So glad we've had the moral panic of the past few months lol
Net migration fell sharply agaim to 204,000 in the year to June 2025, having been 344k in 2024 and 848k in 2023. But falling immigration has been the biggest secret - and it is time for the media and political debate to catch up with this change
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cn...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cn...
UK net migration fell to 204,000 in year to June - live updates
Net migration, the difference between those entering and leaving the country, was 345,000 in 2024 according to revised figures.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 10:28 AM
So glad we've had the moral panic of the past few months lol
Reposted by JT
Hey, congratulations to all of Olivia Nuzzi’s horny media critic defenders. Heckuva job!
November 26, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Hey, congratulations to all of Olivia Nuzzi’s horny media critic defenders. Heckuva job!
Reposted by JT
Steady hands on a sinking ship. Today’s budget was for two audiences: fractious backbenchers and our fiscal overlords. A few progressive tweaks, but ultimately, a missed opportunity for substantial reform and the change this country needs.
@theleaduk.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/theleadu...
@theleaduk.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/theleadu...
The Lead's budget verdict: technocratic tweaks to a broken system
Lifting the two-child benefit cap is welcome, but Rachel Reeves' tax and spend plans fall far short of the financial shake up this country needs
open.substack.com
November 26, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Steady hands on a sinking ship. Today’s budget was for two audiences: fractious backbenchers and our fiscal overlords. A few progressive tweaks, but ultimately, a missed opportunity for substantial reform and the change this country needs.
@theleaduk.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/theleadu...
@theleaduk.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/theleadu...
I do find it mad that there's a genuine ticking timebomb for millennials that their pensions won't cover the exorbitant cost of housing by the time they retire and Rachel Reeves has been to say "good".
November 26, 2025 at 6:15 PM
I do find it mad that there's a genuine ticking timebomb for millennials that their pensions won't cover the exorbitant cost of housing by the time they retire and Rachel Reeves has been to say "good".
Reposted by JT
Slightly odd to include the Justice Secretary rather than say the Agriculture Secretary. I wonder why?
I think at this point if you're including Diane Abbott - a woman who has never held government office, has been a backbencher since 2020, and is scarcely a government ally - on your list of political wrongdoers, we all know exactly what your real concerns are
November 26, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Slightly odd to include the Justice Secretary rather than say the Agriculture Secretary. I wonder why?
Great job dropping the tax rises to avoid the media saying you were raising taxes. Truly stellar job guys.
November 26, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Great job dropping the tax rises to avoid the media saying you were raising taxes. Truly stellar job guys.
Reposted by JT
Complaining from the Speaker's chair about briefing Budget measures is getting very tired, very quickly. There's a reason this stuff is briefed. Some of it is narrow political interest. But it's also in the national interest- it's to prepare the markets.
November 26, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Complaining from the Speaker's chair about briefing Budget measures is getting very tired, very quickly. There's a reason this stuff is briefed. Some of it is narrow political interest. But it's also in the national interest- it's to prepare the markets.
Have to admit, it IS quite funny that Reeves will be looking for some good headlines about the child benefit being lifted and almost every question from the Lobby will inevitably be about the OBR being an hour early because they lack object permanence
November 26, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Have to admit, it IS quite funny that Reeves will be looking for some good headlines about the child benefit being lifted and almost every question from the Lobby will inevitably be about the OBR being an hour early because they lack object permanence
Christ, a lot of you seem to have new jobs at the OBR, is this why there's such a productivity crisis?
November 26, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Christ, a lot of you seem to have new jobs at the OBR, is this why there's such a productivity crisis?
Reposted by JT
Mate you need to chill the fuck out lmao
November 26, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Mate you need to chill the fuck out lmao
To leak one budget may be regarded as a misfortune, to leak it again looks like carelessness!
November 26, 2025 at 12:05 PM
To leak one budget may be regarded as a misfortune, to leak it again looks like carelessness!
Reposted by JT
Doing a U-turn on a tax the market both wanted and expected on the day of the budget itself would have been absolute smackhead behaviour. From great piece by @pronouncedalva.bsky.social www.newstatesman.com/cover-story/...
November 25, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Doing a U-turn on a tax the market both wanted and expected on the day of the budget itself would have been absolute smackhead behaviour. From great piece by @pronouncedalva.bsky.social www.newstatesman.com/cover-story/...
