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Michael

@mikeyh71.bsky.social
1.1K followers 3.8K following 1.4K posts

Scottish (expat - living in England). Views: Green; support environmental protections and rewilding; expect equality and fairness for all; despise greed and corruption in all its forms. Interests: hiking/walking, skiing, natural history, cookery, & family.

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Reposted by Michael
MMTAction @mmt-action.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
0.1% growth, "ahead of Healey's first Budget". As if the Budget is a test of whether the sums add up. Wrong. Westminster issues the pound and needs no growth to fund anything. The limits are workers, materials and capacity. #MMT #UKGreenParty #Economics #UKPolitics #UKEconomics
bbc.co.uk
UK economy grew 0.1% in August ahead of Healey's first Budget - BBC News
The uptick helped the economy grow by 0.7% over the three months to August, official figures show.
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Reposted by Michael
Ellie Mae O'Hagan @elliemaeohagan.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
Earlier this year, E3G released a big report with the Department of War Studies at Kings College which showed that our dependence on gas is a major national security risk. Cutting heat pumps to fund defence is like not paying for a flu jab so you can buy lemsip. It makes no sense.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Social care isn’t unfunded because taxes are too low. Taxes don’t fund spending - they shape the economy and reduce inequality. The real limit is political will and real resources. Pretending it’s about “finding the money” has left thousands without the care they need.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
For 30 years governments have dodged social care reform by claiming “we can’t afford it”. Yet the UK issues its own currency. The barrier isn’t tax revenue - it’s political honesty. Leaders hide behind scare stories like “death tax” instead of fixing a broken system.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Taxes don’t “fund” government spending. They reduce inequality, support price stability, and keep the economy balanced. When the ultra‑rich refuse to participate, they’re rejecting the social contract that keeps the system fair and functional.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
When billionaires profit from UK markets but flee when asked to pay tax like everyone else, that’s not savvy - it’s greed. They want the benefits of our economy without contributing to the stability that makes those profits possible.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Really useful tool that can help counter those statements that push government cuts and further austerity.
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Reposted by Michael
George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
There aren't many days when you can kayak off Start Point, renowned for one of Britain's most dangerous tidal races. But yesterday the stars aligned, so I bunked off work. Delighted to see Rupert Kirkwood (the Lone Kayaker) out there. He took this picture of me +1. Before you ask: yes, it's real. 🧵
In my kayak, watching a bluefin tuna leaping beside me.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
These narratives serve power, profit and distraction. When media empires, outrage‑merchants and wedge‑politicians pump out talk of “invasions”, it’s not about safety — it’s about keeping people angry and unfocused. Britain deserves better than manufactured fear.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Let’s be honest: the cruelty we’re seeing is no accident. It’s pushed by the same tabloids, broadcasters, political figures and “research groups” who’ve spent years turning human beings into clickbait and campaign fuel. They know exactly what they’re doing.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
If we want a better country, we need less scapegoating and more solutions: secure jobs, strong public services, fair taxation, and honest media regulation. Improve people’s lives and the cruelty fades; neglect them and the hatred keeps spreading.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Years of government failure to improve people’s lives have left many feeling insecure, angry and easy to manipulate. Cruel slogans like “let them drown” don’t appear from nowhere — they grow when leaders use fear and division instead of fixing the real problems.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Business groups could also restrain executive pay, whilst ensuring those who actually deliver services and products, and without whom there is no business, are paid and treated fairly. Government could also help struggling families by reducing tax on workers and interest rates.
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Reposted by Michael
Climate News @climatenews.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Benedict Cumberbatch presents How to Live on Earth. “Living on Mars would be horrible. Let’s try to live on Earth.”
youtu.be
How to Live on Earth | Feature Documentary | Presented by Benedict Cumberbatch
YouTube video by Open Planet
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Reposted by Michael
Best for Britain @bestforbritain.org · 21/09/2026
The correct answer to hate ♥️
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Reposted by Michael
Annie Leymarie @annieleymarie.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
I'm equally worried about the more-than-human suffering. None of the other life forms on earth have done anything to trigger the crises but are also impacted...💔
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Interesting watch that asks the question of whether Voldemort (or other villains we see in our real world) was the the actual problem, or the symptom of a broken system. #HarryPotter youtu.be/jIv1f2AwFCI?...
youtu.be
Harry Potter Trained You To Blame The Wrong People
YouTube video by Barry's Economics
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Reposted by Michael
Claire Cullingworth @ccullingworth.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
This made me smile, attached to an ordinary cast iron drainpipe on a house in Durham. #TinyJoys
A cast iron drain pipe going down the side of a white-painted house.  A crest of red feathers and a bright orange beak made from something solid have been attached around it.  It looks remarkably like "Feathers McGraw", the evil criminal penguin from The Wrong Trousers.
