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Tim Oliver

@tjoliver.bsky.social
296 followers 112 following 86 posts

Lecturer, British Politics. University of Manchester.

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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
All I am trying to do is find folks teaching introductory British politics modules and share materials with them, but some universities feel incredibly embarrassed to tell you anything about teaching. Some only list staff research interests!
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
It is remarkably difficult from some university websites to work out what modules are taught there, and which member of staff is responsible for teaching them. Sometimes they make it super transparent - and sometimes it feels like you have to frack the information out of the website.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Just over a week ago you were saying Arday's appointment was a sign of "prized midwit groupthink" (which apparently includes support for trans people? Deeply weird) in The Times. Now you're pretending to be offended, rather than listening. A rotten culture in parts of our media, indeed.
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Maria Sobolewska @profsob.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Do you wonder about how women in the UK are known to be ‘more traditionalist’ and yet vote more progressive? Well, wonder no more! @cerifowler.bsky.social and I have a new paper in @electoralstudies.bsky.social on how this supposed paradox is a measurement artefact 1/ 8
sciencedirect.com
Theories and measurement of political values and under-represented groups: the case of women in the UK
This paper argues that the primary divide in values (Inglehart, 1977; 1990) between safety and self-expression lies in a different place for discrimin…
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Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
“But there would be no Minecraft without maths. And gamers would be waiting much longer for GTA without the world-leading mathematical sciences that are vital to bringing it to life.”
ft.com
There will be no more games like Minecraft without maths
Cuts to UK higher education courses are a danger to our tech industries
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Thanks, Lawrence!
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
I tried to check all the claims I made here, and got friends and colleagues to do the same. I'm embarrassed to be alongside someone who patently refuses to do any reading. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
thetimes.com
Will Andy Burnham appeal beyond M62 if he becomes PM?
The new MP for Makerfield has become an expert at using his regional identity as a political tool. He would be the first ‘proper’ northerner in No 10 for 50 years
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
It's very easy to find out the stats on who uses buses in Greater Manchester. Perhaps Camilla Long could put that very expensive education to work and see that it is the poorest in this region who use buses most? share.google/69fERUxuDCuZ...
share.google
Greater Manchester Travel Diary Survey
The TRADS survey collects transport and travel information from all residents of 2,000 households per year
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Thanks Ben!
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
It is remarkable to write a piece for a newspaper, send it to friends and colleagues to check, be scouring through sources as you write to try and make sure you don't make mistakes (as much as one can be!) and then it appears next to someone who clearly never does the reading.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Embarrassed to be in the same newspaper as this utter bilge, though.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
I've put together some thoughts, with the help of friends, on Andy Burnham and Northerness, for the Sunday Times. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
thetimes.com
Will Andy Burnham appeal beyond M62 if he becomes PM?
The new MP for Makerfield has become an expert at using his regional identity as a political tool. He would be the first ‘proper’ northerner in No 10 for 50 years
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Lawrence McKay @lawrencemckay.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
⏰ CALL FOR PAPERS - EPSS PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP ON PLACE, POLITICS AND EVIDENCE-BASED POLICY ⏰ Submit by Weds 20 May! For all those interested in politics of geographic divides and keen to explore impact potential of their work. More info/submit here: shorturl.at/xS0iS @twanhuijsmans.bsky.social
shorturl.at
EPSS pre-conference: “Place, Politics, and Evidence-Based Policy”
In this pre-conference workshop we bring together researchers who study the role of place in politics, and we want to focus particularly on how we (can) make impact on policies and public debates with...
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
I am not convinced we have seen an upwards trajectory in the context of the OfS since this went to press.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
In the context of today's headlines around the University of Sussex and the Office for Students, sharing my article from last year - onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Learning to Stand on its own Two Feet: The Office for Students and the Crisis in Higher Education in England
In order to address an ever-growing crisis in higher education in England, policy makers need tools capable of meeting the challenge. Yet the Office for Students has been roundly criticised for its s...
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
£8 per chapter buys you about 15 minutes of my time, which isn't enough to properly review anything. Would be nice if they could a) pay folks trying to help colleagues properly, and b) invest in their back office operation so this stuff happens in a timely fashion.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Finally had confirmation that @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social are going to pay me the £80 they owe from November last year for reviewing 10 chapters for an upcoming textbook. Academic publishing really is a joke!
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Alice Lilly @aliceolilly.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
The workload facing MPs and their staff is growing, in ways that aren't visible to the public: casework and the inbox. For @thehousemag.bsky.social, I delved into what the workload looks like, why it's growing, and what this means for how MPs can balance the different aspects of their role
politicshome.com
Casework Crisis: Increase In Constituency Caseload Takes Its Toll
The inexorable growth in casework is stopping MPs from fulfilling their other roles. Alice Lilly sifts through the inbox looking for what might be ...
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Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
New Swingometer! The Gorton and Denton By-election: A tale of Two Manchesters open.substack.com/pub/swingome...
open.substack.com
The Gorton and Denton by-election: a tale of two Manchesters?