Ironic that a person who later in this thread says he "supports" gay rights jumps straight to "social pressure did a pretty good job" at keeping trans people hidden away, the same social pressure that left gay people in the closet, traumatised and dying, and still can't see the point OP was making
The social pressure that did the job pretty well until the last couple of decades.
November 25, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Ironic that a person who later in this thread says he "supports" gay rights jumps straight to "social pressure did a pretty good job" at keeping trans people hidden away, the same social pressure that left gay people in the closet, traumatised and dying, and still can't see the point OP was making
Reposted by JT
yes I don't really see how you can go "oh yikes these people have changed their political views incredibly quickly, mostly because of what Very Online people talk about on social media" and also think that people who went from never talking about gender to calling trans women predators are....normal
I don’t like subtweeting people I consider online friends, but there is a subset of people who are very worried about the ongoing radicalisation of our political elite but won’t ever acknowledge the echoes with the radicalisation of their colleagues on trans rights
And few who are sympathetic to us, some who are friendly with me on here, will ever stick their head above the parapet
November 25, 2025 at 12:55 PM
yes I don't really see how you can go "oh yikes these people have changed their political views incredibly quickly, mostly because of what Very Online people talk about on social media" and also think that people who went from never talking about gender to calling trans women predators are....normal
Reposted by JT
In the span of a hour, they stealth edited the article from trans woman to "biological male who identifies as a woman." The BBC isn't fit for purpose.
It looks like that BBC page has been updated in the last few minutes, so that's no longer the last sentence. I think part of it has been moved to this paragraph in the middle of the article, and the age is no longer mentioned:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
November 25, 2025 at 1:36 PM
In the span of a hour, they stealth edited the article from trans woman to "biological male who identifies as a woman." The BBC isn't fit for purpose.
Reposted by JT
Spicy take: Rogue One is *worse* after Andor because it shows how good pure, uncut Gilroy is.
November 24, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Spicy take: Rogue One is *worse* after Andor because it shows how good pure, uncut Gilroy is.
Reposted by JT
One frustration of watching MPs ask questions for an hour is that they're not very good at it. Prescott has not been asked about the fairly glaring errors in his own report – that *it misquoted Trump in exactly the same way it says Panorama did*
www.thenewworld.co.uk/james-ball-e...
www.thenewworld.co.uk/james-ball-e...
EXCLUSIVE: Michael Prescott himself doctored Trump quote in his anti-BBC report
A report alleging Panorama broadcast misleading Trump quotes contains misleading quotes itself
www.thenewworld.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 4:29 PM
One frustration of watching MPs ask questions for an hour is that they're not very good at it. Prescott has not been asked about the fairly glaring errors in his own report – that *it misquoted Trump in exactly the same way it says Panorama did*
www.thenewworld.co.uk/james-ball-e...
www.thenewworld.co.uk/james-ball-e...
Reposted by JT
You see this also with the “we have to reduce immigration or racism will get worse”. The average person who thinks immigration is too high does not think that makes gutter racism ok and does not agree with, e.g. “let’s do a Partition scale ethnic cleansing in the UK”.
Sorry to keep banging on about it but it's literally *they are on Twitter and think it's the majority view*
This is pretty striking and makes me wonder exactly what Labour have been up to in making policy seemingly in response to / fear of the former rather than the middle group.
November 22, 2025 at 8:17 PM
You see this also with the “we have to reduce immigration or racism will get worse”. The average person who thinks immigration is too high does not think that makes gutter racism ok and does not agree with, e.g. “let’s do a Partition scale ethnic cleansing in the UK”.
Reposted by JT
Most of the public know what’s going on with flags on lamp posts.
Crucially for the government, 78% of its 2024 voters think anti-minority sentiment is involved in flying England flags (versus just 15% who think it’s just a national pride thing).
They are getting the politics of this all wrong.
Crucially for the government, 78% of its 2024 voters think anti-minority sentiment is involved in flying England flags (versus just 15% who think it’s just a national pride thing).
They are getting the politics of this all wrong.
Why do people think England flags have been raised on lampposts?
White adults
National pride: 26%
Anti-migrant/minority sentiment: 49%
Both: 19%
Ethnic minority adults
National pride: 15%
Anti-migrant/minority sentiment: 55%
Both: 20%
yougov.co.uk/society/arti...
White adults
National pride: 26%
Anti-migrant/minority sentiment: 49%
Both: 19%
Ethnic minority adults
National pride: 15%
Anti-migrant/minority sentiment: 55%
Both: 20%
yougov.co.uk/society/arti...
