🎉Excited to share that today I started a secondment to DESNZ as Principal Policy Advisor for Industrial Strategy. 👩🏼‍🏭Net zero is the economic opportunity of the 21st century so I'm delighted to be joining the team ahead of the publication of the Industrial Strategy White Paper.

New piece by @rachaelhenry.bsky.social & I for the IPPR blog. The industrial strategy just got harder lets be honest. Tariffs, economic downturn are threatening existing industries at a time govt is trying to reshape or build new ones. They're being pulled in two directions.

More painful contortions to maintain it's anti Net Zero stance at The Times as it claims that both Net Zero is responsible for high energy costs **and** that we're going to get so much low cost solar energy this summer it'll break the grid www.thetimes.com/article/e933...

I've been a journalist for 25+ years and I'm not sure I've witnessed as much wilful (and v likely coordinated) disinformation from certain corners of the UK media than over past few days. Sun, Mail and Telegraph have been truly awful - and seemingly shameless www.theguardian.com/business/202...

I'm in LabourList, writing about Project Chainsaw, Scottish DOGE, and Labour talking about making Britain great again, all of which does nothing but signal desperation and a clanging lack of ideological self confidence. labourlist.org/2025/03/labo...

🚨Some major errors & misleading claims from experienced presenter Nick Robinson on BBC Radio 4 Today, when discussing British Steel with Treasury Minister James Murray I hope these are corrected on tomorrow's programme, and Robinson sticks to the facts in future. Here's what he got wrong... 🧵

NEW: The government has said it wants to ‘shape the AI revolution’. But our new report finds that much of UK AI innovation is generic and not focussed on solving hard problems. Our detailed AI database shows only one in seven companies focus on solving a specific problem. (1/5)

Remarkable Leader from the Times, which like Badenoch's speech the other day leaves more questions than answers www.thetimes.com/comment/the-... - How will nuclear reduce electricity prices? Solar's strike price in AR6 was £50.07. Hinkley's last was £128.09. Lots of reasons for nuclear £ not one..

Make America Screw In Little Screws Again

Trump's tariffs are destabilising the global economy, and will impact UK manufacturers, particularly the car industry. A trade deal to avoid tariffs will be helpful, but the government can go further by supporting these industries to build the tech of the future

Fantastic new research from my colleagues @praneshippr.bsky.social & Simone Gasperin on threats to the UK manufacturing sector from Trump's tariffs... But it's not all bad news, by going for green we can save jobs, boost growth and help the climate. Story on tomorrow's Mirror front page 👇

🚗 | NEW REPORT: Around 25,000 car manufacturing jobs in the UK are at risk if Trump announces new tariffs today. But as one door closes another one opens. There is huge untapped potential in building & selling green planes, trains and automobiles. Read here: www.ippr.org/articles/pla...

Green transport manufacturing, including e-bikes, buses and EVs, can play a key role in the UK's industrial strategy Governance matters: this strategy must fit with creating a better transport system - one that embraces 'multimodal mobility' and reduces car dependency New @ippr.bsky.social report👇

Today's US tariffs will be massively disruptive to a range of sectors, in particular the UK's car-makers, putting tens of thousands of jobs at risk in the auto sector alone The gov has the opportunity to support these firms & workers through its industrial strategy

🚨 NEW: The future is clean & the North holds the key 🔑 Our new report shows regions like the North have the competitive edge needed to rebuild the national economy in a way that is sustainable & fair: That edge is green manufacturing 🏭 www.ippr.org/articles/reg...

📉What are the government's options at the Spring Statement? Last week me @sarahmulley.bsky.social & @harryqp.bsky.social set out our case that the gov has three main choices: further borrowing, cuts to services, or (our prefered option) fair revenue raising tax reforms www.ippr.org/articles/cha...

GB Energy needs full £8.3bn of funding or it will disappoint, government told Government risks “disappointing voters” hoping for cheaper energy bills in the next decade if it cuts the £8.3bn budget for GB Energy, warns IPPR.

Brilliant to host @jigarshahdc.bsky.social, who ran the DoE Loan Programs Office under President Biden, in conversation with @pilitaclark.bsky.social and Dan McGrail to launch our new report on GB Energy

With GBE govt is doing something it hasn't done for a long-time. It's not building another investor, we have the NWF, it's building a company. That will take time, it has to hire well, build expertise, learn by doing. But that doesn't mean GBE won't have impact in the short-term.

Absolutely delighted to host Secretary of State Ed Miliband to launch @ippr.bsky.social report out today on GB Energy GBE must be given the capabilities and the funding to ultimately become a systemic public player in the UK energy system

Quoted by @guardianheather.bsky.social here Its right that the gov looks at speeding up decisions & ways-of-working at the CMA. But evidence is clear that robust comp policy & merger rules get more innovation, more investment & more growth in the British economy www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

🟢 Is an industrial strategy alone enough to deliver long term energy security? An industrial strategy is vital to boosting the domestic supply chain, which is a huge part of guaranteeing our energy security says @praneshippr.bsky.social at the DESNZ Committee. www.youtube.com/watch?v=_adE...

⏰ RECRUITING AN ECONOMIST! Do you want to join the UK's leading progressive think tank in the heart of Westminster? We are hiring for an economist to join the team and help shape our upcoming work. www.ippr.org/jobs/economi...

