iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19h

Support the National Trust by voting for Council members by 11:59pm on 30 October 2026. Quickvote is convenient if you're short of time or worried about inadvertently voting for Restore Trust's Bonigala, Cristea, Goldman, Mealing or Omrani. In our often bad times, the Trust's doing good things.

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Kevin McKenna MP @kevinmckenna.co.uk · 03/10/2026

But this isn’t about ULEZ as a political cause célèbre, whatever people’s views. Nor about it being used as a wedge issue by other parties It’s about the fundamental requirement for a united, unshakable, unbreakable stance across all parties in our democracy against using terror as a political tool

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Eric Lipton NYT @ericlipton.nytimes.com · 03/10/2026

JUST POSTED: Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have pushed a multibillion oil deal with Russia as part of peace talks that will bring profits to their family business partners. A new front for Trump-era conflicts of interest. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/u...

nytimes.com

U.S.-Russia Talks on Ukraine Now Involve an Oil Deal Tied to Trump Allies (Gift Article)

President Vladimir V. Putin brought up a sale of Russian energy assets with President Trump’s envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, pushing a deal that raises new questions about conflicts of inter...

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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 01/10/2026

Published later this month: the next title in the Society's 'New Historical Perspectives' book series for early career historians: 'Prostitution, Repentance and Social Welfare in Renaissance Florence', by Gillian Jack bit.ly/4gY9IQ7 Available in print and Open Access from 15 October. #Skystorians

bit.ly

Prostitution, Repentance and Social Welfare in Renaissance Florence - University of London Press

From the fourteenth century, prostitutes in Florence were encouraged to leave their profession and spend their lives in repentance at the monastery of Sant’Elisabetta delle Convertite. Many did over i...

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Charles West @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

This looks great!

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Francesca Tinti @francescatinti.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I remember contacting the archaeologists who found the Theatre of Nero because this was in the very area of the schola Saxonum. When Anglo-Saxon coins were mentioned, it was only natural to quickly get in touch with the brilliant @rorynaismith.bsky.social for another exciting collaborative project.

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Steven Fielding @polprofsteve2024.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Yesterday I learnt that the Panama Canal is in danger of being completely shut down because the water level is so low due to climate change.

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Mainstream @mainstreamlabour.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Our reaction to the Prime Minister’s speech in @labourlist.bsky.social 🌹 Radical realism in action. Mainstream Labour values in practice.

'Radical realism in action'
Mainstream, a soft-left group backed by Burnham, said that the speech delivered on their calls for radical
change.
The group's interim council said: "Andy Burnham - our Prime Minister, the leader of the Labour Party, and a signatory to Mainstream's founding statement - just announced some of the most radical reforms this
country has seen for the best part of a century.
"Electoral reform. Public control. A new settlement for social care. And much, much more.
"Radical realism in action, Mainstream Labour values in practice. We're not just changing the Labour Party, we are changing the country."

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Leeds City Council @leedscitycouncil.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Free flu vaccinations are now available for children aged 2 and 3. If vaccinated, children who catch flu are likely to have milder symptoms and recover more quickly. Available through your GP or a participating community pharmacy. Find out more 👉 bit.ly/wintervacs26...

Winter vaccinations campaign graphic showing an adult and young child looking at a tablet. Text reads: Vaccines help protect what matters most. Check your child’s vaccines are up to date.

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Ben Ansell @benansell.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

A bit like net migration figures being lower, the fact that UK economic growth has been higher than expected cuts against the narrative but can’t be ignored forever. Maybe (probably) I was wrong and Labour did have a theory of growth after all.

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Pauline Stafford @pstafford.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

An important read in view of what Andy Burnham said about plans for the Triple Lock. And note- the ‘smoothed’ system would still be generous relative to other sections of society.

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Charles West @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Looks like a great job for medieval historians, at either Assistant or Associate (tenured) level, at John Hopkins.

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Pauline Stafford @pstafford.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I get - and sympathise with - the critique here and in the thread, and there is much truth in it. But long memories are also a source and reminder of fundamental common values - and, of course, of group identity. Conference is at least in part a ritual occasion for their performance.

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Pauline Stafford @pstafford.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Excellent article on the communication silos in which we all now live and how inimical they are to the functioning of democracy. Burnham’s social media presence is an attempt to break through these barriers to a common knowledge of our shared social problems.

