If Andy Burnham fights a by-election, what is the message on his leaflets? Vote Labour to get rid of the Prime Minister??

I am reminded of Elmer the elephant by the Birmingham political map of 2026 though the quite positive patchwork of harmony message of that storybook may be challenging to emulate in city local politics

Our current contender for the closest ward of the night... Saddleworth South (Oldham) LDM: 1594 (35.04%) RFM: 1592 (35.00%) LAB: 602 (13.2%) CON: 417 (9.2%) GRN: 344 (7.6%) LDM Hold Last Elected 2023

Obligatory election night coverage post: if you’re at a count and want to known who’s won before anyone else, just find the slightly odd Lib Dem activist who has a spreadsheet, they always know the result first.

Hi @martinlewis.moneysavingexpert.com just caught up on your pensions special money show from Tuesday night. Just wanted to say well done on getting across so many tricky pensions ideas in such a clear way - and especially discouraging people from opting out of their workplace pension - thank you!

This matters for policy. Misreading HLE trends risks misdiagnosing the problem. Should worsening self-reported mental health among people in their 20s/30s drive decisions about the State Pension Age? I’d argue not (see my recent paper with @stevewebb1.bsky.social) www.lcp.com/en/media-cen...

When your Deputy Leader gives this answer to a question (in the Times) about whether you should remain Prime Minister, it’s not a ringing endorsement…..

CELEBRITY TRAITORS SERIES TWO CAST ANNOUNCED 🚨🚨

The Tony Blair Institute has come up with a truly awful plan for fixing pensions - so that your pension is based on a personalised projection of your death date. Former pensions Minister Steve Webb explains: " Just imagine going to a benefits tribunal to argue with DWP you should ...

Is it just me, or could we be a few years away from a constitutional crisis? Suppose Reform (or the Greens) win power with virtually no representation in the Lords - how do they get legislation through? Either create hundreds of new peers (love to see the vetting there..) or instant Lords reform??

No10’s account is incredible. I held Developed Vetting for nearly ten years and spent three years at the heart of the Cabinet Office. I have never heard of a Developed Vetting denial being overruled. Here’s why…🧵 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

This is as close to hopeful as I get...

"My grandmother, who lived to 92, occasionally asked visitors to kill her, though more in hope than expectation." as.ft.com/r/ea7a77ed-e...

I'm a big fan of the triple lock. But this defence of it is stupid: there's no need to play off old against young (quite the opposite; the thing about the lock is that it benefits younger people more), nor to pretend that the lock is only affordable if we cut other benefits.

Since 2018 Italy have qualified for more men’s cricket world cups than men’s football world cups.

Interesting trail from Ian Cheshire of the Pensions Commission at @standardlifeuk.bsky.social event The commission will publish modelling based on BOTH the state pension with a triple lock AND a less generous future state pension (even though triple lock not formally in scope)

we go live to Heard Island:

On the plus side, as it's his 66th birthday today, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor will have qualified for his state pension...

Can't help feeling that pensions stories won't be dominating the front pages tomorrow morning....

At this very moment both the BBC News and Sky News channels are yet again showing a live speech by Nigel Farage. When will they start showing every speech by @zackpolanski.bsky.social and @eddavey.libdems.org.uk live as well?

This Monday marked 10 years of doing a weekly column for This is Money, answering reader questions on pensions. Little did we realise the impact it would have, including forcing the Govt. to refund over £900m in underpaid state pensions as well as helping lots of individuals - very rewarding!

Just going to leave this here

Today's column. On the abyss. www.thetimes.com/article/c7f8...

I’m guessing there will have been some raised eyebrows when this popped up in the DWP ministerial press cuttings this morning….

Column in which I ask the important question: has Torsten Bell ever killed a man? economist.com/britain/2026...

I’d started wishing Man Utd well under Carrick who seems decent … now I’ll have to go back to hoping they lose ….

My new column for Money Marketing on why the forthcoming pensions dashboard could have a bigger impact than people think - and why financial advisers could have a key role to make sure that it succeeds: www.moneymarketing.co.uk/opinion/stev...

BRB, just googling “what happens if you get rid of your lightning rod and there is more lightning?”

and no I haven't put the Mandelson-Epstein-Reinaldo scoop on twitter we journalists *can* make Bluesky the place to break news

As expected, the Government has 're-taken' the WASPI compensation decision, but has come to exactly the same conclusion - no compensation. Just announced in the House of Commons.

Thanks to @stevewebb1.bsky.social (and colleagues at LCP) for this very interesting report: lcpuk.foleon.com/gender-ethni...

Many people assume their will determines where their money goes after they die. But with pensions it's not quite that simple. This week I reply to a reader who wants her pension pot to go to her daughter with everything else to her husband and discuss who decides what goes to whom! #pensions

Anyone else having trouble telling the News and The Traitors apart tonight?

Kemi discovering after 15 months that Robert Jenrick has been plotting in "secret"

'Another Warrington has hit the North-West'.

One of the few things that might actually get some kind of reaction from Musk would be the government and all MPs simply leaving X. This doesn't require regulatory or legal action. There are no barriers. They could *and should* just do it.

My weekly column for This is Money is up. This week I respond to a reader who is paying into a personal pension (aside from a workplace pension) whilst on UC. The pension contribs should be deducted from income, but too many DWP frontline staff don't seem to know the rules!

There are always Trumps. And so that is why the United States constitution has checks and balances for the misuse of presidential power. The real story of Trump’s presidency is not only what he has done, but also what Congress and the Supreme Court have not done.

Excellent to see @marymcd.bsky.social with a full page pensions piece in today’s FT. Politics and pensions mix badly.

On which note: bsky.app/profile/did:...

Former pensions minister calls for change as frozen tax thresholds mean even those whose only income is their state pension are getting dreaded brown letters from HMRC

New Year's resolution to post more on here! So, here's our new FOI-based story on the surge in people getting self-assessment tax demands, now that the tax threshold has been repeatedly frozen. Govt's 2027 'fix' for (some) pensioners won't make much difference: www.thesun.co.uk/money/378170...

Lots of parallels between #Ashes defeat and what Labour voters in 2024 are feeling about the govt right now.. "its the hope that kills you". "It was supposed to be different this time". you wait 15 years for a win in Australia/regain power and then it all falls to pieces super quickly

It's four days away, that's not much of a prediction.

Inflation can be the Chancellor's friend. 'Fiscal drag' measures such as freezing tax thresholds raise more money when inflation is high. So today's drop in inflation is not unalloyed good news for CX (Though if it paves the way for lower interest rates on the national debt it might be!)

Money Box Live next week is looking at the finances of blended families. If you have a story, comment or a question then please get in touch with me - it’s [email protected]

Person who actually deserves a trophy is the artist who made the FIFA peace prize trophy look like everyone in the entire world holding their head in their hands out of secondhand embarrassment

Really enjoying the latest series of ‘the Naked Week’ on Radio 4 @andrewhunterm.bsky.social - last week’s ’News in Haikus’ was a classic!

Red Book says that the £2k cap on salary sacrifice: "shields 74% of basic rate taxpayers using salary sacrifice". But if 5 million basic rate taxpayers use it, then that's over 1 million 'ordinary workers' losing?

Incredible that the OBR just leaked the Budget!