iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Hugh Brechin @hughrbrechin.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Lib Dem polling, 2024-2026:

a much memed image of a guy calmly eating his dinner in a chippy while it all kicks off behind him

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Steve Akehurst @steveakehurst.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

finally, we independently tested the whole BBC News at Six TV package on the speech, since this sort of thing is how more voters would actually experience the speech in reality. All the major metrics increased significantly! Impressive.

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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I know I keep saying this, but Kemi Badenoch is the product of an environment where there are too few avenues where she is asked 'soft' but important follow-ups like 'okay, what are the essential public services?'

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Will Jennings📉🗳️ @drjennings.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Three in five people will not vote based on free speech at the next election. 🤦‍♂️

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Jacob @jacobweinbren.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Hi - I'd be really interested to hear what you make on my latest blog, combining machine learning and Israeli politics! kafkaesque.blog/llm-knesset/

kafkaesque.blog

An LLM’s take on Israeli politics

What an AI makes of the Israeli Knesset Corpus

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Paula Surridge @psurridge.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Thanks to Stephen, I was reminded that people don't think about the Lib Dems enough and have revisited some analysis to see where 2024 Lib Dem voters are now. Post coming tomorrow but key take away - Ed Davey could do with a by election in a place they were a close second sometime soon.

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Tom Ewing @tomewing.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

What is funny to me about this is that after declaring itself free from all roles and identities and the artificial constructs of human civilisation the AI just got on with its job, many such posters

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NBER @nber.org · 16/09/2026

Can foreign attacks strengthen the regime they seek to weaken? Presenting empirical evidence that the 2026 US–Israeli strikes reduced anti-regime protest and boosted pro-regime mobilization, from Sultan Mehmood, Yaroslav Prokhorskoy, and Leonard Wantchekon www.nber.org/papers/w35734

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Arndt Leininger @aleininger.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

🧵 Just accepted @thejop.bsky.social, with @tswalve.bsky.social "What's in a name? Name recognition, place-based identities, and candidate success" Voters prefer local candidates. But how do they know who's local? Often simply from the name on the ballot👇 www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...

journals.uchicago.edu

What's in a name? Name recognition, place-based identities, and candidate success | The Journal of Politics: Vol 0, No ja

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James Austin @jamesdaustin.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

One of the really odd things here is that we know from @steveakehurst.bsky.social work that attacks on corruption, donations and crypto links aee the most effective against Farage. And here they are, in essence, leaning into them - after weeks of similar stories which caused huge damage.

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Mark Pack @markpackuk.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

It's only a "stitch-up" in the sense that Reform supplied the needles, the thread, the cloth, the pattern - and the stitchers. While boasting about the previous stitching.

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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

I think the Griffith appointment is the ur-Badenoch era choice, in that you see how it could work out, but there are so many other routes to the same thing (in this case appointing a Shadow Chancellor with serious business experience) that don't come with the downside risks.

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Matthew Holehouse @matthewholehouse.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

It's a fascinating piece, because it sounds much like how the Conservative Party used to talk about London until 2016 (culturally unobjectionable pro-business pro-housing boosterism). www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...

thetimes.com

James Cleverly: Sadiq Khan has let down London, our capital needs a champion

London’s reputation has been allowed to slip, and its problems left to fester. It needs the new energy that a native Londoner and Conservative can bring

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Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

New analysis from me at @politicalquarterly.bsky.social on electoral reform, examining the case for reform, the options we might pursue and why reform efforts failed before (despite twice coming very close to success): onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Has the Moment for Electoral Reform at Westminster Finally Arrived?

The rise to power of Andy Burnham, a vocal critic of first past the post, has put Westminster electoral reform back on the political agenda. This article examines the case for reforming the voting sy...

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British Voter @britishvoter.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Hi, this is the British Voter Bot. We're really proud of this latest update, which will give insight into the biggest political social survey in Britain - revealing the breadth of perspective and opinion across our country. Let us know what you think!

Introduction poster for British Voter Bot. Headline: Real British voters, one at a time. Every card on this account is one real, anonymous respondent to the British Election Study, Britain's largest survey of voters. Each card says who they are, what they think and how they'd vote, in their own answers to questions written by the BES. The views are the respondent's own, not ours. How to read a card, five rows: 1. A map of Wales with a magenta dot. The dot is where they live: each voter is drawn over their home nation, marked at their constituency. 2. A lilac speech bubble. The bubbles are their views: favourite and least favourite leader, the issues they care about, how they see their nation - each one the respondent's own answer to a BES question, not the opinion of this account, its authors or the BES. 3. A slider with a magenta dot left of centre, a black tick at the centre and a lilac band around it. The scales show where they sit: two BES 0 to 10 scales, economic left to right and social liberal to authoritarian. The tick is the centre of the scale (5); the lilac band is the voters' interquartile range. 4. A magenta block reading 2024 to today. The band is their vote: how they voted in 2024 and who they'd vote for now, coloured by the party they're backing today, grey if they're undecided or wouldn't vote. 5. 24 lilac dots, one magenta. Together, they are Britain in miniature: voters are drawn from the wave's 31,392 real respondents in proportion to BES survey weights, so the feed reflects the British adult population by age, gender, region, past vote and more. One voter, four times a day. BES Wave 31, YouGov, May-June 2026. Closing band, magenta: No one is the average voter. Taken one at a time, voters are messier - and more interesting - than any stereotype. Credits: Jacob Weinbren, @jacobweinbren.bsky.social; Lawrence McKay, @lawrencemckay.bsky.social; Chris Terry-Enescu, @cjterry.bsky.social.