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

'we ought to be very concerned about the fact the AI companies we’re meant to trust to keep their models in check seem unable to do so. Worse than that, they don’t seem to know what their products are even doing.'

theguardian.com

As AI models go rogue, do you still trust OpenAI and Anthropic to stop them? I don’t and neither should you | Chris Stokel-Walker

The need for independent regulation grows more obvious by the day. We must keep this tech in check before it’s too late, says technology writer Chris Stokel-Walker

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

'government now expects to fund just 16p in every £1 spent on teaching and supporting undergraduates in England, with students and graduates expected to pick up the rest. In 2012-13, university attendees paid just over half (52 per cent) of the bill.'

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Mike Sowden @mikeachim.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I know there is a hell of a lot going on right now. But not all of it is bad. Some is astonishingly good - like the results of this study from June. Cervical cancer is a terribly cruel thing. This might, at long last, be the beginning of the end of it. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

BBC News headline "Young women now have 'close to zero' risk of cervical cancer death after HPV jab"

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Max @maxtegman.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

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Jim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

as a satire on so-called late stage capitalism how could one beat investors pouring a trillion into a company offering to wipe out humankind

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Ian McMillan @imcmillan.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Great to get a copy of me and Ian Beesley’s new book about walking and talking and older men’s friendships. Available from Salt’s Mill.

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

'we should be very careful about treating a smaller university sector as an abstract financial adjustment. Its consequences will be felt by students, employers, communities, and regional economies – often in places where the government is simultaneously asking universities to help grow. '

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Sarah Murphy @13sarahmurphy.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

The Times - which has v much joined in the rightwing clamour to reduce immigration - now reporting that Mahmood’s “success” has cost the economy £4- to £7Bn. Would they like to now honestly confirm that fewer people = less spending power for all. There’s a high price to pay for this nasty obsession.

Patrick Maguire
Chief Political Commentator Oliver Wright Policy Editor

Falling migration numbers could cost the chancellor as much as £7bn in fiscal headroom as he writes his first budget, The Times has been told.
Government insiders believe that John Healey, who already faced an uphill battle to balance the books next month, is likely to have an even bigger challenge after immigration undershot projections from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
The Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank estimated last month that the success of Shabana
Mahmood's
reforms, which have cut net migration to the low hundreds of thousands, could cost Healey some £4bn.

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Anti-Reform @antireform.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

"Most civil servants work in Justice, Home Office, DWP, HMRC & Defence. Cut 224,000 jobs and you cut: prisons, borders, benefits, pensions, tax collection, the armed forces. Then the specialists who keep rivers clean, stop cyber attacks and contain animal disease ..." via Reform Are Not Your Friends

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Bridget Phillipson MP @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

150,000 children have been lifted out of poverty since we scrapped the two child limit. 150,000 lives made better. 150,000 brighter futures. That’s the difference a Labour government makes. That’s hope again. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

mirror.co.uk

Scrapping two-child benefit cap has lifted 150,000 children out of poverty

EXCLUSIVE: Labour party chair Bridget Phillipson MP will reveal the scale of change delivered by scrapping the cap, as she warns the next election will be a choice between hope and fear.

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Siobhán Dowling @siobhandowling.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

"the fact that two of the three states will have leftwing governments is in many ways more newsworthy, given that purely leftwing governments are increasingly rare in Europe."

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Jesse Keskiaho @jkeskiah.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Just got my hands on this fine looking volume, including my piece on a Carolingian copy of the first eight books of De civitate carrying annotations probably made in or near Arles in the early sixth century, possibly in the entourage of bishop Caesarius doi.org/10.30965/978...

Cover of the volume Augustine's De civitate Dei. Text, Context and Reception, ed. by Anthony Dupont, Marina Giani and Gert Partoens, showing a woodcut print depicting Aurelius Augustinus as a late medieval scholar

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HOPE not hate @hopenothate.org.uk · 24/09/2026

There is no concrete evidence yet that Lennon is paid by Russia. But when Russian networks promote you, pro-Kremlin propagandists welcome you and you repeatedly parrot Moscow’s lines, the obvious question remains: Russian asset? Or just Putin’s useful idiot? hopenothate.org.uk/tommy-robins...

hopenothate.org.uk

Tommy Robinson: A Global Far-Right Figure

From Russia and America to Israel and the UAE, Lennon has built an increasingly powerful international network. We investigate the foreign politicians, wealthy backers and influence operations helping...

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Charles West @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

For those not on Instagram, details of a memorial service in memory of Rosamond McKitterick: 5 p.m. on Friday 23 October 2026, at Great St Mary’s, the University Church.

screen shot from Sidney Sussex College's Instagram account.

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Will Jennings📉🗳️ @drjennings.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

These groups need to be proscribed immediately. They are a threat to public order and the rule of law.

