🚨Elon Musk has boosted the public profile of Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe on X, pulling Britain’s political discourse towards extreme content and amplifying his influence ahead of a knife-edge election in Makerfield More @FT: as.ft.com/r/80f4639f-0...

Andy Burnham has turned his love of football into political capital, with a following that extends far beyond his own team @evertonfc.com, new @financialtimes.com analysis has found. But can @andyburnham.bsky.social scale his northern appeal to a national audience? as.ft.com/r/13f8d064-8...

If Keir Starmer resigns, he will be the fifth consecutive British prime minister to leave office before serving a full parliamentary term, highlighting the instability that has come to define Downing Street in recent years. ft.trib.al/Sk2ZaWG

Starmer is facing the most severe jeopardy of his premiership, just 676 days after he won a huge majority. If he resigns, he will be the fifth consecutive British PM to leave office before serving a full parliamentary term Starmer's premiership in charts here: as.ft.com/r/afb483fa-a...

✈️ Airlines in Europe are cutting prices for top summer holiday destinations to counter a delay in bookings. Price falls of 10% or more were recorded on 15 of the top 50 routes, @financialtimes.com analysis found as.ft.com/r/3747419e-5...

39 countries cut energy taxes after the Iran war. Politically popular but self-defeating: untargeted subsidies blunt the price signals, lead to higher demand, cost the tax payer significantly more and provide less incentive to invest in alternatives.

⚡The number of economies cutting energy taxes in response to the Iran war has doubled over the past month despite IMF calls for fiscal restraint, new @financialtimes.com analysis shows. More charts + analysis from me and @iancjohnston.bsky.social here: as.ft.com/r/f56d21e7-9...

A real problem - never mind bleating about 'why aren't people doing work-related courses'. Business degrees: a BAD option for young people but booming. Great deep dive by @chris-smyth.bsky.social @amyborrett.ft.com and colleagues www.ft.com/content/e199... Schools must take note re UCAS forms!!!

☘️ The number of Americans seeking Irish citizenship through ancestry jumped 63% last year, according to official data shared with @financialtimes.com. Immigration lawyers say discontent with the Trump administration has fuelled demand for "plan B" passports. More here: as.ft.com/r/dbc995da-1...

FT Exclusive: The number of Americans seeking Irish citizenship through ancestry jumped 63% last year, as the Trump administration’s harsh rhetoric and policies fuelled demand for ‘plan B’ passports. ft.trib.al/VLmOiJH

Thrilled to have been shortlisted for Data Journalist of the Year by the Wincott Foundation 🎉 wincott.co.uk/wincott-shor...

From Bangladesh to Zambia, spiralling fuel prices and looming shortages due to the Iran war are forcing governments to take extreme measures, with middle-income and developing economies hit first ... and worst. Read the story on #FTEdit 👉 The global wave of energy rationing ft.trib.al/moL6noT

🔋⚡ spiralling fuel prices and looming energy shortages are forcing governments to take drastic measures to conserve supplies. Lots of charts in this @financialtimes.com piece about the global wave of energy rationing as.ft.com/r/a26a41a9-6...

The rapid growth in foundation year courses at UK universities has raised concerns about poor graduate outcomes, as @financialtimes.com research shows a stark gap in grades at the largest providers More from me and @josephinecumbo.bsky.social here: as.ft.com/r/60b74329-3...

The Bank of England was a real outlier with its comms this week, far more hawkish than peers Language analysis shows a sharp shift in tone from the UK central bank this week as.ft.com/r/41e01e51-9...

The Bank of England’s hawkish pivot in language has rattled markets. @financialtimes.com analysis shows it was the largest shift of any major central bank, raising questions about whether it misjudged its tone Lots of number crunching from me and @joelsuss.ft.com here: as.ft.com/r/bd03a4a9-e...

Which leading economies will pay the biggest price for the Iran war? Not the US, it turns out Great to end my first week on the @financialtimes.com economics desk working on this story with Sam and Myles as.ft.com/r/7babde76-f...

Grade inflation in some UK universities? Lost myself in cool dataviz in great piece by @amyborrett.ft.com www.ft.com/content/6935...

GPs are tightening the rules for ADHD patients with private diagnoses, leaving them with monthly prescription fees that can total hundreds of pounds. Historic underdiagnosis has led to a surge in referrals & waiting lists over a decade in some areas @financialtimes.com as.ft.com/r/808c00c5-5...

Spending on consultants cut by 14% across UK government ft.trib.al/bU42Sqx

Britons are drinking less alcohol than before, as financial pressures, health concerns and an ageing population lead to cutbacks in consumption ft.trib.al/rad0Hny

NHS England warns hospitals are on“high alert” as they battle disruption from strikes and record flu admissions for this time of year, but new surveillance data shows flu activity is starting to stabilise

Academics from across the UK higher education sector have warned that financial ties to Beijing have led to self-censorship. on.ft.com/4oDkblP

British universities’ reliance on Chinese fees fuelling self-censorship, say academics on.ft.com/48YhMxh

Great article from @amyborrett.ft.com. But it does make me wonder again why there was zero national media coverage when the University of Brighton closed down its big, decades-old campus in Eastbourne. Now of course, it would make a great case study for a journalist of the economic/cultural impact.

