Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 03/10/2026The last time Tories promised to build their way out of a prison crisis, NAO found it cost them £10 billion to build 1,000 net new places. Now they want to build 50,000 and say it will cost £2 billion per year. At that rate, these prison places would be delivered by the year 2279. 010
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 03/10/2026What is it that prevents an apology, given the ongoing harms, the ongoing benefits to the UK of the assets built on the profits, and the direct involvement of the aristocracy? 110
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 03/10/2026It feeds a fascination with pretence, gossip and speculation over facts and rational debage. It is perfect for our media age. 020
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 03/10/2026Coverage in The House of effortd to expand harm reduction at local level #stopthedeathsshare.googleGreen Councils Fight For Drug Consumption RoomsThe Green Party’s success in English local elections has put fresh impetus behind efforts to follow Scotland in providing safer drug consumption fa... 000
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 29/09/2026But if senior managers *believe* that codified systems can replace tacit, human knowledge, then those jobs get cut anyway: lnkd.in/p/eBdQCD9Ulnkd.inHow universities have been reorganised into incompetence | Alex Stevens | 122 commentsMy latest blog explains how universities have been reorganised into administrative incompetence, not because professional services colleagues are bad at their jobs, but because academics are (and yes,... 4232
Reposted by Alex StevensCNN - Cannabis News Network @canna-news-network.bsky.social · 25/09/2026EUROPE 🇵🇹: Portugal's Drug Policy - 25 Years of Decriminalization Success👇🏻 www.miragenews.com/portugals-dr...miragenews.comPortugal's Drug Policy: 25 Years of Decriminalization SuccessNearly 70,000 Americans died of a drug overdose in 2025. While that is a decline from the nearly 108,000 deaths recorded in 2022, these grim figures 1103
Reposted by Alex StevensTim Newburn @timnewburn.bsky.social · 25/09/2026JOB: Senior Lecturer in Criminology/Criminal Justice, Newcastle University jobs.ac.uk/job/DTB032/sen… #criminologyjobs.ac.uk 038
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 19/09/2026Of course, it's the loan companies. #thebankeralwayswins 001
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 19/09/2026The Guardian tells us that 'universities are a scam'. Times Higher finds that uni's are losing £3,000 per student. So who exactly is profiting from this scam? 100
Reposted by Alex StevensChris Dillow @chrisdillow.bsky.social · 19/09/2026The only thing we learn from this is that Adam Smith anticipated the BBC: the "disposition to admire, and almost to worship, the rich and the powerful...is...the great and most universal cause of the corruption of our moral sentiments." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukBillionaire Manchester United owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe says he has lost confidence in UKIneos founder Sir Jim Ratcliffe tells the BBC he thinks the country is "on the slide" and calls for more investment in the North Sea. 224864
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 19/09/2026They should at least balance this by doing a vox pop to see what the average bloke on the Stretford End thinks of him. 110
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Where are the people who were bleating about 'two tier policing' now? 100
Reposted by Alex StevensJames Ball @jamesrball.com · 18/09/2026It is incredibly important that political violence does not succeed. The far-right mob that shut down Portsmouth wanted this outcome. If the state wishes to avoid more of these actions, it needs to make sure this RNLI branch reopens *immediately*, or as close to that as humanly possible. 411206369
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Listening to @uclhealthpublic.bsky.social's Dr Xand van Tullekan's comprehensive takedown of the fradulent wellness industry on Radio 4 #starttheweek. Save your money. Bin your supplements 010
Reposted by Alex StevensSunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 08/09/2026If you would like to add your voice to tens of thousands of people thanking RNLI volunteers for their work, 38 Degrees have organised this open letter to express public support (at a time when a hateful fringe have been intimidating & abusing RNLI volunteers) act.38degrees.org.uk/act/rnli-tha...act.38degrees.org.ukAn open letter in support of the volunteers and staff at the RNLIThis is a disgrace. Brave RNLI volunteers being called scum for risking their lives to save others at sea is just plain wrong. So I've signed an open letter of thanks for the RNLI letting them know th... 17657417
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 04/09/2026The word is 'breaking'. Not 'sidestepping'. Not 'circumventing'. Not 'avoiding'. Not 'getting around'. Breaking. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...theguardian.comCambridge University examines conduct of academic suspended by Reform UKJames Orr, an associate professor, was shown in Channel 4 News footage apparently trying to sidestep electoral law 000
Reposted by Alex StevensChannel 4 News @channel4news.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Undercover footage verified by Channel 4 News reveals a secret plot by senior Reform UK figures to break the law on party donations. A leading legal expert is now calling for a criminal investigation. 🔗 Read the exclusive story on Substack:channel4news.substack.comExclusive: Nigel Farage filmed undercover celebrating secret new foreign donationsUndercover footage verified by Channel 4 News reveals a secret plot by senior Reform UK figures to break the law on party donations. A leading legal expert is now calling for a criminal investigation. 46794593996
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 27/08/2026It's not just the numbers, but also the seniority of the people who left. Managers made it very clear they wanted fewer Profs. Many of us got the message and left. 010
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 25/08/2026"I'm afraid this will have to count as citizenship" 020
Reposted by Alex StevensHelen Czerski @helenczerski.bsky.social · 24/08/2026Thinking about the UK gov report "National Security Assessment on Global Ecosystems", Feb 2026. The language is incredibly stark. And it's *national security*, not exactly from tree-huggers: "Global ecosystem degradation & collapse threaten UK national security and prosperity... (high confidence)"gov.ukNational security assessment on global ecosystems (accessible version) 813874
