Pietro Spanu
@pietrospanu.bsky.social
father of 3, nature lover, sailor, Homo faber. Prof at Imperial College London, for a little while yet.
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Jeremy Clarkson mocking someone’s teeth is adorable coming from a man who’s spent decades looking like a sun-dried scrotum with a double chin that has its own postcode!
November 30, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Jeremy Clarkson mocking someone’s teeth is adorable coming from a man who’s spent decades looking like a sun-dried scrotum with a double chin that has its own postcode!
www.theunpopulist.net/p/even-by-a-...
Just a thought, @royalsociety.org ,
Would you welcome Saruman FRS?
Just a thought, @royalsociety.org ,
Would you welcome Saruman FRS?
Even by a Strict Definition, Elon Musk Is a Fascist
He is weaponizing Tolkien to promote violence by ‘hard men’ against Asian immigrants
www.theunpopulist.net
November 30, 2025 at 6:59 PM
www.theunpopulist.net/p/even-by-a-...
Just a thought, @royalsociety.org ,
Would you welcome Saruman FRS?
Just a thought, @royalsociety.org ,
Would you welcome Saruman FRS?
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
If there really is "an exodus of young Britons", who could blame them. If I were a newly qualified young engineer again, I would be off like a shot. A country that is in the thrall of hateful right wing media, shot itself in the foot by abandoning its biggest, closest trading partner -
November 28, 2025 at 12:54 PM
If there really is "an exodus of young Britons", who could blame them. If I were a newly qualified young engineer again, I would be off like a shot. A country that is in the thrall of hateful right wing media, shot itself in the foot by abandoning its biggest, closest trading partner -
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
💯 right. Especially the 2nd part abt the need to make migration easier, not harder. I wrote about it in the NYT during Trump1 to clear my name after getting criminally charged thanks to Denmark's insane anti-immigration policy (my crime was giving an invited lecture on my research to Parliament).
November 28, 2025 at 2:12 PM
💯 right. Especially the 2nd part abt the need to make migration easier, not harder. I wrote about it in the NYT during Trump1 to clear my name after getting criminally charged thanks to Denmark's insane anti-immigration policy (my crime was giving an invited lecture on my research to Parliament).
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
i think we have to get off the defensive on immigration
it's not just necessary, it's good! - & the easier it is, the greater its benefits
it's not just necessary, it's good! - & the easier it is, the greater its benefits
November 28, 2025 at 1:23 PM
i think we have to get off the defensive on immigration
it's not just necessary, it's good! - & the easier it is, the greater its benefits
it's not just necessary, it's good! - & the easier it is, the greater its benefits
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
I fully appreciate this is quite an open ended question, but what the actual f**k is wrong with the Home Office? How devoid of the most basic humanity do you have to be to do this?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
UK rejects visa for girl left destitute in Jamaica by Hurricane Melissa
Lati-Yana Brown’s parents had asked for application to be expedited so she could join them in UK after house ruined
www.theguardian.com
November 28, 2025 at 1:00 PM
I fully appreciate this is quite an open ended question, but what the actual f**k is wrong with the Home Office? How devoid of the most basic humanity do you have to be to do this?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Zac Polanski's interview on R4's PM today.
Amazing clarity.
Speaks for me.
100%
Amazing clarity.
Speaks for me.
100%
November 27, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Zac Polanski's interview on R4's PM today.
Amazing clarity.
Speaks for me.
100%
Amazing clarity.
Speaks for me.
100%
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Today's migration stats illustrate the migration doom loop in action...
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
November 27, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Today's migration stats illustrate the migration doom loop in action...
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
(from my presentation at the IMF last week)
Heard today on R4 news:
"Net migration falls sharply...Who should get the credit?"
Whaaaat? Why should anyone think this is something to be proud about?
We are making this place so unwelcome.
Lower growth. Lower tax revenue. Lower income.
"Net migration falls sharply...Who should get the credit?"
Whaaaat? Why should anyone think this is something to be proud about?
We are making this place so unwelcome.
Lower growth. Lower tax revenue. Lower income.
November 27, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Heard today on R4 news:
"Net migration falls sharply...Who should get the credit?"
Whaaaat? Why should anyone think this is something to be proud about?
We are making this place so unwelcome.
Lower growth. Lower tax revenue. Lower income.
"Net migration falls sharply...Who should get the credit?"
Whaaaat? Why should anyone think this is something to be proud about?
We are making this place so unwelcome.
Lower growth. Lower tax revenue. Lower income.