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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Effective 2025 federal tax rates paid by these corporations: Alphabet: 8.01% AT&T: 4.6% Meta: 3.57% General Motors: 3.09% Amazon: 1.37% Exxon Mobil: 1.31% Disney: -1.57% CVS Health: -3.88% Income tax rate paid by the typical American: 14.5% This is what a rigged system looks like.

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Luke Tryl @luketryl.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Gender split in this poll particularly pronounced. Labour have a big 6 point lead among men over Reform. Whereas among women it's a close Tory-Labour race with Tories just edging ahead in this poll.

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Peter Smith @redpeter99.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Helen Whately is being typically right wing by "othering" benefit claimants, as though they're not like the rest of the population. Twelve years as a foodbank volunteer has taught me poverty isn't caused by booze and ciggies. It's far more complex - poor pay and housing and bad health for starters.

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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

📌 ICYMI — Royal British Legion Says It Wants ‘No Association’ With Anti-Migrant Group Behind Poppy Fundraisers — @josiahmortimer.bsky.social The charity says it never authorised a Hampshire group's 'Raise the Poppies' appeal, as crowdfunding sites take pages down

bylinetimes.com

Royal British Legion Says It Wants ‘No Association’ With Anti-Migrant Group Behind Poppy Fundraisers

The charity says it never authorised a Hampshire group's 'Raise the Poppies' appeal, as crowdfunding sites take pages down

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Pauline Stafford @pstafford.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

The man who became a paid apologist for Meta - will consider any statements from him on AI with this in mind.

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Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP @bellribeiroaddy.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

This week, the PM announced plans to extend bereavement leave to couples who experience pregnancy loss at 24 weeks or earlier. Every baby loss is worthy of compassion. This is a welcome policy change, which respects that and gives people more time to process and grieve.

itv.com

Bereavement leave rights to be extended to include early pregnancy loss | ITV News

The new rules will also cover a broad range of relationships including those who lose a spouse or partner, parent, adult child or sibling. | ITV National News

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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Labour MP @philbrickellmp.bsky.social, who is chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Anti-Corruption, told Byline Times: “Does anyone honestly believe that Nigel Farage’s myriad side hustles and outside interests do not influence his judgement on important policy matters?"

bylinetimes.com

Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500

The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns

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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

If the purchase does proceed, Farage’s brand ambassador fees from Direct Bullion would come from a subsidiary of a crypto company he part-owns, giving him an arguably greater incentive to boost cryptocurrencies bylinetimes.com/2026/09/23/n...

bylinetimes.com

Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500

The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns

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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

🔴 Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500 The deal would put the Reform leader’s gold bullion ‘brand ambassador’ fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns bylinetimes.com/2026/09/23/n...

bylinetimes.com

Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500

The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns

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Adam Watson Brown @awb58.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

‘The risk is the emergence of a migration ‘doom loop', in which political pressure to reduce migration leads to policy choices that weaken economic performance and public services, thereby intensifying the very political discontent that fuels anti-immigration sentiment.’

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Glen O'Hara @gsoh31.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

THIS FRIDAY: You can come to my @royalhistsoc.org public lecture on rights of way and the struggle for land access in England and Wales... It's at London's Senate House at 6pm. Still a few tickets left! And an online version. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rhs-lectur...

eventbrite.co.uk

RHS Lecture: 'In All Our Footsteps?' with Professor Glen O'Hara IN PERSON

'In All Our Footsteps? Rights of Way and the Battle for the Land after the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act' at the IHR

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Will Jennings📉🗳️ @drjennings.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

There are so many crimes in this thread you have to wonder what the police and Home Secretary think they are doing at this point.

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Randall Munroe @xkcd.com · 22/09/2026

Tyrannosaurus xkcd.com/3300/

Comic. [Person with long hair pointing to diagram with Tyrannosaurus Rex standing next to a person.] PERSON: We now believe the primary prey of Tyrannosaurus Rex was these humans who kept standing next to it for scale.

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

'And while TEF has raised the profile of teaching and pedagogy within the sector, academics have doubts whether this move away from research has been spurred by a newfound appreciation of teaching’s value.'

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Alex Sobel MP @alexsobel.co.uk · 22/09/2026

Yorkshire Water released untreated sewage into waterways for over 285,000 hours across nearly 51,000 spills in 2025. I raised this in Parliament because it's clear the privatised water model is failing. Yorkshire deserves clean rivers, not pollution. 🌊💧

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Pauline Stafford @pstafford.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Who better to give us such an overview of Byzantium and its importance - including the ‘imperial feminine’ than @judithherrin.bsky.social

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Tim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Spot-on. Europe is strewn with the bodies of centre-right parties who decided that the best way of countering the rise of the far right was to adopt some of their rhetoric and policies. Not that the Tories here would dream of making the same mistake, of course.

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