Over briefed". In some ways, that's worse.

"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it"

A counterclaim might be an interesting idea

BBC has a case against Trump. WhiteHouse Chief Press Officer called the BBC ‘100% fake news.’ Which is defamatory and untrue.

Odd to blur out the accused as opposed to the annoyed chap behind him. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

I wonder whether Trump v BBC will settle for a peppercorn in damages.

So if Panorama wasn't broadcast in the USA, then presumably the content was broadcast via one of the social media networks?

Gilty displeasure.

“They have withdrawn at least one unpublished paper, written by agency scientists and submitted to an academic journal earlier this year, that concluded Covid-19 vaccines are safe and effective, because they disagreed with its methods — an episode that hasn’t previously been reported.”

'Thank you for your attention to this matter.' qv. Arkell v Pressdram, and the Cleveland Stadium one.

I wonder if this 'AI generated' target is something like number of pupils x 95% www.theguardian.com/education/20...

I want to spell this out in case the implications aren't clear: This means all public tools/webapps of GISAID data (all the ones you've been used to seeing thru the pandemic, as far as we can tell) are prohibited. The file allowed this. Cut that - cut off all tools the public & others were using.

The early flu season in England continues to build, while the latest Covid wave continues to recede. Latest UKHSA hospital admission data up to 27 Oct.

Very good. www.networkrail.co.uk/stories/a-ne...

"Every member of the joint force... is required to meet the height ... requirements twice a year" www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dvt...

Yeeesh.

Just answering questions.

I have sent this email to my Director of Comms at KCL and would encourage others to do likewise.

Err...

The thing about Mamdani is that as well as having appealing policies, he’s actually just a very likeable guy. Comes across as very genuine and real but with charisma and the ability to communicate.

Good old Thames Water. No water in Oxford yesterday. Burst pipe. So they repair it, and in so doing so, they damage a valve. And then another valve...

Russian agents paid a group of UK criminals to set warehouses filled with supplies for Ukraine on fire Their next mission was to kidnap a Putin critic and burn down his Michelin-starred restaurant, but their efforts to "move clean" failed and they were caught in time www.nytimes.com/2025/07/08/w...

I've obtained a trove of leaked documents about today's federal crackdown on Los Angeles' MacArthur Park. One revelation is its codename: "Operation Excalibur"

🧐

Obviously Ken Livingstone has a… checkered… reputation but fucking hell this was a great speech. youtu.be/vEBAVUCX0j4?...

Interesting example of where policy intention does not translate to practice. Despite the ban on single use vapes, people are using reusable versions once and throwing away. FT found many shops don’t stock reusable cartridges at all on.ft.com/3Gbz8vg

Absolutely incredible graphic from 1880 tracing the history of political parties in the United States.

Decked by the @financialtimes.com

Tony Blair’s staff took part in ‘Gaza Riviera’ project with BCG https://on.ft.com/40Akc0s

Breaking news: Boston Consulting Group modelled the costs of 'relocating' Palestinians from Gaza and entered into a multimillion-dollar contract to help launch a new aid scheme for the shattered enclave https://on.ft.com/3TrfEpn

Despite all the aggressive hostile propaganda, the UK remains one of the most diverse and inclusive places in the world. This is the lived experience of so many. We should be proud of this spirit. We should celebrate it. We should definitely guard and protect it.

I've already "Well actually"ed Kate about 1976 this morning, so I'll spare her yet another reply, but... This is a great demo from @edhawkins.org to show how although 1976 was really hot in the UK & northern France, it wasn't in the rest of the world. Unlike more recent years.

Agentic AI meets the Principal Agent problem.

Chief exec of Hitachi Energy tells FT that 'no other industry would be allowed as volatile use of power as the AI sector'. Governments' bromance with the tech bros plays out unimpeded against this backdrop. With a sharing link for 3 non-subscribers: on.ft.com/3IdDJha

BREAKING: The U.S. Supreme Court holds that a district court cannot enforce its remedy order providing due process to the 8 people the Trump admin sent out of the U.S. (who are now in Djibouti) in violation of the injunction in the third country removals case, which the Supreme Court later stayed.

Wouldn't be surprised to see Palantir top of this list within a few years... www.cnbc.com/2025/07/03/w...

Feeling Left out

"The problem with AI isn't that it can do your job. It can't. The problem with AI is that your MBA-brained boss's boss doesn't know how your job works and thinks AI can do your job at fractions of a penny on the dollar, and hears the siren song of 'maximize shareholder value'." MBA-brain is real.

But these Neighbourhood centres will be funded how? Apparently there is new £10 million for capital. If we charitably assume just 5 neighbourhood centres per ICS, then that is 42x5. 210: so that’s £48,000 per centre. Good luck with that. Might buy a portacabin.

Stereotypical.

It was* nice when it lasted. * n't

Aberdeen Group axes research charity abrdn Financial Fairness Trust board and chief executive with no notice bit.ly/4l8YQQh some suggest it did not like its progressive ideas such as limiting tax relief on pensions contributions and bias towards lower income households

Indeed.

This could get interesting (Musk v Trump, Round 2).

Would like to think the UK would do the same. www.france24.com/en/video/202...

Appalled to read this. A critical funder of UK social and fiscal policy research has just been summarily dumped, along with its key staff and trustees. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Trump is coming for Musk again: “Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.” “Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!”

100% - this is also why media outlets like the BBC who ought to know better should stop describing him as an ‘academic’ - he hasn’t been one for some time and by doing so they apply a veneer of intellectual authority to his rantings which they do not deserve