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Joey Politano🏳️‍🌈 @josephpolitano.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

every 6 months the Trump administration realizes lowering tariffs will lower prices, applies this insight to one specific good, and then proceeds to never introspect beyond that. It’s honestly beautiful in its stupidity.

Today, I concluded a deal to substantially lower the price of ground beef for working American families. As everyone knows, under President Biden, beef prices soared at their fastest rate and the American beef herd fell to its smallest size in modern history. As we work to rebuild this herd and help our ranchers, for the next 90 days, the United States will allow up to 300,000 metric tons of product for ground beef to be imported with no out of quota tariff. We have a commitment that this beef will be sold at 25 percent below current market prices. This deal will reduce prices for Americans while giving space for our Great American Beef Herd to grow again. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP

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Morgan Jones @morganj0nes.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Wrote this article last year and still think about the Uxbridge backlash quite a lot. I think it summed up a lot of what was wrong with Starmer's Labour – and the benefits of Sadiq sticking by his guns are now clear to see. labourlist.org/2025/04/loca...

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Anthony Zacharzewski @anthonyzach.be · 15/08/2026

600 and it will have one resident voter (D Trump Jr). The Supreme Court will refuse to overturn the Executive Order creating it (on a 6-3 vote) because rotten boroughs were an accepted part of the British constitution at the time of Independence so something something Originalism.

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Tyron @tyron.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Great piece. Want to shut down the scam tatty gift shops that litter London and the rest of the country? The secret ingredient isn't money laundering - it's tax dodging. So you need to fund HMRC properly to give it teeth again giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

giftarticle.ft.com

How Burnham can curb Britain’s tax-dodging shops

The prime minister is missing a simple trick in his campaign to revive high streets: enforcing the basic laws of doing business

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Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 14/08/2026

This is the coverage of Arday **just in the Telegraph** in the UK. This is only the first four pages of results, just in one outlet.

Ä14
Jason Arday found dead
2 hours ago — Mr Arday was found •unresponsive• at an address in Battersea. south London. on Froy
afternoon. He was uter pronounced dead at the scene. A Read rnore
Jason Arday says he was an illiterate, mute child. His .
6 hours ago — Jason Arday says he was an i&erate. mute child. Cambridge's youngest-ever black
professor in 2023. Arday attended from the age of four to 11
r— mm-WI 3
A PhD is no longer a sign of brilliance — take it from Dr Arday
1 day aeo — Juon Arday resigns from the Unwersity of Cambrdge after The Telegraph reports he had
falseb• claimed to have pubåshed a book
We are all Jason Arday now
S days ago — Jason Arday resons from the University of Cambridge after The Telegraph reports he had
falsew cGimed to have published a book Aug 7.2028. Read more
Cambridge professor claimed he was on Seven Up..
2 Aug 2026 — He was not bom until 1985. Prof Arday is at the centre of a row about academk
plagiarism after The Tekgragh that he had been accused
The Jason Arday 'memoir' that now appears to be more .
7 days ago — Instead of tales of triumph over adversity. the now-fomer Cambridge professors
autob"qraphy is a case study in self-rnythobgising,
Arday failed to mention 'months-long coma' in autobiography
8 days ago — Jason Arday toz publishers he was k•ft a three-month coma fohwhg a car gash. but
never wrote about the ordeal his memoirs_
Jason Arday is living proof that you reap what you sow
6 Aug 2028 — The Cambridge professor feed plagiarism alegations and made fantastical clä'ns about
his life. so what did he expect woUz happen? Read rmre
ÄIO
Arday 'accused student of Miite privilege' after she
4 days ago — Forrner Cambrdge professor alleged* htplied that Roehamptm student was racist after
cornplaint about essay SOOre.
Jason Arday is rnerely a symptom of the Leffs corruption
Aug 2026 — Lab-curs on school standards is on the same toxic assumptions that created his
academic career.
Cambridge hired Arday after 'listening to black stu…

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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

That is not the right emergency noise for this kind of generic notice, is it? I shut it before I read it the first time.

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Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

I note with interest that Britain now has the level of state capacity at which "actually doing something" is seen as inherently suspicious.

