Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

LightNews

Political Quarterly

@politicalquarterly.bsky.social

5.7K followers 2.6K following 510 posts

Analysis, insight and informed opinion on politics and public policy. https://politicalquarterly.org.uk

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 17h

Russia says prospects for Ukraine peace deal are fading as its war rages on. 20 years ago, Putin was a modernising ‘Westerniser’ who saw Russia as essentially European. Nowadays, he sees Russia as a self-contained civilisational world.

What happened?

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/review-...

Review: Russia's World Order. How Civilizationism Explains the Conflict with the West, by Paul Robinson

Twenty years ago, President Putin was a modernising ‘Westerniser’ who saw Russia as essentially European. Nowadays he talks about Russia as a self-contained civilisational world.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 23h

There have likely been 10,000 or more university redundancies in the academic year 2024-25.

@gsoh31.bsky.social, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Oxford Brookes, argues that the Higher Education system as we know it is coming to an end.

Where now for Britain’s Universities?

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 1d

Anya Pearson interviews @helenmargetts.bsky.social, Professor of Society and the Internet at the Oxford Internet Institute, on the AI revolution and why she really doesn't like the phrase ‘algorithmic governance’

"The Risk of Inequity is Always There, Wherever You've Got AI": Interview with Helen Margetts

Anya Pearson interviews Helen Margetts on the relationship between digital technology and government, politics and public policy.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 2d

For Labour, a party system in which its principal rival is Reform would be a much worse political outcome for everything the party cares about than if the Conservatives retained their position, argues Ben Jackson, co-editor of the Political Quarterly.

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/nigel-f...

Nigel Farage is no Ramsay MacDonald: Comparing the Rise of Reform with the Rise of Labour

It is hard not to suspect that arresting the rise of Reform could be beyond the powers of both current party leaders.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 4d

Volunteer as a Reader for the Orwell Youth Prize!

The @orwellprize.bsky.social is looking for experienced professionals across publishing, literature, academia, civil society (and more) to provide personalised feedback as part of their judging process.

Volunteering | The Orwell Foundation

How you can help support our young writers

www.orwellfoundation.com

Reposted by Political Quarterly

Manès Weisskircher @manesweisskircher.bsky.social · 6d

🇩🇪 German Reunification Day!

In 2020, I wrote about how Germany's east–west divide links to #AfD success. Today, the article remains relevant — but the AfD’s rise across Germany shows that this is not only an east-west story.

➡️ onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @politicalquarterly.bsky.social

The Strength of Far‐Right AfD in Eastern Germany: The East‐West Divide and the Multiple Causes behind ‘Populism’

This article sheds light on one of the key developments in recent German politics and relates it to the broader debate on the electoral success of the far right. The rise of the Alternative für Deuts...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 6d

"The risk of inequity is always there, wherever you've got AI"

Anya Pearson asks @helenmargetts.bsky.social, Professor of Society and the Internet at the Oxford Internet Institute, about digital government and the opportunities and challenges of AI.

"The Risk of Inequity is Always There, Wherever You've Got AI": Interview with Helen Margetts

Anya Pearson interviews Helen Margetts on the relationship between digital technology and government, politics and public policy.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 7d

If the Tories agree to be the junior partners supporting a Reform government, they are sending an unmistakable signal that the Conservatives are finished as one of the two main parties of government, argues PQ co-ed Ben Jackson.

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/nigel-f...

Nigel Farage is no Ramsay MacDonald: Comparing the Rise of Reform with the Rise of Labour

It is hard not to suspect that arresting the rise of Reform could be beyond the powers of both current party leaders.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 7d

Volunteer as a Reader for the Orwell Youth Prize!

The @orwellprize.bsky.social is looking for experienced professionals across publishing, literature, academia, civil society (and more) to provide personalised feedback as part of their judging process.

www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-y...

Volunteering | The Orwell Foundation

How you can help support our young writers

www.orwellfoundation.com

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 7d

There have likely been 10,000 or more university redundancies in the academic year 2024-25.

@gsoh31.bsky.social, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Oxford Brookes, argues that the Higher Education system as we know it is coming to an end.

Where now for Britain’s Universities?

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 8d

It is hard not to suspect that arresting the rise of Reform could be beyond the powers of both current party leaders, writes Ben Jackson, our journal Co-Editor and Professor of Modern History at Oxford University.

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/nigel-f...

Nigel Farage is no Ramsay MacDonald: Comparing the Rise of Reform with the Rise of Labour

It is hard not to suspect that arresting the rise of Reform could be beyond the powers of both current party leaders.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Reposted by Political Quarterly

Ben Yong @bymyong.bsky.social · 10d

"There have likely been 10,000 or more university redundancies in the academic year 2024-25..."

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 10d

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

By Glen O'Hara, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Oxford Brookes University

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/where-n...

Where now for Britain’s Universities?

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 10d

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

By Glen O'Hara, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Oxford Brookes University

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/where-n...

Where now for Britain’s Universities?

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 13d

When it comes to questions of AI and public policy, Helen Margetts is one of the most knowledgeable people in the world.

Anya Pearson asks her about digital governance and what Alan Turing would make of the AI revolution.

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/the-ris...

