Tim Bale
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timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale
@timbale.bsky.social
28K followers 1K following 3.3K posts

Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University of London & author of The Conservative Party after Brexit: Turmoil and Transformation (now out in paperback). The bits and pieces I do for websites and newspapers turn up eventually at https://proftimbale.com .. more

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Timothy Paul Bale is an English political scientist who is professor of politics at Queen Mary, University of London.

Source: Wikipedia
Political science 83%
Sociology 6%
Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Tim Bale

guardianheather.bsky.social
Heather Stewart @guardianheather.bsky.social · 12h
Here’s this week’s column, in which I beg the chancellor to go big this week - on both headroom and narrative - so that by next year, if she’s still here to deliver it, the budget will be boring, because we all know the plan 🙏🏻
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Rachel Reeves, please, let’s make budgets boring again | Heather Stewart
Budgets need to be reassuringly dull with no repeat of this year’s long, drawn-out and chaotic buildup
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Tim Bale

paulbernal.bsky.social
Paul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 15h
You wouldn’t know these great legal scholars. They go to another school.*

*not a law school

Reposted by Steve Peers, Tim Bale, Simon Lester

t0nyyates.bsky.social
Tony Yates @t0nyyates.bsky.social · 16h
It is really weird how so many people that count themselves in the liberal bracket have just said 'fuck that I'm staying on X' regardless of the dark shit that is perpetrated on there by its owner.

Reposted by Tim Bale, Lesley A. Hall

davidheniguk.bsky.social
David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 18h
Of course in many respects everyone's life could be better. But that was always the case. There was never a time when life was particularly better than now.

So at what point in recent years did we start to expect that the government would take care of everything? And why?

Reposted by Gavin L. Foster, Tim Bale, Elizabeth Stokoe

profaliceroberts.bsky.social
Alice Roberts @profaliceroberts.bsky.social · 18h
“Have they given up? Are they just deciding to build up herd immunity by watching us die? The government has given up, hasn’t it? They are throwing us into the slaughterhouse.”
It’s not hindsight - we knew this at the time @drrachelclarke.com writes:
observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
I’ll never forget the horror of the Covid wards | The Observer
observer.co.uk

Reposted by Tim Bale

coeliacexpat.bsky.social
coeliacexpat.bsky.social @coeliacexpat.bsky.social · 19h
Good lord! :

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 21h
SURPRISE!
Boris Johnson took four days off as NHS warned Covid could ‘overwhelm’ system
Files show then PM was walking dog, riding motorbike and hosting guests as pandemic planning stalled in ‘lost month’
www.theguardian.com

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 21h
Makes perfect political as well as commercial sense: after all, the Telegraph is now just as bonkers as the Mail.
Daily Mail owner strikes £500mn deal for Telegraph
Tie-up would create one of the most powerful right-leaning media groups in Britain
www.ft.com

Reposted by Tim Bale

anthonypainter.bsky.social
Anthony Painter @anthonypainter.bsky.social · 1d
Special dust particles to "turn down the sun".

The main purpose of start-ups such as this is not scientific. It's political: to have "frontier technologies" that allow us to pretend that we don't need to take action today.

And so science becomes anti science.

www.politico.com/news/magazin...
The Strange and Totally Real Plan to Blot Out the Sun and Reverse Global Warming
A 25-person startup is developing technology to block the sun and turn down the planet’s thermostat. The stakes are huge — and the company and its critics say regulations need to catch up.
www.politico.com

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
If nothing else, this whole farrago led to my US students learning from me and for the first time the phrase "Couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery."
Sultana accused by Corbyn allies of encouraging 'ultra leftists' to disrupt Your Party conference
A spokesperson for Ms Sultana says she believes Your Party should "unite the entire left" in a row over the influence of far-left groups.
news.sky.com

Reposted by Tim Bale, Mary Corcoran

matslbengtsson.bsky.social
Mats Bengtsson @matslbengtsson.bsky.social · 1d
Also, I think the Norwegian Nobel Peace Prize Committee should publish a statement like this one;

- "The Nobel Peace Prize was never awarded to Neville Chamberlain. The Prize will never be awarded to anyone who trades somebody else's land for a few months to a couple of years of peace."