Unpopular incumbent + fragmented opposition + unusual seat = unpredictable contest
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Stuart Turnbull-Dugarte @turnbulldugarte.com · 05/09/2025
Radical right accommodation really does not work. New paper out with this exceptionally talented team @katharinalawall.bsky.social @robjohns75.bsky.social @drjennings.bsky.social @sarahobolt.bsky.social @zachdickson.bsky.social @danjdevine.bsky.social & @jack-bailey.co.uk doi.org/10.31235/osf...
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Ralph Scott @ralphscott.bsky.social · 14/07/2025
📣 NEW PAPER ALERT! 🚨 "School subject choices in adolescence affect political party support" Just published in @wepsocial.bsky.social with @nspmartin.bsky.social and @rolandkappe.bsky.social. doi.org/10.1080/0140... 🧵👇
Article abstract, which says:

The educational cleavage is restructuring electoral competition in many democracies, yet there has been insufficient attention on how variation in educational content affects this. In order to address this, this article combines English administrative school records with a unique representative panel of adolescents to estimate the within-individual effect of studying different subjects at school on political party preference. This analysis finds that studying arts and humanities subjects leads to greater support for socially liberal parties, whilst studying business and economics increases support for economically right-wing parties. Students who study technical subjects become more likely to support socially conservative and economically right-wing parties. These relationships between particular subjects and party support also persist into adulthood. As such, this article provides new evidence on the importance of subjects taken in secondary school for political socialisation, during the impressionable years of adolescence.
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Kenn Rushworth @kennrushworth.bsky.social · 03/07/2025
Mine and @profsob.bsky.social paper Comparing registration systems using the International Difficulty of Registration Index (IDORI). How difficult is electoral registration in the UK? has been published. Please read it here, url: academic.oup.com/pa/article/d...
academic.oup.com
Comparing registration systems using the International Difficulty of Registration Index (IDORI). How difficult is electoral registration in the UK?
Abstract. Electoral registration in the UK is often critiqued for making it hard for voters to participate in elections. However, without a tool for a syst
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 28/06/2025
Good, solid local journalism from @manchestermill.bsky.social on mental health care in Greater Manchester. A salient reminder of what local journalism is meant to be manchestermill.co.uk/a-murder-of-...
manchestermill.co.uk
A murder of crows: how a blog post deepened the conflict inside Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust
The board says it’s committed to transparency, critics say it prefers ambiguity
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Alex Hartland @alexhartland.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
🛎️ New Publication 🛎️ How did public and party priorities interact during the 2024 European Parliament elections? In our new @wepsocial.bsky.social article, Daniela Braun, @giucarny.bsky.social @rosanavarrete.bsky.social @annreinl.bsky.social and I find some connections tinyurl.com/yhc4ae8m 🧵
tandfonline.com
The role of key European issues in the 2024 election campaign
International crises and Euroscepticism have made European issues prominent in citizens’ lives. This article studies the role of three key European issues – migration, the environment, and EU integ...
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James David Griffiths @jamesdgriffiths.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
🚨NEW PUBLICATION 🚨 Though people have moved on from Brexit, they still vote in line with their Brexit preferences - with age/education still separating voters. Voters now back party blocs, which matters greatly for Labour's current appeals to Reform voters. 🧵 academic.oup.com/pa/advance-a...
academic.oup.com
The Brexit realignment amid electoral volatility: The role of party blocs in the 2024 General Election
Abstract. Brexit accelerated the long-term realignment of how demographic groups vote in Britain. However, Europe is no longer salient to voters, support f
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Kenn Rushworth @kennrushworth.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
UK has a comparatively difficult registration process. Our comparative analysis of registration difficulty in 62 countries is timely as Labour consider introducing automatic voter registration. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Britain has one of most difficult voter registration processes, report finds
UK system makes it a ‘real outlier’ among liberal democracies, according to study examining 62 countries
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
To propose taxing the income stream that is essentially keeping UK higher education from widescale collapse is the sign of a government that has given up trying to understand the country it is meant to lead.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
The failure of our public service broadcaster to actually engage with evidence is really quite staggering, sometimes. I recall, with a chill, their constant coding of any actual discussion of policy during Brexit as "nerd stuff".
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Marta Miori @martamiori.bsky.social · 11/05/2025
Yes, there are only 6 Labour seats where the Lib Dems are 2nd. This is because the 2024 Labour vote was propped up by tactical voting between the two parties. Allowing Labour to win seats in Conservative areas... seats they won't be able to keep if their left-wing coalition crumbles
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Lawrence McKay @lawrencemckay.bsky.social · 29/04/2025
Out now (OA) in @electoralstudies.bsky.social. Do people in rural areas want politicians offering stronger representation to rural areas - as opposed to just their local area? Yes - based an original conjoint experiment in the UK (1/5) www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
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Prospect Magazine @prospectmagazine.co.uk · 12/04/2025
“No single decision is to blame” for UK universities' dire financial situations, writes @rostaylor.bsky.social. “But many trace [the crisis] back to a decision made by chancellor George Osborne in December 2013.” www.prospectmagazine...
prospectmagazine.co.uk
How universities were sent over the edge
UK higher education institutions did as the government asked and took on more students. Now many face collapse
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
I try and keep Tony Harland's advice on the 3 P's of lecturing - performance, passion, purpose - at the heart of mine. In particular, performance, as - "a performer has a deep respect for their audience." Something a lot of contemporary documentary makers could do with remembering!