Young Brits' attitudes towards benefits claimants and criminals are hardening, according to @natcen.bsky.social, as discontent with the “broken social contract” drives younger voters towards Reform and the Greens. More @financialtimes.com from me and @jonathanvincent.bsky.social : on.ft.com/4nBB53E

Great to work with @aendra.com @amyborrett.ft.com @jonathanvincent.bsky.social on this important new dataset of deprivation in England

Alan Turing Institute head to quit after internal turmoil on.ft.com/4p8thIC

✏️ This year's GCSE results show double-digit increases in the number of children retaking maths and English, a "resit crisis" according to one exam board chief as the vast majority of these pupils fail to meet the required grades for most jobs/further study @financialtimes.com: on.ft.com/4787avs

Key line from today's #GSCE results - over 80% of students retaking failed to pass after the govt made resits in maths and English mandatory. “This is a resit crisis, tinkering at the edges of policy won’t fix this” Jill Duffy, OCR ceo Analysis by @amyborrett.ft.com www.ft.com/content/d693...

While earlier research suggested the gender pay gap was largely driven by course choices, as men and women took different subjects, the data indicated that men were more likely to prioritise a lucrative career and earn more than women even with identical degrees (3/3) www.ft.com/content/cb0e...

Male graduates are quick to earn more than their female peers, according to Financial Times analysis of official data, with a median annual salary of £34,700 five years after leaving university, 14.1% above the £30,400 figure for women (2/3) www.ft.com/content/cb0e...

Female graduates in the UK fall behind men from the very start of their careers, even when they have taken the same courses, and are out-earned after studying more than four-fifths of university subjects (1/3) www.ft.com/content/cb0e...

🎓New data shows top unis are enrolling more UK undergraduates due to “uncertainty” over international recruitment and mounting financial pressures, outperforming lower-ranking institutions which are typically more reliant on the domestic market on.ft.com/46REXsB

Record number of US students are choosing UK universities 🎓🇺🇸🇬🇧 7,930 US applicants for UK undergrad courses this autumn -- a 13.9% annual rise and the highest since records began in 2006, writes @amyborrett.ft.com ‬ FT www.ft.com/content/c074...

Labour was elected on bold pledges to kick-start the economy, fix the NHS and get Britain building again, but has Starmer's government delivered? Here's an overview of what progress has (or hasn't) been made in the first year: on.ft.com/44pU7Cl

Only Russia was perceived to be a greater threat, putting the US ahead of both Israel and Iran, the latest British Social Attitudes survey found https://on.ft.com/4nhZ09n

Fascinating stuff from @amyborrett.ft.com but also a reminder of a stain on our society - namely that, in 2025, nearly a third of British kids are living in poverty. www.ft.com/content/f0fc...

US applications for British citizenship hit a record high during the first few months of Donald Trump’s presidency, as immigration lawyers report a surge in Americans looking to move to the UK because of economic and safety concerns. @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/4jekcd2

VAT on private school fees has hit primaries more than secondaries, data shows, as cash-strapped parents prioritise later years and falling fertility rates reduce pupil rolls. But @samfr.bsky.social says the numbers are “much lower” than schools predicted @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/3YP5MZK

The number of Americans looking to study at UK universities has risen sharply since Trump launched his attack on higher education, with data showing a 25% rise in US interest in British courses over the past year @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/42JLT7j

The government is battling to keep the country's last two blast furnaces burning in Scunthorpe "to help secure UK steelmaking for the future". But after decades of decline, will rescuing British Steel be enough? @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/3RO81Z5

on.ft.com/4j8mIm8 UK Home Office’s reform of graduate visas runs into opposition — inter departmental bust-up on this. Unis can’t afford to lose more lucrative overseas students. Tho @universitiesuk.bsky.social boss tells me they don’t need DfE to point out crimping grad route be a bad idea. 1/2

Delighted to be shortlisted for data journalist of the year by @wincottfound.bsky.social alongside a number of my amazing @data.ft.com colleagues wincott.co.uk/wincott-shor...

Women in the UK face HRT ‘lottery’, as reluctance to offer menopause treatment through the NHS drives reliance on private clinics. @carolynharris.bsky.social says prescription rates are "still significantly lower" than they should be, despite rising awareness @financialtimes.com - on.ft.com/4bIADwh

A true university collapse is getting closer and closer. Giving the regulator some more staff and a few quid wont cut it. www.ft.com/content/b512...

Keir Starmer has pledged to slash the number of arm's-length government bodies, but how big is the quango state really? Had fun creating some pretty graphics for this @financialtimes.com piece with @pmdfoster.bsky.social on.ft.com/4hHWKEb

Here’s a talking point. Massive surge in AI use by students, per Savanta survey for Higher Education Policy Institue report. Me and @amyborrett.ft.com for @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/3D82ysx

The mad merry-go-round of spending on stop-gap accommodation for homeless. Up 80% in a year. Huge waste of money that isn’t fixing the problem. New report out from LSE and @crisis-uk.bsky.social reported in @financialtimes.com w @amyborrett.ft.com @jenwilliamsft.bsky.social on.ft.com/43d3q9U

Irish citizenship applications from Britain hit a post-Brexit high last year as a weak UK economy and the "harsh" realities of travel restrictions drove a surge in people using their Irish ancestry to gain “backdoor" access to the EU. Data scoop in today's @financialtimes.com: on.ft.com/4kfHzog