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thatgirlinsb @34thparallel.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Protesters at the Irish Open. shitler’s international golf links and hotel Doonbeg, Ireland. Thank you, Doonbeg!
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Why do we allow ourselves to be ruled by the worst of us??? The majority of people on this planet would happily live as friends and do what's required to keep the planet and all its inhabitants safe. Yet the immoral and unethical cause division and hatred, and exploit the planet's resources.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Stanage Edge, Peak District, Derbyshire. Not a bad way to end the day.
Wide view of Stanage Edge, in the Derbyshire Peak District, at dusk. Dark moorland and gritstone outcrops are silhouetted on the right, overlooking hazy layers of hills and valleys. The sky is filled with soft blue, pink and peach colours from the fading sunset.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Red deer hiding level: expert. 👀 Two stags in this view southwest of Sheffield. Can you spot both of them?
Wide view of rolling countryside southwest of Sheffield in warm evening light. Dry grassland, bracken and scattered shrubs fill the foreground, with fields and distant hills beyond. Two red deer stags are partially hidden in the grass. One stag's head and antlers are visible near the centre-left of the image, while only the antlers of a second stag can be seen further right.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Interesting article about where the majority of Reform's donations come from. Party of the people??? I think not. bylinetimes.com/2026/09/10/r...
bylinetimes.com
Reform UK Donations Overwhelmingly Have Overseas or Tax-Haven Ties
Analysis of the latest Electoral Commission filings shows 87% of the £5.4m in donations newly-declared by Nigel Farage's party came from donors linked to offshore jurisdictions
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Reposted by Michael
Richard Murphy @richardjmurphy.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
The FT view: make the vulnerable pay for failing neoliberalism www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2026/09... Rarely is the message spelt out so clearly as the FT has today, that the rich think the world should be run in their interests, and everyone else should pay the price.
taxresearch.org.uk
The FT view: make the vulnerable pay for failing neoliberalism
The Telegraph says in an email this morning that: Andy Burnham’s Commons debut as Prime Minister yesterday was overshadowed by a market rout that sent borrowing costs to their highest in decades. This...
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Reposted by Michael
Richard Murphy @richardjmurphy.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Why should pensioners and those on social security pay the price when bond investors demand higher returns? That is the question raised by the latest turmoil in government bond markets. I say the government should fight back and suggest seven ways it could. youtu.be/kI-wvSkHKkQ?...
youtu.be
The FT says the poor should pay for the bond crisis. I say we fight the bond dealers.
YouTube video by Richard J Murphy
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Worth following @richardjmurphy.bsky.social and watching his videos for an appreciation of how our economics, and politics, should be working for us all. youtu.be/3iVEvkwRJEw?...
youtu.be
Why we need to rewrite the economic rules
YouTube video by Richard J Murphy
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Reposted by Michael
Bylines Network @bylinesnetwork.co.uk · 31/08/2026
Nationalisation is routinely dismissed as unaffordable. But does the £100bn-plus price tag for taking water into public ownership tell the whole story? Economist Richard Murphy argues politicians fundamentally misunderstand what nationalisation actually costs. @eastangliabylines.co.uk
eastangliabylines.co.uk
The nationalisation taboo
Nationalisation is routinely dismissed as unaffordable, but does that argument fundamentally misunderstand what bringing essential services into public ownership costs?
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Sewage in the rivers. Companies drowning in debt. Billions siphoned in profits. Private water is working exactly as designed. Just not for us. Tell your MP to back public ownership: actionnetwork.org/letters/ask-...
actionnetwork.org
Ask your MP to support public ownership of water!
Sewage in the rivers. Companies drowning in debt. Billions siphoned in profits. Private water is working exactly as designed. Just not for us. Tell your MP to back public ownership: https://actionnet...
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Reposted by Michael
Colin Boyle @colinboyle.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
“Thiel is not a donor to the museum and no money has been received via him or his businesses.” So the @britishmuseum.bsky.social doesn’t have even that excuse for their pandering to this enemy of democracy. www.theguardian.com/culture/2026...
theguardian.com
British Museum hosted Palantir founder Peter Thiel in private viewing of Bayeux tapestry
Concern among staff that fragile artwork’s scarce ‘light hours’ given to someone with no known interest in museum
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Follow them here - @mysociety.org
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
If you want to make your community better, mySociety has brilliant tools to help: FixMyStreet for reporting problems, TheyWorkForYou to track your MP, WhatDoTheyKnow for FOI requests. Simple apps that give citizens real power to improve where they live. www.mysociety.org?utm_source=f...
mysociety.org
mySociety
mySociety provides technology, research and data to help people be active citizens, in more than 40 countries around the world.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Want to highlight a problem with your local council? There's an app for that... www.fixmystreet.com
fixmystreet.com
FixMyStreet
Report, view, and discuss local street-related problems.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Scotland’s world‑class access rights are under threat. North Chesthill Estate is trying to impose a 2‑month blanket ban on walkers in Glen Lyon, blocking 4 Munros and 2,600 hectares.If you believe access to nature is a right, not a luxury, please sign. action.ramblers.org.uk/end-blockade...
action.ramblers.org.uk
End the blockade of Glen Lyon’s hills
For decades, people in Scotland have cherished our ‘Right to Roam’ the nation’s countryside. However, one Perthshire landowner is once again attempting to stop walkers visiting his estate - including ...