"The Risk of Inequity is Always There, Wherever You've Got AI": Interview with Helen Margetts

Anya Pearson interviews Helen Margetts on the relationship between digital technology and government, politics and public policy.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Reposted by Political Quarterly

Kate Alexander-Shaw @katealexandershaw.bsky.social · 14d

As the new academic year begins, here's an important and bracing read on the crisis in UK universities, by Glen O'Hara for @politicalquarterly.bsky.social

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Where now for Britain's Universities?

Although the financial crisis facing the United Kingdom's universities is by now well known, the detailed reasons behind it have been less prominent in public and political debate. It is true that fr...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Reposted by Political Quarterly

Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 14d

Keir Starmer writes in the Telegraph (where else!?) that Labour “did shy away from people’s concerns around illegal immigration.” Perhaps I was living in a parallel universe when I wrote this for @politicalquarterly.bsky.social in 2014? (Free to read version here: qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/bitstr...)

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 23d

‪The latest OBR forecasts suggest average families may end the current parliament financially worse off than they were at the start.

@jrf-uk.bsky.social‬'s @alfie-stirling.bsky.social
on the crisis in UK living standards, and how politicians should respond:

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Before the Boil: Addressing the UK's Living Standards Crisis

The UK faces a crisis in living standards. The current outlook for real disposable incomes is unprecedented, including rising inequality and the risk of a first parliament on record where the average...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Reposted by Political Quarterly

Kate Alexander-Shaw @katealexandershaw.bsky.social · 24d

A must-read this morning - JRF's @alfie-stirling.bsky.social on the crisis in UK living standards, and how politicians can (and must) respond

Alfie Stirling @alfie-stirling.bsky.social · 24d

The latest OBR forecasts suggest the average family may end the current parliament financially worse off than they were at the start.

That's unlikely to be a survivable record to defend at the ballot box, but there may be a way to turn it around.

New piece from me for Political Quarterly.

Before the Boil: Addressing the UK's Living Standards Crisis

The UK faces a crisis in living standards. The current outlook for real disposable incomes is unprecedented, including rising inequality and the risk of a first parliament on record where the average...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Reposted by Political Quarterly

Laurence Cooley @lpcooley.bsky.social · 25d

"The lough supplies 40% of Northern Ireland's drinking water, which is treated and said to be safe. Not everyone is convinced."

In our @politicalquarterly.bsky.social piece, Elliott and I argued that this concern might be the best hope of spurring action. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 26d

"Although the what of English devolution appears to be settled for now, the why remains much more volatile."

@jacknewman.bsky.social and @jmchickson.bsky.social discuss the tensions and ambiguity at the heart of the devolution agenda.

Localism, Levelling Up and Taking Back Control: Tensions in the Ambiguous Justification of English Devolution

The government’s devolution bill is justified along economic growth lines. This risks the devolution agenda as a whole if it doesn't materalise.

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 27d

"While policy debates have centred on supply and affordability, the reality is that, in both countries, as in the UK, the losers are often younger people"

Marietta Haffner and Kath Hulse reflect on housing supply and tenure in Australia and the Netherlands

The Politics of Changes in Housing Supply and Tenure: Illustrations from Australia and the Netherlands

Almost regardless of the welfare system and market context, the changing housing landscapes in Western countries show similar trends. Drawing on the experiences of Australia and the Netherlands,...

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 28d

"The new Labour government has placed increasing housing delivery at the heart of its agenda... lacklustre economic performance and ever-increasing housing costs. The two elements are related."

Nancy Holman & Alan Mace on Labour's housing goals.

Labour's Commitment to 1.5 Million New Homes: Housing Delivery as an Orchestrator-Intermediary Challenge

Will housing reform be any different under this government?

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 29d

"Britain feels more fractured than ever... Yet... our electoral system continues to funnel power into the hands of just two parties."

Alex Cobb discusses why electoral reform is needed, looking to Switzerland's electoral system for inspiration

The Illusion of Choice: Why Britain’s Democracy Needs a Reboot

Britain feels more fractured than ever after a summer of discontent. After fourteen years of Conservative rule followed by a Labour government that many see as even more recklessly led, of course,...

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · Sep 7

'Discussions with David Marquand were always enjoyable and stimulating... After his death, it has remained a delight to continue the dialogue through his writings.'

@hilaryredpepper.bsky.social discusses the late David Marquand's political philosophy

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/beyond-...

Beyond Liberal Individualism: What Role, if any, for Socialism? David Marquand's Search for an Adequately Radical Political Philosophy

Discussions with David Marquand were always enjoyable and stimulating occasions through the pluralist forums in which we were both involved, notably Charter 88 and Compass. After his death, it has...

politicalquarterly.org.uk

Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · Sep 6

@jemgilbert.bsky.social and Alex Williams on the explanatory power of 'values'

"Matthew Goodwin's Values, Voice and Virtue received considerable attention... But the concept of ‘values’ on which Goodwin bases his argument is never precisely explicated."

The Vices of Values: Matthew Goodwin and the Politics of Motivation

Matthew Goodwin's Values, Voice and Virtue received considerable attention from across the political spectrum. But the concept of ‘values’ on which Goodwin bases his argument is never precisely…

politicalquarterly.org.uk