📢 Come and join the IPPR Economy & Environment Team at an exciting time for the organisation 💫 We are recruiting a new Economist/Research Fellow to work on economic policies to boost and share the proceeds of growth 📩 Info on how to apply here: www.ippr.org/jobs/economi...

🧱 | NEW REPORT: Instead of stripping back planning regulations to 'get Britain building,' this new report from @msingerhobbs.bsky.social argues we need a stronger, better resourced, planning system.

I’m getting really fed up of these abstract attacks on ‘regulation’ - why is Andy Haldane advocating the Doge approach for UK - blanket halving the number of regulators and their budgets? on.ft.com/416pqlx 1/2

🤖 | NEW REPORT: Work and home life is being radically transformed by AI - with 2 out of 3 desk jobs exposed + a million people in the UK now having AI companions - but is our politics keeping pace? This report from @carsjung.bsky.social sets out a new approach.

Dumbshit Treasury brain stuff this: India and Denmark etc just said 'we would like to electrify our rail network, we will set up an arm of government to steadily do it all'. Their teams finish one project then go straight to next. In the UK we do it piecemeal with no future work guarantee, costs ££.

When we looked at the total cost of ownership of heat pumps in the UK I was surprised by this finding: Heat pumps with only slightly above average efficiency already today reach cost parity with gas boilers after the government grant. More here👇 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

📢Some Friday reading - I wrote for LabourList on how Reeves' growth speech this week needs to be just the start - businesses across the country need investment, stability, and help to grab green growth opportunities if the UK is going to thrive 🇬🇧 labourlist.org/2025/01/rach...

Scotland’s investment in subsea cable manufacturing is a clear example of green, growth-enhancing industrial policy in action. This is the route to a competitive, sustainable and prosperous economy built for the future www.ft.com/content/8ce0...

🚗 | NEW REPORT: Electric vehicles are not a culture war issue - most voters are instinctively positive towards them. In this report with @persuasionuk.bsky.social we polled the public to get their views and highlight policies to maximise the benefits of EVs. www.ippr.org/articles/pub...

Smart & clearsighted analysis as ever from @georgedibb.bsky.social - I can only hope the Treasury team are reading!

My analysis of Reeves speech... GDP growth only matters if people feel the benefits. Labour must break with failed growth models that concentrated prosperity in a few places. Success depends on investment, stability, and green growth reaching every part of Britain. labourlist.org/2025/01/rach...

I stopped using X when I opened the app one day and the first post the algorithm chose for me was a compilation video of people being randomly punched in the face

I can’t get behind the framing here - growth in UK can’t be neatly categorised into SE fast, other regions slow. It’s less tidy. This also ignores how we increase the overall productive capacity in our economy which is to build up our regions. HMT response seems to get that! on.ft.com/3E9nQWO

Hm, I can see myself having to say pretty often that enforcing competition so markets work in the interests of customers means there is *less* need for regulation of other kinds.

big online platforms are essentially critical infrastructure now, imagine thirty years ago seeing some headline going "oh yeah the guy who owns your bus route is a fascist now, think twice about how you go to work", it's all so enraging

🚨 Withdrawing from the #ParisAgreement is a grave mistake that disavows America’s leadership on the most urgent global challenge of our time. This reckless action weakens alliances, cedes ground to rivals, and jeopardizes America’s future. Read more www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...

This is a really important point from Ashwin Businesses can literally calculate the effects of the budget tax measures on their bottom line, but the big upsides of increased public investment are yet to come through, but businesses *will* feel those in time

Visiting Japan last year a massive difference with the UK was the huge number of free, clean, accessible public toilets London is a great city to explore on foot and has so many nice green spaces that are rendered unusable for many because it's a desert of public toilets

After all that noise: no fines to be issued for missing EV targets @transenvuk.bsky.social: “… the government must maintain ZEV mandate ambition to continue to drive down costs for consumers, and focus on delivering a robust industrial strategy for the sector to support UK automotive manufacturing”

Location of your family's first skyscraper in the replies pls 🙏 “My family built their first ever ­skyscraper in Dubai in the mid-70s so we have known the place for a long time.” he said. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

An interesting sidebar from The Guardian's profile of Reeves' economic advisor, John Van Reenen I don't know a single person, across any sector, who's been offered any substantive degree of training before taking on management roles www.theguardian.com/business/202...

We should be very cautious about taking seriously scaremongering data on "an exodus of millionaires" from wealth advisors, i.e. people who will profit significantly from heightened expectations of an exodus of millionaires www.thetimes.com/article/c63f...

This news shows why the government's industrial strategy, National Wealth Fund and GB Energy are needed to foster investment projects Firms have an almost record amount of spare cash to spend on boosting share prices whilst investments plumb new lows www.ft.com/content/3056...

🌍 | NEW REPORT: In the face of Brexit barriers, potential Trump tariffs, and global economic turbulence, the government is developing a new trade strategy. In this paper we set out a blueprint to rebuild, protect, and grow the UK's exports.

Today's monthly GDP figures show a 0.1% increase in real GDP in November - the first positive reading in 3 months. It's encouraging but far from outstanding, and very clear that interest rates have become a drag on growth. The Bank of England must cut rates ASAP

We're delighted to welcome Harry Quilter-Pinner (@harryqp.bsky.social) as our new executive director, following a competitive recruitment process sparked by the departure of Carys Roberts, who joined the Downing Street Policy Unit.