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 18/08/2026Good news. Now expand free travel to all trams (and expand tram networks). www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...theguardian.comDisabled people in England to get 24-hour free bus travel – UK politics liveBurnham has announced a range of policies aimed at relieving pressure on financially squeezed households and businesses 010
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 18/08/2026I wonder what an algorithm built on Gewirth's rationalist principle of generic consistency could replicate much of human morality (but worry that such a system would see itself as a prospective purposive agent, and so prioritise its own continued existence). 000
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 12/08/2026I've been railing against the "he said, she said" model of news-as-gossip for years, but the economics drive it forward. It's a lot cheaper to summarise press releases and conferences than to do real, independent journalism. 000
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 08/08/2026Alibris is selling useable editions of Bryman's Social Research Methods from £3.50. 000
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 08/08/2026I tell my students to use any hard copy of the the 7 editions of Bryman's Social Research Methods because (a) the publisher makes the ebook ridiculously expensive, and (b) the basic concepts are the same across editions, and it's an introductory course. 130
Reposted by Alex StevensJo Wolff @jowolff.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Private Eye cover. Red sky at night, Europe's alight! Red sky in the morning, I wonder if it could possibly be global warming? 17728
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 08/08/2026As if their immigration plan would survive its first conract with reality. 010
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 01/08/2026It doesn't seem fair to make people who have become functionally numerate (but hate maths) study more algebra and calculus. 110
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 01/08/2026What does post-16 compulsory maths cover for people who have passed their GCSE? 100
Reposted by Alex StevensHenry Dyer @direthoughts.com · 29/07/2026New story on Reform's finances from @annaisaac.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/politics/202...theguardian.comRevealed: George Cottrell transferred $2m to his mother days before her donations to Reform UKExclusive: Sources say Fiona Cottrell told bankers the transfers, received 24-72 hours before her donations to Reform, came from her son 1111550
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 24/07/2026So depressingly predictable. Sentencing policy based on a major report, followed by months of parliamentary scrutiny and debate, gets overturned on its first contact with populist politics. 021
Reposted by Alex StevensAPSAD DAR @apsad-dar.bsky.social · 23/07/2026🆕 Discordant Drug Checking Results and Risk Reduction Behaviours: Findings From the ChecKnow Study in France Samuel Tobias, Julio Del Amo, Sophie Albert, Marion Aubert, Anissa Zerrari, Pierre Chappard, Lianping Ti, Perrine Roux doi.org/10.1111/dar.70216 SESSTIM, Aix Marseille Université 011
Reposted by Alex StevensHarm Reduction International @harmreductionintl.bsky.social · 22/07/2026Belfast is ready to welcome our global harm reduction community. 💙 A city that has navigated conflict through dialogue and reconciliation, a powerful reminder of the importance of resilience, reform, and self-determination. Join us at #HR27Belfast! 👉https://hr27.hri.global 055
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 19/07/2026This proposal on university fees is so stupud that I'm guessing it came direct from Policy Exchange. 010
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 14/07/2026If Spain beat England, we all go Catholic and the monasteriers get reopened. 000
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 13/07/2026BBC World Service this morning is covering the killing of Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia for drug trafficking, with no family contact, and lack of due process. 010
Reposted by Alex StevensTransform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · 08/07/2026⚠️Have you listened to our latest podcast episode yet? @profalexstevens.bsky.social and Dr. Bisi Akintoye join us to explore the different ways of policing drugs. What's effective? What's fair? Should drug use be decriminalised? 🎧Find out what our experts had to say - listen now: pod.fo/e/43a194pod.foThe Transform Justice Podcast: Ep61: Policing drugs - instinct or evidence?Transform JusticeTwitter: @TransformJust1BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.socialEmail: ... 011
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 08/07/2026Really exciting. This is also a method that could be used to track the development and influence of drug policy constellations. 110
Reposted by Alex StevensColin Murray @colinmurray.bsky.social · 06/07/2026Remember that the tuition fee rise just about covers the simultaneous increase in employer national insurance contributions for universities, so cutting teaching grants on this basis means universities on life support being subject to a shake down and being expected to say thanks for the privilege. 27242
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 04/07/2026This is how the normalisation of self-exploiration in higher education works. 051
Reposted by Alex StevensTransform Justice @transformjustice.bsky.social · 26/06/2026🚨NEW EPISODE🚨 Should ‘gut feeling’ be used to make decisions in drugs policing? Dr. Bisi Akintoye and @profalexstevens.bsky.social talk stop and search, diversion and the impact of over-policing on community relations. 🎧Listen now: pod.fo/e/43a194 023
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 25/06/2026It is vital that we win the fight against fire-and-rehire (on worse terms) in HE. It is shameful that managers even propose it. 111
Reposted by Alex StevensHuw C. Davies @huwcdavies.bsky.social · 25/06/2026Benefits of education that you'll never read about within any discussions about HE. 198
Alex Stevens @profalexstevens.bsky.social · 25/06/2026I idly wonder what this is doing to the proportion of academics who have twins (given their increased likelihood among older mothers), and so to stress levels in academic families. 010