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James O'Malley @jamesomalley.co.uk · 10/04/2025
Hey this seems sensible! I wrote a while ago about how crazy it is British election infrastructure relies on a bunch of volunteer nerds. (takes.jamesomalley.co.uk/p/its-mad-th...) Now the electoral commission is bringing it in-house! democracyclub.org.uk/blog/2025/04...
democracyclub.org.uk
A new home for the polling station finder
Big news from the Electoral Commission's five-year plan.
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Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 08/04/2025
The core trilma here remains the same - the govt needs to accept one of three things: high student migration, higher domestic student fees (or higher taxes to fund universities) or university bankruptcies. Those are the only options, given where we are. Pick one.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 08/04/2025
Also, the limpness of failing to stand up for something that this country has done well for decades, and is actually a key strength, is awful to see. Politicians need to be far more robust in defending our strengths against lazy opinion-havers.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 08/04/2025
Fairly sure that it is those post-1992s that do most in terms of social mobility. I am sceptical of these proposals for similar reasons - they are always economically (and culturally!) bad for a bunch of places that really do not need more bad news.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 08/04/2025
I also don't see how "mergers, campus closures" don't also produce damaging economic effects at a local level. Why does, say, York deserve a university, but Hull doesn't?
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 26/03/2025
The OfS has too many goals, and too little independence. Both show through here, and both need to be changed for it to have any hope of being a source of solutions rather than new problems - onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Learning to Stand on its own Two Feet: The Office for Students and the Crisis in Higher Education in England
In order to address an ever-growing crisis in higher education in England, policy makers need tools capable of meeting the challenge. Yet the Office for Students has been roundly criticised for its s...
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 26/03/2025
Sussex's Vice-Chancellor states that the OfS investigation into that University was "flawed and politically motivated". The OfS's methodology was flawed, and its behaviour erratic - www.politicshome.com/opinion/arti...
politicshome.com
The Kafkaesque investigation into our university looks like political scapegoating
The Office for Students' so-called investigation into the University I represent was flawed and politically motivated. The implications for the hig...
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
What are the odds, I am left to wonder, that in a year we will be back here, with central government complaining that some of this money has been "wasted" on administration, when the requirements here raise administration costs for councils for their road programmes?
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
It is remarkable how little central government trusts local government. It is less remarkable, and more wearingly predictable, to see a new duty created for local government without specific money allocated to fulfil that duty.
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UK in a Changing Europe @ukandeu.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
📢 CALL FOR PAPERS 📢 🚨 Just over a week left to apply for this amazing opportunity with UKICE's @robfordmancs.bsky.social & @uniofmanchester.bsky.social 👇
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 20/03/2025
@markzuckerberg pay up, mark x
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 18/03/2025
Ah, thank you so much!
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 18/03/2025
Hi! I was wondering if you have any demographic breakdowns here - is there a way for researchers to get in touch with you?
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Jack Bailey @jack-bailey.co.uk · 18/03/2025
*Extremely* deep cut here, but I'm hoping the right nerds follow me. Does anyone know if French legislative elections between 1958-1966 had a threshold of 5% of *registered* voters or 5% of *votes cast*? I'm finding conflicting information (in English and in French!)
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Political Quarterly @politicalquarterly.bsky.social · 15/03/2025
Latest issue! With @colmpm.bsky.social @pjsloman.bsky.social @gerryhassan.bsky.social @profsob.bsky.social @tjoliver.bsky.social @jwfurlong.bsky.social @lawrencemckay.bsky.social @psurridge.bsky.social @martamiori.bsky.social @profrosiecamp.bsky.social   onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/1467923x...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
The Political Quarterly: Vol 96, No 1
Click on the title to browse this issue
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Chris Terry-Enescu @cjterry.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
The Ukrainian government has a list of places where you can donate to the war effort here. I personally just donated $100: war.ukraine.ua/donate/ Slava Ukraini.
war.ukraine.ua
Donate to Ukraine’s defenders
The National Bank of Ukraine has decided to open a special fundraising account to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 19/02/2025
Local journalism is one of the cornerstones of a democratic society. @manchestermill.bsky.social's work on the University of Greater Manchester (formerly Bolton) is a reminder of just what we're missing as so many local papers become hollow shadows of themselves manchestermill.co.uk/the-universi...
manchestermill.co.uk
The Casablanca Deal: Secret contracts and unexplained payments at the University of Greater Manchester
EXCLUSIVE: Senior executives at the university tried to divert hundreds of thousands in tuition fees into a private company which one of them owns
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Tim Oliver @tjoliver.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
As someone with a clear subject specialism; do not do this without serious critical thought. Google Search's AI has returned to me answers that are entirely 180 degrees from the truth, or entirely invented. LLMs are not fonts of all knowledge.
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