Will you be in Bristol on 11 March? Could you be? Well if you are, do come along to @uwebristolofficial.bsky.social's Frenchay Campus at lunchtime to hear me talk all things New Labour. Should be fun!
I've been busy talking about my new book on the Blair years and what the Starmer government might learn from them. Fifth and last: I've been speaking to @newstalkfm.bsky.social in Ireland about Starmer's foreign policy and the shadow of Iraq. Take a listen!
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
I've been busy talking about my new book on the Blair years and what the Starmer government might learn from them. ICYMI yesterday, this week I spoke at @yorkstjohn.bsky.social about some of Blair's domestic policy successes. Crunchy stuff I hope!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z6h...
I've been busy talking about my new book on the Blair years and what the Starmer government might learn from them. Third: I wrote for @lseblogs.bsky.social about just why New Labour was so popular for so long.
blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...
I've been busy talking about my new book on the Blair years and what the Starmer government might learn from them. Next: I wrote for @bigissue.com about what New Labour did for housing. Good on regenerating existing stock; not so great on accelerating rate of build.
www.bigissue.com/opinion/new-...
I've been busy talking about my new book on the Blair years and what the Starmer government might learn from them. First up at @labourlist.bsky.social: you have to possess a clear, consistent political strategy. Without that all else is worthless.
labourlist.org/2026/01/blai...
As Britain watches a deeply volatile conflict unfold in the Middle East, Keir Starmer finds himself in a major foreign policy test. Is Starmer's stance in Iran defined by a fear of repeating the mistakes of Blairism?
@gsoh31.bsky.social on @newstalkfm.bsky.social: www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
What could the current Labour government learn from the Blair years?
In this talk @gsoh31.bsky.social discusses his new book 'New Labour, New Britain?: How the Blair governments reshaped the country' at @yorkstjohn.bsky.social. Watch it on YouTube here:
NEW from me: I've been on Newstalk in Ireland to talk about Keir Starmer's foreign policy as practised in the shadow of Tony Blair's... take a listen!
www.newstalk.com/podcasts/new...
NEW from me... a big old lecture and then a discussion and Q&A about New Labour. Thanks to @yorkstjohn.bsky.social for hosting! The start of the transcript is, er, a bit apologetic.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z6h...
Here's a whole talk and Q&A about my new book on Labour and the Blair years! And you can still buy the actual book here: manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526146328/
Embarrassed to report I also had some stonewashed denim. :-(
NEW: on Tuesday night I gave a public talk and then chatted over all things New Labour with m'learned colleague Jim Cooper at @yorkstjohn.bsky.social... Many thanks to YSJ, and the University of York, who graciously hosted me. Full (and long!) video here...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z6h...
A very good deep dive comparing area-based social policies under both Harold Wilson and Keir Starmer here from @historyandpolicy.bsky.social. Strong recommend.
historyandpolicy.org/policy-paper...
So my travels have taken me to... York! In the sunshine.
TODAY at 6.30pm, in York: I'll be talking about my book on New Labour. Does the Starmer govt have anything to learn from the Blair years? Come along and find out! 👇
www.yorksj.ac.uk/events/upcom...
Are you in York tomorrow night? Or could you be? Come along to @yorkstjohn.bsky.social at 6.30pm, where I'll be talking about and discussing my new book on the Blair governments... It'll be great! More details below. 👇
www.yorksj.ac.uk/events/upcom...
More great coverage of my new book on the Blair years, this time in the Irish Independent! Lots of coverage in Ireland, and I'll be doing more coverage there this week. Reflective, thoughtful. www.independent.ie/opinion/anal...
This will be a fantastic discussion 👏👏👏
Never in doubt mate, never in doubt. 😱💀
Come on Arsenal!
Cos that leads (as at Dundee) to financial disaster cos govt will never stump up and the unit of resource is much lower. The Scottish unis are even more at risk of crisis than the Eng ones. Also, as in Scotland as a whole a v unprogressive numbers cap that stops many Scots going to uni.
I am sick, so sick of trying to introduce reason, detail, order and actual analysis into talk about Higher Ed - now dominated by total BS, lurid fiction and, let's face it, lies. This is my view right now, I'm off to enjoy it, do what you want.
We were teaching in-person during semi-lockdowns with five students with coats on in a windy classroom in winter with all the windows open in every direction while almost everything else was at home! I drove in on empty post-apocalyptic roads with policemen gesturing at me like 'what are you up to?'
Yes they did, ours got all the readings scanned in and their seminar sizes cut into threes so they got a far better student/ staff ratio! Yes it was on Zoom, but we were *made* *by law* to do that.
But you don't pay for your degree, you pay for the uni to be funded. It's a fundamental difference. Otherwise English would cost £7k and Chemistry £15k. I agree with you that it shouldn't be talked about as a product, and that's what I'm saying, I'm agreeing with you!
It doesn't help that the Labour and press reaction (to the extent they understand loans at all) counter with 'but unis could close'. Yes, maybe, but that's not the main flaw! The flaws are much more fundamental. Arrrggghhh. 💀😱 (2/2) www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Laura Trott cannot be allowed to wreck the student loans system by pulling planks out like Jenga. These plans wouldn't save any money to help grads! Because you'd be cutting numbers on Plan 5, not Plan 2, and Plan 5 doesn't 'lose money' like she thinks. Tories have complely + utterly lost it. (1/2)
It's a total nightmare isn't it, I am sorry and I wouldn't have designed it like this. But this is also why in some many ways it's not a fee: because it's *designed* to never be paid off and therefore act like a tax. I'm sorry tho, the gross sum must look demoralising.
But I agree with you? 🤷♂️