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Google plans to bulldoze a wildlife haven in Essex – home to rare species – for a data centre. Sign the petition now to help save it before it’s gone forever 🐝🦋 you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/sa...
you.38degrees.org.uk
Save Arena Essex- Tell Google to search elsewhere!
  Wedged between the Mar Dyke Valley and Lakeside Retail Park, the former Arena Essex Raceway is not your usual wildlife haven. Where once stock cars and speedway bikes lined up to cross the fini...
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Trying to cut your climate impact through your food choices? Just found an app that could be really useful — thought I’d share in case it’s of interest. www.forkranger.com/download-app/
forkranger.com
App
Cook easy recipes, discover how to eat for the climate and stop feeling guilty about your food. Download the free app, or buy the book or seasonal calendar.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Worth a watch. It's scary the lengths the greedy and immoral will go to in order to realise profit. Also how complicit our government can be in supporting them at the expense of the British public. I could not believe PCBs were banned in the USA, so they upped production and dumping in the UK.
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Reposted by Michael
Jonathan Foyle @jonathanfoyle.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Just watched this- astonishing and urgent www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...
bbc.co.uk
Buried with Michael Sheen
What is the truth lying beneath our feet? Michael Sheen uncovers claims of conspiracy, complicity and denial over alleged toxic 'forever chemical' contamination in South Wales.
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Jonathan Foyle @jonathanfoyle.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
If you were rattled by Michael Sheen’s documentary on how Douglas Gowan was silenced to cover Monsanto dumping carcinogens in the Welsh landscape have a read of this account of the part of the Environment Agency, from 2007 theecologist.org/2007/nov/30/...
theecologist.org
Silenced witness
Following last month's exclusive Ecologist investigation, Burying the truth, the Douglas Gowan story continues...
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Reposted by Michael
Good Law Project @goodlawproject.org · 18/08/2026
We cannot let this story fall to the way-side. We need urgent press regulation. Sign the open letter for a public inquiry into Jason's death. Repost and tag friends in the comments. ⬇️ Add your name ⬇️ goodlaw.social/n1ck
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
We need to show rightwing newspapers that actions have consequences. Please add your name: goodlawproject.org/s/abb8a1
goodlawproject.org
Jason Arday: Demand a public inquiry now | Good Law Project
Commission an immediate public inquiry into how to ensure a responsible press given its contribution to Dr Arday’s tragic death.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
It's intriguing watching the latest brood of ants flying their nests for pastures new. The conditions are obviously just right in Sheffield this evening to trigger their flight. Amazing nature sights right in the middle of your garden!!! 🐜🐜🐜🐜🤩
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Three numbers to remember in order to avoid being scammed in the UK... #PersonalFinanceUK #FinancialCrimeUK #UKBanking youtube.com/shorts/YwzZ5...
youtube.com
Three numbers that protect you from scams!
YouTube video by Martin Lewis
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Reposted by Michael
Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Half of the country is in "exceptionally serious drought" - putting us at more risk of wildfires and threatening our food security. Meanwhile water companies are wasting a staggering 2.87 billion litres of water every day through leaky pipes. Time to end water privatisation.
Half of England officially in "exceptionally serious" drought
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Reposted by Michael
Adrian Ramsay @adrianramsay.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
With the intense period of heat we're experiencing, it's vital we remember #DogsDieOnHotWalks. If in doubt about going out for a walk with your dog, don't go. Thanks to RSPCA for asking me to share
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
The UK government is not like a household - it cannot run out of money - it has the Bank of England to pay for services we need. Our national 'debt' is a political decision, made up of gilts/bonds created by government and includes pensions, savings, etc. It's not a 'debt' we want to pay off.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
I find it amazing how the UK public have been fooled into thinking the government cannot afford to provide us with good services. For too long a false narrative has been pushed by the government, media, and 'economists', enabling austerity and the transfer of wealth and assets. Enough is enough.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Please ignore the false narrative you're being told by politicians and the media. The government has the Bank of England to pay for all the services we need. It can never run out of money. Our 'debt' isn't really debt. Have a watch... youtu.be/1xaxG4slnmM?...
youtu.be
The national debt need never be repaid
YouTube video by Richard J Murphy
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Please explain what the national 'debt' really is. Are you suggesting we cannot have the UK government provide us with required services because we need to pay off our 'debt'? Would clearing our national 'debt' really be a good idea? Not so sure bankers and savers would agree.
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Michael @mikeyh71.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
bsky.app/profile/mike...
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