once more I am begging everyone to do policy based on evidence, not on vibes from the loudest-shouting pressure groups. What the NHS is leaning towards - targeted screening for those most at risk - is the right way to do this. Blanket screening with an unreliable test causes harm.

Fifteen Years xkcd.com/3172/

Just finished listening to this series last night. Incredible story, and highlights some failures in the UK policing, prosecutorial and judicial systems that really don't get enough attention.

So can we all just shortcut the political theatre bit now and get to everyone publishing their "what the budget means for your finances" calculators a few hours early?

I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture. They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1

Coming up with good photos for PR is hard. I'm jealous of this one - I reckon they could do even more with the theme of "babies playing in front of HMT", including making it clearer what building it is edition.cnn.com/2025/11/24/u...

Some valid and thought-provoking challenges in here @jamestplunkett.bsky.social! On the opportunities to experiment, the Cabinet Office through the 2010s was doing this pretty effectively I thought - PolicyLab, OIT, BIT... People like Halpern, w/ministers like Letwin and Gove providing pol cover

What a great one day match!

🚨 Just announced: your new favourite podcast! We’re so excited to be partnering with Goalhanger, Europe’s largest independent podcast producer, to bring you The Rest Is Science: a brand-new podcast hosted by Professor Hannah Fry and Michael Stevens 👇 @fryrsquared.bsky.social #CRUKscience

This is absolutely brilliant.

Who wrote this headline? Peter Mannion? Alan Partridge? www.economist.com/britain/2025...

Shocking, but not surprising. The inevitable (?) unwinding of cross-subsidy between international student fees and domestic teaching and research will be painful for HE sector.

There was a prominent article on the BBC home page recently exploring, with a particular angle, political views within town(s). By the number of people who sent me a link, I think you'll know the one I'm referring to! 🧵 1/n

Having recently moved from one large, wealthy greater SE town to a smaller, less wealthy greater SE town, this has been my experience too. "Local" groups on social media platforms are the full smorgasbord of content - lots great, lots horrible, lots of power dynamics.

"What do you mean? We gave them TEN MILLION DOLLARS and they are using JOHN DEERE EXCAVATORS??!"

Well there definitely isn't anything problematic here. Disappointingly, the picture on the article suggests Caterpillar Inc aren't able to claim their payment is in the form of Gifts in Kind www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Exciting post this morning! @markcooperjones.bsky.social @jayforeman.bsky.social

The vox pop quote on this story about a bridge collapsing is just too on the nose. Perfect, no notes

Starting to feel like we're into the interminable greyness of mid- to late-autumn. If that makes you feel as jaded as it does me, here is a photo I took last weekend

Windows 10 goes out of support today. My fave useless fact about w10 is that the iconic blue desktop background is a *photograph* - not CGI. Tiny 'making of' vid here - youtu.be/_2RacX9DgWM...

Really important stuff coming out of ONS and NHSE, and fully agree with @thekingsfund.bsky.social commentary linked in thread below. Let's see how data linking can help address upstream health and wellbeing through better prevention.

This morning is a hard day to be an Arizona Cardinals fan

Do you work in a public sector leadership role? Are you grappling with how AI is changing your area of responsibility? Do you need to upskill yourself to deal with these challenges? Applications open today for @imperialcollegeldn.bsky.social AI Policy Fellowships www.imperial.ac.uk/the-forum/co...

So today is National Poetry Day! I'm prosaic so have no great insights to share myself. However, I've just found out one of my new colleagues at @imperialcollegeldn.bsky.social, Jack Cooper, is a real honest-to-goodness poet! So below is one of his: www.jackcooperpoet.com @tamarindlit.co.uk

This vagueness is a key tactic. If Farage outright rejected the anti-vax conspiracy he’d risk losing those voters; if he embraced it, he’d alienate moderates. By staying “open-minded” he signals to everyone that he’s on their side.

I'm struggling to get wound up by a Minister for Business saying "I think it would be good for UK graduates to be more entrepreneurial". Sounds pretty sensible to me. Maybe I'm insufficiently Bluesky-brained today.

First Past the Post cannot handle this level of fragmentation. It will produce completely freak results. We can grasp this problem now, or wait for the train to crash.

Moving jobs is always a bit of a mishmash of life admin to sort. One that I actively enjoy is re-establishing my Payroll Giving. If you don't already use it (sometimes called GAYE), please do think about whether you can. It makes a big difference to charities to have reliable income.

This is disappointing and should absolutely be a signal to policymakers about the state of the life sciences market in the UK Merck aren't as significant as some of the other players in the UK, but global boardrooms are not impressed with UK life sci policy at the moment www.ft.com/content/5ace...

The only sensible reaction to a political assassination is "political assassinations are bad - full stop".

Very good article, this.

Ok, you can get to the files from The Oversight Committee site. Warning: It is not easy reading. oversight.house.gov/release/over...

End of an era. Who would be a good replacement for Bragg? Needs a bit of a "renaissance" figure. My two ideas - David Willetts or Hannah Fry.

When my wife annoys me, the next time I make her a sandwich, I'll make the two slices of bread "point" in opposite directions knowing full well she'll hate the lack of symmetry but can't exactly complain about something made for her.

From 1 September I will be starting a new role as the inaugural Director of the Imperial Policy Forum at @imperialcollegeldn.bsky.social I've spent much of my career working w/ academia. Looking forward to working within a university for the first time since my PhD. www.imperial.ac.uk/the-forum/

Having to work away from both home and office today, meaning plenty of "cafe camping". I'm reminded that, despite its many other challenges, McDonalds basic coffee is pretty much the best available on the high street! ☕

How one of the gravest security lapses in history was kept secret https://on.ft.com/44u8wik

As the government's 10 Year Health Plan is announced, @swoolnough.tkf.bsky comments on the specific topics in the plan, saying 'The government has to be honest with the public over what trade-offs we should expect in the care we receive.' buff.ly/Xm0jmUN

Busy day, only just checking into the test match... How on earth is Shubman Gill still batting??!

Willing to admit I'm more excited about this England team than any since 2005. Ready to have my heart broken - memories of England batting collapses litter my cricket fandom - but.....

Edi Rama as usual rocking his white shoes look

Wrote this about Twitter... could write it today about Truth Social.

This whole thread by @paulskidmore.bsky.social on org change in policy/political environments is excellent, but this one stood out for its neat encapsulation of a perennial challenge I've seen in every place I've worked

Delighted to share this news on the appointment of Professor Samra Turajlić as the Director of the @cruk-mi.bsky.social.

Just discovered @duncanweldon.bsky.social's peak Centrist Dad skeet thread. It's like moths to a flame in there. (This was an incredible line up year, btw. Foos played in a thunderstorm in Reading. Magical)

Immigrant families are being forced to put up signs saying 'I work in a care home' to escape the racist violence that's been unleashed in Northern Ireland I come from this part of the world and I cannot tell you the sense of profound shame and horror this fills me with. It disgraces us

Today is #SocialMobilityDay. Take seven minutes to watch the incredible video below ❤️ www.linkedin.com/posts/93perc...

Was the #SpendingReview good for UK R&D? Read @cancerresearchuk.org's perspective from Iain Foulkes here - it is a mixed picture... www.linkedin.com/pulse/my-res...

UK government R&D spending settlement is essentially flat in real terms, locking in place the substantial increase promised in the last parliament. Plotted here in 2023 £bns, corrected for inflation with GDP deflator