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Migration policy is being driven by fear of Reform not by rational thought
'a fall in net migration of 300,000 a year would increase deficit by c. £20bn'
We will all feel poorer and Reform will just find another group to blame this on
Labour need to find the courage to take on the racist rhetoric
'a fall in net migration of 300,000 a year would increase deficit by c. £20bn'
We will all feel poorer and Reform will just find another group to blame this on
Labour need to find the courage to take on the racist rhetoric
November 27, 2025 at 7:49 AM
Migration policy is being driven by fear of Reform not by rational thought
'a fall in net migration of 300,000 a year would increase deficit by c. £20bn'
We will all feel poorer and Reform will just find another group to blame this on
Labour need to find the courage to take on the racist rhetoric
'a fall in net migration of 300,000 a year would increase deficit by c. £20bn'
We will all feel poorer and Reform will just find another group to blame this on
Labour need to find the courage to take on the racist rhetoric
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
🛡️ INSIGHT 🛡️
"Barley powdery mildew effector CSEP0162 interacts with the endosome membrane-binding domain of barley MON1" - Deb et al. share an update relevant to their earlier work, Liao et al. (2022) 🌾
Insight 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
Research 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
"Barley powdery mildew effector CSEP0162 interacts with the endosome membrane-binding domain of barley MON1" - Deb et al. share an update relevant to their earlier work, Liao et al. (2022) 🌾
Insight 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
Research 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
November 25, 2025 at 9:49 AM
🛡️ INSIGHT 🛡️
"Barley powdery mildew effector CSEP0162 interacts with the endosome membrane-binding domain of barley MON1" - Deb et al. share an update relevant to their earlier work, Liao et al. (2022) 🌾
Insight 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
Research 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
"Barley powdery mildew effector CSEP0162 interacts with the endosome membrane-binding domain of barley MON1" - Deb et al. share an update relevant to their earlier work, Liao et al. (2022) 🌾
Insight 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
Research 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/...
#PlantScience 🧪
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Wow. Just wow. A decision in direct conflict with all the ideals of the Reith Lectures.
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 11:07 AM
Wow. Just wow. A decision in direct conflict with all the ideals of the Reith Lectures.
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 9:26 AM
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
🌍 42.5m refugees
Over 70% of them are hosted by low- and middle-income countries.
🇬🇧 548k refugees
= 0.78% of the UK population.
It is not refugees who tear our country apart, it is the mainstreaming of far right policies. And that’s a risk to all of us.
My letter to my MP.
#asylum #Mahmood
🧵
Over 70% of them are hosted by low- and middle-income countries.
🇬🇧 548k refugees
= 0.78% of the UK population.
It is not refugees who tear our country apart, it is the mainstreaming of far right policies. And that’s a risk to all of us.
My letter to my MP.
#asylum #Mahmood
🧵
![Dear [my MP’s name],
As the Home Secretary prepares to announce sweeping changes to the UK’s asylum system, I see it as both my duty as a citizen and responsibility as a migration expert to do all I can to urge policymakers to oppose the proposals—not only for what they will do to refugees, though that is the first concern, but also for what they will mean for all of us and the future society we live in.
That is why I am writing to you as my MP. This letter explains why I consider the need to oppose the Home Secretary’s proposals urgent and, at the most fundamental level, in the national and your constituents’ interest.
I was born in Germany, a country whose history taught me how quickly societies can go down dark paths; how quickly our leaders can fail in the choices they make. But the history of the displacement of people that the Nazi regime was responsible for also shaped my understanding of why refugee movements occur—and why our response to any of them can never compromise what are, and must always be, universal human rights.
Which is why what is happening in the UK now is so deeply alarming.
A manufactured crisis
As of June 2025, there were 42.5 million refugees globally. Over 70% of them are hosted by low- and middle-income countries; most of them immediate neighbours. Overall, five countries—Colombia, Germany, Türkiye, Iran and Uganda—host a third of the total number of refugees; Germany is the main host in the EU, hosting 2.7 million.
The UK hosts 548,000 refugees; that is 0.78% of the UK population. About 110,000 people are in receipt of asylum support; that is 0.15% of the UK population.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:bru4h6s37w4hfmwhetu7veye/bafkreidmewc5timbx7nh57qyq7lm7gmhvclzidmloqhwgckpnegnddoicq@jpeg)
November 16, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Come on then, the rest of you cowards. Denounce this, or be party to it.
The Prime Minister said in September that we are at a fork in the road. These asylum proposals suggest we have taken the wrong turning.
The idea that recognised refugees need to be deported is wrong.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
The idea that recognised refugees need to be deported is wrong.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Asylum system in UK ‘out of control’ and dividing country, home secretary says
Shabana Mahmood to unveil new proposals modelled on Denmark’s controversial system
www.theguardian.com
November 16, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Come on then, the rest of you cowards. Denounce this, or be party to it.
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
I was tagged and asked to take a look at this claim - cos, well just look at it!🙄
Does it seem plausible that THE Trocadero is going to be turned into a Mosque?
It was pretty easy to debunk but I decided to do a deep dive into the reality AND the appalling press coverage
🧵
1/26
Does it seem plausible that THE Trocadero is going to be turned into a Mosque?