Reposted by Jan W. Mueller

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
"He’s impressed by what Vance had made of his tough upbringing – detailed in the book Hillbilly Elegy – BUT ALSO HIS REAL-WORLD MILITARY EXPERIENCE." ffs! Vance was deployed to an air-base in Iraq for about six months in 2005 as a military journalist and didn't experience combat.
timbale.bsky.social Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
So many laughable assumptions in this opening sentence that I honestly don't know where to start. 🤦

"What I struggle to understand, I say to Danny Kruger in his office at Reform UK HQ, is why a serious Conservative, with a glittering future like yours, would defect to a party led by Nigel Farage?
‘America is British’. Heaven is ‘a socialist state’. David Attenborough is ‘anti-human’ – the startling theories of Reform MP Danny Kruger
He was a Conservative party big-hitter who wrote speeches for David Cameron and worked with Boris Johnson before he suddenly jumped ship. He talks family, flags and why Nigel Farage is ‘top dog’
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Jan W. Mueller

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
So many laughable assumptions in this opening sentence that I honestly don't know where to start. 🤦

"What I struggle to understand, I say to Danny Kruger in his office at Reform UK HQ, is why a serious Conservative, with a glittering future like yours, would defect to a party led by Nigel Farage?
‘America is British’. Heaven is ‘a socialist state’. David Attenborough is ‘anti-human’ – the startling theories of Reform MP Danny Kruger
He was a Conservative party big-hitter who wrote speeches for David Cameron and worked with Boris Johnson before he suddenly jumped ship. He talks family, flags and why Nigel Farage is ‘top dog’
www.theguardian.com

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
Knowing politicians, I'd say around one hundred Tory MPs 😆.

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
A must-listen on this issue. Superb, fact-packed discussion of how the UK compares. Really great questions from @davidsonofaaron.bsky.social and really great answers from @msumption.bsky.social, @andrewpgeddes.bsky.social and Susi Dennison. "The Briefing Room" really is the BBC at its absolute best.
BBC Radio 4 - The Briefing Room, What can the UK learn from the rest of Europe about asylum reform?
Is Denmark the right model for the UK's asylum policy?
www.bbc.co.uk

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 1d
"I don’t think she’s a bad person. I just think the task is beyond her.”

While this poll apparently wasn't commissioned by Tories who want rid of Badenoch, they're clearly hoping that, by trashing her leadership in the comments they've given to journalists off the back of it, to hasten her exit.
Tories 'on course for 14 seats' at next election, internal poll suggests | LBC
One senior Conservative figure warned the party risked “being consigned to the history books” if the trend continues
www.lbc.co.uk

Reposted by Tim Bale, Robert Wolfe, Ben Tonra

edwardluce.bsky.social
Edward Luce @edwardluce.bsky.social · 1d
Fully agree with my paper's editorial on Trump. Ukraine needs Europe to stop flattering Trump the conman and take a clear stand for its own survival and values. www.ft.com/content/8ccf...
Trump’s world view: cynical, self-interested and money-grabbing
Latest Ukraine peace plan presented by the US would be a capitulation to Moscow
www.ft.com

Reposted by Tim Bale

josiah.writes.news
Josiah Mortimer @josiah.writes.news · 2d
Britain has set a new wind generation record.

"At 7:30pm on 11 November wind turbines...provided enough clean electricity to power more than 22 million homes"

"Wind was delivering 43.6% of all power on the system which means three quarters of Britain’s homes were effectively running on wind alone"
Windpower sets new record for baseload - Energy Live News
Wind supplied 43% of all power last week setting a new record of 22.7 GW
www.energylivenews.com

Reposted by Will Jennings, Tim Bale, Justin H. Kirkland , and 3 more

tabouchadi.bsky.social
Tarik Abou-Chadi @tabouchadi.bsky.social · 2d
Labour is desperately trying to appeal to Reform supporters. In October, we asked people in the UK if they perceive a party as a "party for someone like them". Only very few people say this for both Labour and Reform. The correlation is negative. Labour is chasing an electorate that does not exist.