November 22, 2025 at 7:39 PM
Most of the public know what’s going on with flags on lamp posts.
Crucially for the government, 78% of its 2024 voters think anti-minority sentiment is involved in flying England flags (versus just 15% who think it’s just a national pride thing).
They are getting the politics of this all wrong.
Crucially for the government, 78% of its 2024 voters think anti-minority sentiment is involved in flying England flags (versus just 15% who think it’s just a national pride thing).
They are getting the politics of this all wrong.
Reposted by JT
Also this, of course! If women are defined by the production of large gametes, the production of large gametes quickly comes to define women. Feminism once argued that biology was not destiny; the anti-trans movement insists that it is. bsky.app/profile/jack...
If you are arguing that what essentially makes you a woman is your reproductive capacity, then it’s real easy to slide into the “you must reproduce” logic.
November 22, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Also this, of course! If women are defined by the production of large gametes, the production of large gametes quickly comes to define women. Feminism once argued that biology was not destiny; the anti-trans movement insists that it is. bsky.app/profile/jack...
Reposted by JT
There are plenty of links between the anti-trans “women’s rights” movement & anti-feminist conservatism. And opposing abortion is a logical conclusion for a movement that says no, you should not have agency over your own body; no, you do not know best about yourself; no, you have no choice.
No way I’m sharing Stock’s UnHerd article. But I am going to point to this bit which amply demonstrates the anti-trans=>anti-women’s rights pipeline. “Abortions should only be done for a highly restricted set of reasons. They should not be just nodded through for any reason a pregnant woman likes.”
November 22, 2025 at 10:40 AM
There are plenty of links between the anti-trans “women’s rights” movement & anti-feminist conservatism. And opposing abortion is a logical conclusion for a movement that says no, you should not have agency over your own body; no, you do not know best about yourself; no, you have no choice.
Reposted by JT
Indeed. Look, if “all” that happened if we knocked down the terraced houses down the road from me is that we ended up with as much multi-use flexible office space and as many luxury flat sales in Bloomsbury as Kings Cross….cool, can fix a whole bunch of social problems that way too!
I like this post but it stops short. It might be that building loads of flats in central London doesn't reduce rents much, but that means it's creating an enormous and growing stream of rents. It's a gdp factory as @ironeconomist.bsky.social and I have discussed previously. And we need that too.
open.substack.com/pub/backofmi...
"It can be noted that supply and demand don’t have an obvious role in this model, which appears to drive some people crazy...for the very best locations, pricing will be almost completely inelastic to supply"
"It can be noted that supply and demand don’t have an obvious role in this model, which appears to drive some people crazy...for the very best locations, pricing will be almost completely inelastic to supply"
November 22, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Indeed. Look, if “all” that happened if we knocked down the terraced houses down the road from me is that we ended up with as much multi-use flexible office space and as many luxury flat sales in Bloomsbury as Kings Cross….cool, can fix a whole bunch of social problems that way too!
Reposted by JT
I think this is a very important point in yimby discourse: people say they don’t like densification but in London at least the densification is happening anyway. It happens via house shares, kids living in parents houses forever etc. you get the densification with or without more housing!
A long time ago Ian Mulherin made this chart and this is densification. That part is already happening! Look at the line for London!
November 22, 2025 at 11:04 AM
I think this is a very important point in yimby discourse: people say they don’t like densification but in London at least the densification is happening anyway. It happens via house shares, kids living in parents houses forever etc. you get the densification with or without more housing!
Reposted by JT
A long time ago Ian Mulherin made this chart and this is densification. That part is already happening! Look at the line for London!
November 22, 2025 at 11:02 AM
A long time ago Ian Mulherin made this chart and this is densification. That part is already happening! Look at the line for London!
Reposted by JT
Indeed. In addition: essentially, “people don’t like densification” is in general just “people mostly want to live in a home like the one they grew up in, but nicer”. Which is fine (me too!) but it also is self-correcting after a while.
I think this is a very important point in yimby discourse: people say they don’t like densification but in London at least the densification is happening anyway. It happens via house shares, kids living in parents houses forever etc. you get the densification with or without more housing!
A long time ago Ian Mulherin made this chart and this is densification. That part is already happening! Look at the line for London!
November 22, 2025 at 11:40 AM
Indeed. In addition: essentially, “people don’t like densification” is in general just “people mostly want to live in a home like the one they grew up in, but nicer”. Which is fine (me too!) but it also is self-correcting after a while.