New post: "After Starmer" The PM will go at some point - even if it drags out for a while - so what would a new leader actually do differently? And would it be enough to change anything? (£/free trial) open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/a...

Hate-filled fake videos about London are everywhere. We've obtained a recording of a TikToker confessing to secretly filming Londoners in their homes for clicks. He says it's not political. He just wants to make money from far-right anger. Read what he says: www.londoncentric.media/p/london-tik...

There are a few Labour Party constitutional changes I would advocate for but perhaps the most palatable is to reduce the number Division III – Constituency Labour Parties representatives on the NEC in exchange for increasing the number of Division IV – Labour Councillors representatives.

Once of the reasons behind Powells success IMO was that the faction backing Phillipson failed to keep their local constituency organisers motivated.

It's actually the participating Labour membership they need to win over, as we saw in the Deputy Leader contest. Much smaller set and thus the result is heavily influenced by the faction most successful at mobilising GOTV.

For some definition of 'representative sample'

the White House's official X account gloats over the arrest of Don Lemon with a chains emoji

If there is to be a leadership challenge announcing that, if successful, you'd immediately be approaching Sue Gray would give the commentariat something to write about.

NYT confirming MS NOW reporting: Prosecutors began investigating Renee Good's killing, then Washington told them to stop. Federal prosecutors had a warrant to collect evidence from Good's vehicle, but Trump leaders said to drop it. About a dozen prosecutors have since departed.

Omnishambles. The Murdoch lackey burns down the house then runs away.

Politics, real politics is so interminably dull that in an age of eyeball grabbing click bait those pontificating on it for a living have to sex it up to such ridiculous heights in that particular race to the bottom that you are perfectly justified in dismissing every single word that they write.

TL;DR No

🔴 The campaign is well underway for Labour in Gorton and Denton. 📰 James Tibbitts reports on the atmosphere amongst members , following speeches from Andy Burnham, Angela Rayner and Angeliki Stogia as an afternoon of door knocking began...

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This week I have been thinking about the words ‘Labour values’. My conversation with @metromayorsteve.bsky.social embodied them. Other stories showed that we must not allow them to become lip service to be betrayed both those who never lived them. labourlist.org/2026/02/labo...

Russia is throwing huge numbers of missiles at Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this winter in an attempt to freeze the Ukranian people. Donate here to support Ukraine’s defence and reconstruction. 👇🏻 UNITED24 — The initiative of the President of Ukraine u24.gov.ua

I have felt livid this week - for the poor young women and girls who should be our first priority. For the betrayal of the people in leaking of sensitive government information. And for the continual erosion of trust in politics and politicians. I promise you we are not all the same.

Maria is one of hundreds of children, who — like Liam Ramos — have been held at a Texas detention facility where parents say children languish as they’re served contaminated food, receive little education and struggle to obtain basic medical care. Here's our attempt at telling their stories. 2/

Metry and her husband of 4 years go to DHS to get their I-130 in motion. "Good news" a DHS employee told them, the form to start her naturalization was approved. DHS employee asks the husband to follow him through a secure door. When it locks behind him, ICE detains his wife to deport her.

"I was elated when another engineer mentioned deploying a new dashboard without my involvement." We don't focus only on the technical solution—we also build team capabilities. Our approach to observability, and why the human element matters most: https://link.testdouble.com/a882ec

BBC News: London to get £1.5bn share of housing loan scheme www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Racist woman to American with darker skin, "I'll call ICE and they'll shoot you like they shoot the others" The normalisation of racism and hate in the US under Trump is a really disturbing and sad thing to see

VOTE HOPE In May, Reform UK will try to turn anger into power. We can stop them. Across the UK, volunteers are organising to make sure people know about the election, understand what’s at stake, and motivate them to vote. Click, join, share hopenothate.org.uk/vote-hope/ @hopenothate.org.uk

I was on BBCR4’s Rethink today talking with @benansell.bsky.social about political authenticity Research links to follow. With co-authors @viktorv.bsky.social, @drjennings.bsky.social, @jmoss88.bsky.social, @danjdevine.bsky.social, @lawrencemckay.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

UK is pulling its funding for Cern's Large Hadron Collider upgrade, STFC leader Michele Dougherty confirms, after news first revealed by @francesjones.bsky.social @resprofnews.bsky.social "We simply don’t have the money to do everything." www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

"Clean Code" — a timeless truth or a myth we keep telling ourselves? @tastapod.com and me in conversation on the @modernswe.bsky.social channel discussing the origins, limitations and implications of clean code www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjW_...