It was pretty easy to debunk but I decided to do a deep dive into the reality AND the appalling press coverage
🧵
1/26
November 16, 2025 at 11:38 AM
I was tagged and asked to take a look at this claim - cos, well just look at it!🙄
Does it seem plausible that THE Trocadero is going to be turned into a Mosque?
It was pretty easy to debunk but I decided to do a deep dive into the reality AND the appalling press coverage
🧵
1/26
Does it seem plausible that THE Trocadero is going to be turned into a Mosque?
It was pretty easy to debunk but I decided to do a deep dive into the reality AND the appalling press coverage
🧵
1/26
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
@davidpintod.bsky.social - you are my MP.
So you want to reintroduce slavery back into the UK.
Have you considered adding a swastika to your logo?
It would save you having to explain what you stand for.
cc. @labourlist.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
So you want to reintroduce slavery back into the UK.
Have you considered adding a swastika to your logo?
It would save you having to explain what you stand for.
cc. @labourlist.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
UK charities condemn ‘immoral’ plans to force asylum seekers to volunteer
Making volunteering compulsory for refugees slammed as exploitative, bureaucratic and un-British
www.theguardian.com
November 16, 2025 at 7:05 PM
@davidpintod.bsky.social - you are my MP.
So you want to reintroduce slavery back into the UK.
Have you considered adding a swastika to your logo?
It would save you having to explain what you stand for.
cc. @labourlist.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
So you want to reintroduce slavery back into the UK.
Have you considered adding a swastika to your logo?
It would save you having to explain what you stand for.
cc. @labourlist.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Labour espousing inhumane policies.
Will they ever feel an ounce of shame?
Will they ever feel an ounce of shame?
My granddad was a refugee, my wife, our close friends and those of our kids are either immigrants or the children of immigrants.
Do ministers ever think about the message their rhetoric on "handouts" and "golden tickets" for migrants sends about whether this is a government for people like us?
Do ministers ever think about the message their rhetoric on "handouts" and "golden tickets" for migrants sends about whether this is a government for people like us?
November 16, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Labour espousing inhumane policies.
Will they ever feel an ounce of shame?
Will they ever feel an ounce of shame?
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Pretty sure it’s racism which is tearing Britain apart
Shabana Mahmood: ‘Illegal migration is tearing Britain apart’
The home secretary is planning to introduce a 20-year wait for permanent stay to end a ‘golden ticket’ for asylum seekers
www.thetimes.com
November 15, 2025 at 11:19 PM
Pretty sure it’s racism which is tearing Britain apart
Reposted by Pietro Spanu
Deep breath, once more for those at the back, seeking asylum is not illegal. No matter route used, which considering Labour has closed pretty much all the last remaining alternatives means irregular ones.
Anti-immigration sentiments are stoked by politicians like Mahmood, not people seeking safety.
Anti-immigration sentiments are stoked by politicians like Mahmood, not people seeking safety.
November 16, 2025 at 9:46 AM
Deep breath, once more for those at the back, seeking asylum is not illegal. No matter route used, which considering Labour has closed pretty much all the last remaining alternatives means irregular ones.
Anti-immigration sentiments are stoked by politicians like Mahmood, not people seeking safety.
Anti-immigration sentiments are stoked by politicians like Mahmood, not people seeking safety.
Who would have imagined?
Anyone listening to them since they were erected.
These are evil words.
No wonder the Yaxley guy is celebrating
Anyone listening to them since they were erected.
These are evil words.
No wonder the Yaxley guy is celebrating
“on article 8 of the ECHR in particular the right to family life ..we want to constrain in legislation the way that that is applied in immigration cases” Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood tells Sky’s Trevor Philips
Who would have imagined we would ever hear this from a Labour government
Who would have imagined we would ever hear this from a Labour government
November 16, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Who would have imagined?
Anyone listening to them since they were erected.
These are evil words.
No wonder the Yaxley guy is celebrating
Anyone listening to them since they were erected.
These are evil words.
No wonder the Yaxley guy is celebrating
Yesterday I made some fresh orange juice.
I was about to put the peel in the compost...
Then I had second thoughts.
Steeping them in hot sugary water, put out to dry.
A first go (of the year) at Xmas candy
I was about to put the peel in the compost...
Then I had second thoughts.
Steeping them in hot sugary water, put out to dry.
A first go (of the year) at Xmas candy
November 16, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Yesterday I made some fresh orange juice.
I was about to put the peel in the compost...
Then I had second thoughts.
Steeping them in hot sugary water, put out to dry.
A first go (of the year) at Xmas candy
I was about to put the peel in the compost...
Then I had second thoughts.
Steeping them in hot sugary water, put out to dry.
A first go (of the year) at Xmas candy