Reposted by Tim Bale

davidheniguk.bsky.social
David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 2d
Oh, Customs Union again? Based on recent conversations I am pretty sure that any form of greater UK market access to the single market including this will require substantial financial contribution, alignment, and close to freedom of movement. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Lib Dems to force vote on creating new customs union with EU
Ed Davey’s party believes the move is the best way to ‘turbocharge’ economy, rather than tax rises
www.theguardian.com

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 2d
Does it convince them? Hope so.

Reposted by Tim Bale

pietrocastellig.bsky.social
Pietro Castelli Gattinara @pietrocastellig.bsky.social · 2d
Spoiler alert! 👇
casmudde.bsky.social Cas Mudde @casmudde.bsky.social · 2d
I am very excited to keynote at the 5th ECPR Summer School on Extremism and Democracy in Bologna 🇮🇹, early July 2026, organized by @andreapirro.it & @pietrocastellig.bsky.social

This is a must-visit for junior scholars in the field - intellectually stimulating, supportive and fun! More info soon!

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 2d
Doncha just hate the BBC?!
BBC Children in Need’s 2025 Appeal raises £45.5 million
BBC Children in Need thanks the public for their remarkable support in raising £45,507,536 to help make a difference to the lives of children and young people in communities across the UK
www.bbc.co.uk

Reposted by Tim Bale, Eric D. Knowles, Mark Rice , and 2 more

ence.bsky.social
ence morse @ence.bsky.social · 2d
The partisan divide has grown, too. The wealthiest 100 tended to give more to Republicans than to Democrats before last year. But giving to the GOP spiked in 2024, with *84%* of donations going to back Republicans or conservative PACs.

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 2d
Surely you know by now, Cas, that "it's all relative"...?

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 2d
Now try telling your average undergraduate that?
Learning With AI Falls Short Compared to Old-Fashioned Web Search
In virtually all the ways that matter, getting summarized information from AI models was less educational than doing the work of search.
gizmodo.com

Reposted by Tim Bale, Stefan Müller, Lucas Leemann , and 2 more

chanret.bsky.social
Chris Hanretty @chanret.bsky.social · 2d
NEW ARTICLE: @palesl.bsky.social, Vesa Koskimaa and I have an letter out in JOP, "Politicians talk less about the future as they age" doi.org/10.1086/739406 (1/10)
Legislators talk less about the future as they age | The Journal of Politics: Vol 0, No ja
doi.org

Reposted by Tim Bale, Lesley A. Hall

lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social
LSE British Politics and Policy blog @lsepoliticsblog.bsky.social · 2d
It looks quite likely that the two-child limit will be scrapped at the 2025 Budget. But that will still leave child poverty levels at 28 per cent - double what it was in the 1970s.

blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...
Is scrapping the two-child limit enough to tackle poverty? | British Politics and Policy at LSE
It looks like the two-child limit will be scrapped at the 2025 Budget. But that will still leave child poverty at 28 per cent, double what it was in the 1970s.
blogs.lse.ac.uk

Reposted by Kai Arzheimer

timbale.bsky.social
Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 2d
Sometimes you need to hear that you're not the only one feeling that way. Yeah, it's sweary; but it's also one of @youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com's very best - and that's a high bar.
youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com Marie Le Conte @youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com · 2d
this week's newsletter is titled "aren't you tired of feeling insane all the time?" and I think it speaks for itself

it is also free to read

youngvulgarian.substack.com/p/arent-you-...

Reposted by Will Jennings, Steve Peers, Tim Bale , and 4 more

youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com
Marie Le Conte @youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com · 2d
this week's newsletter is titled "aren't you tired of feeling insane all the time?" and I think it speaks for itself

it is also free to read

youngvulgarian.substack.com/p/arent-you-...