Dan Thomas, formerly the Tory leader of Barnet Council, defected to Reform UK last year and later resigned from the council, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family in South Wales: barnetpost.co.uk/2025/12/31/f... He has now been unveiled as Reform UK leader in Wales. #reform #farage

Anthrocomplexity argues for alternative approaches: thecynefin.co/the-process-...

Cognitive dissidence is really underpriced in electoral strategies. Organisers continue to view electors as rational actors open to persuasion/manipulation in pursuit of linear paths to end goals.

Fourth post in the M&A series, now starting to get into practical methods and tools. This time, Sacred Story Books, which are powerful artefacts - if you do nothing else, check out the links to examples. thecynefin.co/ma-3-12-sacr...

A reply thread that supports my adage 'if you really want insight into voter behaviour go knock on some f**king doors'

Why election polls are not what you think they are open.spotify.com/episode/05Ab... @bwalker.uk from @britainelects.com interviewed by @georginasturge.bsky.social

Public service went to the heart of Jim. The tributes paid to him when he stood down as a local councillor after 24 years are but a small testimony of that. www.times-series.co.uk/news/1619038...

Jim Tierney. We will never forget you. Thank you for everything. I am completely speechless. 💔

I think it could even go to three as the propensities for Voter → Non Voter Non Voter → Voter Tactical Voter → Non Tactical Voter we see accompanying high levels of disillusionment play out

1Password not mincing words here: "If you are experimenting with OpenClaw, do not do it on a company device. Full stop." "If you have already run OpenClaw on a work device, treat it as a potential incident and engage your security team immediately." 1password.com/blog/from-ma...

The one thing the electorate will consistently to do is confound your expectations — Green's Razor

Labour's electoral machine is an antiquated mess. It follows recipes from the past that require ingredients no longer available in a post financial-crisis world.

"Labour needs to lose to learn" britainelects.substack.com/p/labour-nee... — @bwalker.uk

New post: likely ward by ward breakdowns of Gorton and Denton if it voted today. It's reasonable to expect Labour to not top the poll anywhere. The Greens may win in the west and Reform the east, but decent Labour seconds all over could see them home. www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-...

University of Illinois college republicans advocate for executing protesters as “traitors” with art that takes a disturbing killing and makes it even more extreme. dailyillini.com/news-stories...

By-election results tell us the what but not the why. Voter intention is fragmenting: from Lab/Con → DK/LD/Grn/Ref/NV, a picture complicated by the rise of NV to → Ref.

How is it that a church warden behind an interior design firm originally incorporated in the BVIs & tied to a Kazakh billionaire can make a £200,000 donation to Reform UK? Source of funds not disclosed. Farage has questions to answer. The Electoral Commission must investigate.

A relevant post materializes.

Inspired by @thefabians.bsky.social conference last weekend I wrote about how the Labour policy making ecosystem is thriving and could act as a vital resource to the party while the day to day pressures of government consumes them. labourlist.org/2026/01/labo...

This is the new electoral politics that Labour's organisers are completely ill-prepared for.

"'I really don’t like Keir Starmer.' Beyond one man’s claim that 'he hasn’t done what he said he’d do', no one can specify exactly why, but that seems to fire people’s loathing all the more"

new post – in public: notes on working in the open mikegallagher.org/posts/in-pub...

"MPR News has learned that the police chief in the small southern Minnesota city of St. Peter intervened Thursday afternoon to prevent federal immigration agents from arresting a local resident" who had been observing federal agents. www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...