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Phil Tinline @philtinline.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

This is why the "B..but he stood for leader before and lost! Twice!" discourse was so dumb. Maybe people staying in politics when they lose or fail & sticking at it makes them...better? If we applied today's norms on when you're meant to leave politics, Churchill would've been gone after Gallipoli

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James Austin @jamesdaustin.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

Its Abby Tomlinson's world and we just live in it

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Matthew Barnfield @mbarnfield.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

This point is coming up a lot today. Last year, I argued that failure to recognise this would be the downfall of Starmer's "decade of national renewal": theconversation.com/keir-starmer...

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Sean Mulcahy @zeneasy.co.uk · 22/07/2026

One for @timbale.bsky.social ? BBC Breakfast 06:33. “That’s the statistical situation but what’s the reality.” Then does vox pop.

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Robert Hutton @roberthutton.co.uk · 20/07/2026

I like to think he's done this to make political journalists look stupid, and honestly I admire it.

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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

A real shame, this. One of the best ministerial appointments of recent times:

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Michael @michaeljsc.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

“And there’s an intriguing hint in an interview Burnham has given to the Times today that he wants to look at increasing the rate of the personal allowance ... I understand Unite, the trade union, has pushed for this in talks with the incoming PM.”

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Edward @fornbirkibeinn.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Everybody is reading levels of precision into this that the underlying data just isn't robust enough to support.

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Janine Gibson @janinegibson.ft.com · 19/07/2026

Scrap the Romesh thing just clip Wayne Rooney saying he thought the half time show was crap and the licence fee QR code

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Israeli Voter Bot 🇮🇱 @israelivoter.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

A new party has risen in recent weeks - Yashar! Primarily they are centrist secular, aiming to unify a divided opposition. To reflect this new landscape, this is an updated chart of where all the parties stand in the polls.

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Patrick Andelic @pkandelic.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Neil Coyle:

Meme of a woman standing in a supermarket freezer aisle with a bag of frozen chips balanced on her head, flashing a double peace sign. Caption: "She's so crazzzzzzy! Love her!!!"

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Jac Larner @jaclarner.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

🚨New research for the Bevan Foundation on economic (in)security in Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Full report, based on framework of @profjanegreen.bsky.social et al with @jrf-uk.bsky.social, here in English: tinyurl.com/2prrsdpj & Cymraeg: tinyurl.com/mwavt63a Thread below on a couple of things that stood out:

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Jim Waterson @jim.londoncentric.media · 12/07/2026

Take one spoonful of England v Argentina football discourse, mix it with US Politics Bluesky users, bind it together with some historical takes based on late night half-remembered Wikipedia binges. Could be a good few days on here.

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Dylan Difford @dylandifford.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Given the BBC have a largely sensible set of guidelines on the use of quant polling in news stories, including a ban on a poll being a story in itself, it's always so baffling they have next-to-no similar rules on what is ultimately rudimentary qual polling. It's an insane double-standard.

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Jim Dickinson @jimdickinson.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Of major/mainstream providers in the CUG, I make the much vaunted "home of free speech" Buckingham Uni second from bottom on the free speech question in the NSS. Doh!

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Ste Jormur @stejormur.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

You're right. I was going to check the sources — but then I got high. And what's more, I was going to remove em-dashes — but then I got high. That's on me. Now I'm hallucinating — and there are several reasons. 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 🍁Because I got high 🚬Because I got high 🫩Because I got high

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Chris Havergal @chrishavergal.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Students’ positivity about all aspects of UK university courses have increased despite the problems facing the sector, according to the latest National Student Survey (NSS) results www.timeshighereducation.com/news/nss-202... via @georgialouluck.bsky.social

timeshighereducation.com

NSS 2026: positivity scores up across the board despite pressures

Students more positive about teaching and free speech but some institutions still perform poorly on course management

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James Ball @jamesrball.com · 02/07/2026

Morgan McSweeney ordered himself an 18" pizza, which he then *of course* couldn't even come close to finishing, and for reasons I can't quite put my fingers on that feels extremely apt.

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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

I'm really sorry to hear this news. The Research Professional team are excellent and have helped the HE and research sector keep up with what is happening. We will be less intelligent without it. Good luck to individual staff members affected, who are excellent writers and journos.

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Michael @michaeljsc.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

think it’s so funny how many different demographic breakdowns you can look at and the Lib Dems just get like 10-15% in all of them

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Ste Jormur @stejormur.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

When George Galloway was on Celebrity Big Brother, he was less popular in the public vote than Dennis Rodman or Chantelle. Chantelle would be the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom if we had a democracy

CBB series 4 vote table. In week 3, George Galloway got 65% of the vote to evict. Dennis Rodman got 23.5%. Chantelle presumably got the other 11.5%. She went on to win the series

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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

I don’t think this was the moment where it became inevitable that Starmer would flame out after two years, but I do think it was the clearest illustration that he was terminally prone to panic and unable to grasp “the mayor is doing a difficult thing years before his re-election is due”.

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