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Andy Bruce (Reuters)

@bruceandy.bsky.social

6.1K followers 1.4K following 14K posts

Bit of this, bit of that at Reuters. UK economy and north of England correspondent. ☀️ Stockport ☀️ 💬 Signal: bruce.369

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · Apr 16

Drop me a line if you:
💁have an interesting story to tell
⚠️think an issue needs national press attention
☕️have insight into big institutions or powerful people
🙊heard interesting rumours or gossip

DM/Signal in bio

@reuters.com has a long history of protecting sources

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 10h

Excellent point

Strange Days at Blake Hol(e)sey High 👻 🍑 @reactionordinary.bsky.social · 10h

The RIAA was suing teenagers. We had to sit through ⬇️ this shit anytime we wanted to watch a DVD. A whole generation shamed for using Limewire and torrents. Only for these silicone valley assholes to now find copyright infringement a necessary evil they shouldn’t have to answer for

Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Michael Derby @michaelsderby.bsky.social · 15h

Reuters/Ipsos poll finds strong majority of Americans oppose Trump’s use of soldiers as cops, also “Trump's approval rating on crime fell in the latest poll to 41% from 43% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted September 5-9.”

www.reuters.com

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 19h

what the UK borrows (revenue - spending) determines what the DMO issues down the line

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Reuters @reuters.com · 1d

Airbus A320 ousts Boeing 737 as most-delivered jet in history reut.rs/3IyvEEl

Airbus A320 ousts Boeing 737 as most-delivered jet in history

Europe's Airbus broke a major commercial barrier on Tuesday when its A320 family of planes overtook the Boeing 737 to become the most-delivered jetliner in history.

reut.rs

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Peter Thal Larsen @petertl.bsky.social · 1d

This photo from Portland by @reuters.com's Carlos Barria 👌

A demonstrator dressed in an inflatable frog costume stands infront of law enforcement officers during a protest outside of the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) headquarters in south Portland, Oregon, U.S., October 3, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Chaminda Jayanetti @cjayanetti.bsky.social · 1d

Some of London’s poorest areas could see their share of the children’s services funding formula halved under Labour’s plans to reform local government grants.

By me, for Politics Home: www.politicshome.com/news/article...

London Councils Face Losing Half Their Share Of Children's Services Funding

Some of London’s poorest areas could see their share of funding for children’s services halved under Labour’s plans to reform local government gran...

www.politicshome.com

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 4d

What an admirably clear statement from the Jewish Leadership Council, especially when all of those involved must surely have been dealing with so many other urgent challenges in safety, security and grief + shock today before having this further divisive and distracting intervention to address too.

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Resolution Foundation @resfoundation.bsky.social · 4d

None of the proposed two-child limit options are as efficient in lifting children out of poverty as fully scrapping the policy.

Fully abolishing the two-child limit should be the starting point of any successful Child Poverty Strategy.

Read more➡️ buff.ly/DyvTYGN

Table 1 shows the cost per child lifted out of poverty for fully scrapping the two-child limit
and each of the floated options. The only option that has a similar cost-effectiveness to full
abolition is exempting families who are in work, at £7,540 per child lifted out of poverty,
(compared to £7,480 for full abolition). The lower cost-effectiveness of the other options
should be considered alongside the issues outlined above that each option would introduce.

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Adam Corlett @adamcorlett.bsky.social · 4d

One funny thing in OBR forecasts & maybe a reason to be more fiscally cheerful: they assume markets are right about high future borrowing costs (compare to Europe), but separately assume that inflation will be 2% and nominal pay growth very low. Fiscally the worst of both worlds, but not consistent?

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 7d

Interesting line in the Wikipedia profile of New Zealand psychologist Nigel Latta, who died the other day aged 58.

Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

ironeconomist.bsky.social @ironeconomist.bsky.social · 8d

I do not understand what Labour think the immigration system is for. I accept there are many possible answers here but what is their ideology that drives this?

Jack Bailey @jack-bailey.co.uk · 9d

I think Jonathan is being too polite: this policy is straightforwardly stupid. Other countries will make attractive offers that encourage hard-working, capable, and interesting people to choose them over us, and the UK will be worse off for it. And for what?

Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 9d

Apart from the unnecessary hardship this will inflict on individuals, this will be bad for integration and social cohesion, bad for the economy, and will increase irregular migration.

[And, as @robfordmancs.bsky.social has shown, it's hugely unpopular and out of step with the British public]

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 8d

Thanks. Makes sense - just wanted to check as so much of the mainstream commentary out there is people saying the BoE was too loose during the 2010s.

Which as you say, is wrong.

Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 8d

Probably being pedantic here as agree with your overall point that it's a terrible indictment of those times that we didn't get close to achieving the conditions you describe

Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 8d

Great thread. On the great sin of post GFC Mon Pol - are you arguing that m pol should have been even looser to raise demand to that point?

I'd always read the sin as overall macro policy - govt v clear that its strategy (such as it was) hinged on ultra loose MP. BoE never going to push against

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Chris Giles @chrisgiles.ft.com · 8d

The biggest puzzle in the UK economy is why non pension savings are so high

For decades no one could get Brits to save. Now they won’t stop.

That this has happened without a recession shows UK economy under last and this govt is not the basket case I read about

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 13d

And to this day she is still doing the Treasury's bidding with her fruity diatribes.

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 13d

Liz Truss had two years in the same gig, but I have a theory about that: she was a Manchurian Candidate-style plant (no lettuce pun intended) as Treasury Brain emerged from her premiership stronger than ever.

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Chaminda Jayanetti @cjayanetti.bsky.social · 13d

You don't have to be in hock to bond markets. You just have to have tax and spending plans that wouldn't melt the calculator of a seven year old

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 13d

And this one is an ex-Treasury minister!

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 13d

Well I'm not going back to this

Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 13d

I do feel a bit like I am going insane today, in that the sheer number of 'government sources' going 'Andy Burnham's plans don't add up!', I mean, true, but lads, can we talk about how similar they are to *your* plans?

Michael @michaeljsc.bsky.social · 13d

haha, that’s a good one, so I guess Starmer has a plan to face up to fiscal reality, right?

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Michael @michaeljsc.bsky.social · 13d

haha, that’s a good one, so I guess Starmer has a plan to face up to fiscal reality, right?

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Reposted by Andy Bruce (Reuters)

John Springford @johnspringford.bsky.social · 15d

This is a good policy. Tax wonks are pretty united on national insurance being a bad tax, because it means labour income is taxed more than other forms, and adds to complexity

Ruth Curtice @ruthcurtice.bsky.social · 15d

Report out on tax options for the Budget. 2p income tax rise alongside 2p national insurance cut would mean no tax rise for an employee whose income comes from a job. With employment overtaxed at the moment, workers pay packets should be protected and distortions in the tax system removed.

2p switch from National Insurance to Income Tax could raise £6 billion while protecting workers’ pay packets • Resolution Foundation

The Chancellor should protect workers’ pay packets and level the playing field on how different forms of income are taxed – including a 2p cut in employee National Insurance (NI) offset by a 2p rise i...

www.resolutionfoundation.org

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Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 13d

I suspect the lattermost - trouble is he wants to borrow £40b for housing according to that Telegraph interview.

Andy Bruce (Reuters) @bruceandy.bsky.social · 13d

Burnham knows all that - he's been a cabinet minister.

But then you read this 👇...

Looks fiscally expansive and yet: "We’ve got to get beyond this thing of being in hock to the bond markets."

What to make of it?

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