David Spencer
@davidaspencer.bsky.social
Prof of Economics and Political Economy (Uni of Leeds, UK). Work; Work Time; Work Reform. Authored: "Making Light Work" (2022) https://www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?book_slug=making-light-work-an-end-to-toil-in-the-twenty-first-century--9781509548620
OK but will they be served in bread buns, baps, cakes or rolls? www.theguardian.com/food/video/2...
Stacked! How the north of England fell in love with American deli sandwiches - series
Restaurant critic and award-winning author Jimi Famurewa discovers how American subs are being reinvented in Leeds, Manchester and Newcastle. From hoagies to hero rolls, Jimi samples the supersized s...
theguardian.com
Some economists with inflated expectations were hoping for Nairu www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...
Nauru officially changes its name to Naoero
Pacific nation is latest country to signal a shift away from its colonial past with return to its traditional name
theguardian.com
Leeds fans with long enough memories will remember our alleged attempted signing of Maradona. Fans started a fund as I recall. Of course, it never happened #lufc www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
What happened to the 'star' signings your club never made?
BBC Sport takes a look at some star players who were close to moving to the Premier League, only for the deals to fall through.
bbc.co.uk
How many leaks, pledges and promises etc. we will hear between now and then? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Healey announces his first Budget will be on 28 October
The new chancellor pledged to move money and power out of Westminster, and into every postcode around Britain.
bbc.co.uk
Shouldn't there be more discussion over how majors would use the income tax receipts to generate growth? I say this as the connection between greater fiscal power and higher growth is not obvious www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Andy Burnham to give regional mayors share of income tax
The prime minister says the move will give power to "every postcode" but critics say the plans lack detail.
bbc.co.uk
Textbook example of sabre-rattling www.theguardian.com/football/202...
Uefa agrees to boycott Fifa competitions if World Cup sell-off plans proceed
Uefa nations have agreed to boycott all Fifa tournaments if the global governing body continues with its plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup
theguardian.com
The real story here is whether interest rate changes will have any impact on domestic inflation. Inevitably this story is being almost entirely missed www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Bank of England holds interest rates at 3.75% as inflation fears mount
Split vote comes as Iran war is rekindled and oil price climbs back above $90 a barrel
theguardian.com
My amatuer take after watching the film last night - I found it hard to get passed the American accents and allusions to Zeus's law (weak morality line) (oh and the horrible food, frequent mumbling and sick dogs). Otherwise a good watch www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Odyssey translator slams Nolan's film adaptation as 'gimmicky' with 'no sex'
The film has won rave reviews from film critics but a translator of Homer's work was less than impressed.
bbc.co.uk
A reminder that when reading this piece, a little knowledge of economics is a dangerous thing www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Would you choose £50,000 over the chance of £1m?
The vast majority of people - particularly women - answer a survey saying they'd take the certainty over chance.
bbc.co.uk
I salute their patriotism but the focus on a few individuals paying more tax misses the system-wide (dare I say, class-based) problem of the fiscal crisis of the state www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
UK millionaires ask Andy Burnham to tax them more
A group including former England footballer Gary Kineker write to the new PM telling him "we can afford it".
bbc.co.uk
The moral economy aspect of some businesses making ”a positive contribution to local communities“ and others not is interesting though it raises the question over where we draw the line between “good“ and “bad“ businesses. But a useful debate to have perhaps www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Business rates to be cut by 20% for England pubs, clubs and music venues
No 10 announces reprieve after Andy Burnham previously pledged to raise tax from e-commerce warehouses and channel it to cutting hospitality sector’s bills
theguardian.com
So another Healey begins as Chancellor. Let’s hope he faces better times than his namesake predecessor
I can see the economic case for better health provision but the fetish for GDP tends to distract from other goals like the basic human need for a healthy life that goes beyond GDP www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
Restoring Britain’s health to 2014 levels could add 2% to GDP, thinktank says
Health Foundation paper argues health is an economic asset and improving it could generate £72bn for public finances
theguardian.com
The notion of Manchesterism is problematic in several respects including as a rhetorical device. The good folk of Leeds will resist it, for example, not because of its politics but because of its association with a particular Northern city www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Burnham's 'Manchesterism' got him to No 10 - but will it work for the UK?
Economics editor Faisal Islam examines whether the north-west city can be a template for the entire country.
bbc.co.uk
0.1% growth reflects an economy that is stagnating with real risks for rising unemployment. Big challenges ahead for the new PM www.theguardian.com/business/202...
UK economy grew by 0.1% in May despite impact of Iran war
Rise in GDP follows a 0.1% decline in April, figures from the Office for National Statistics show
theguardian.com
"The World Cup is another setback to any radical change" - for those wanting a different (old) take www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Football: a dear friend to capitalism | Terry Eagleton
Terry Eagleton: The World Cup is another setback to any radical change. The opium of the people is now football
theguardian.com
I recall seeing David Batty's debut for Leeds plus his first goal away at Man City. His footballing career and life beyond football illustrate a view of professional sport as a job not a vocation. Batty, I hope, is now living a post-work dream #lufc www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
World Cup 2026: What happened to David Batty?
England midfielder David Batty quickly shook off his penalty miss against Argentina in 1998. As the two teams prepare to meet in the World Cup knockout stage again, BBC Sport asks: what happened to hi...
bbc.co.uk
Maybe we need a different economics to study the effects of AI on society? One that takes power seriously and is open to different futures including ones where work is lightened. Someone (an economist) needs to organise a letter to make this point publically qz.com/economists-a...
Economists warn AI could drive mass job displacement
A new statement signed by 16 Nobel laureates marks a shift among economists who once greeted such warnings with skepticism
qz.com
Why not a “compact“ that commits employers to ensuring the use of AI coincides with work time reduction? That would help to mitigate any potential threat from job losses www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Reeves to launch City ‘skills compact’ committing firms to retrain staff in AI
Exclusive: Plan to improve skills of thousands of financial sector workers to keep pace with tech revolution
theguardian.com
Another letter from economists (and again unavailable at least via below). This time urging radical tax reform. Will it have any impact on policy? Answers on a postcard www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Andy Burnham urged to scrap income tax and NI in radical fiscal overhaul
Economists including Jim O’Neill write an open letter calling for a single levy to replace six major taxes
theguardian.com
“ a bee puts to shame many an architect in the construction of her cells. But what distinguishes the worst architect from the best of bees is this, that the architect raises his structure in imagination before he erects it in reality” www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...
Do bees have feelings? Study reveals the insects' 'inner life'
New research found bumblebees showed "emotion-like behaviours" previously only seen in mammals.
bbc.co.uk
Count Binface is the true anti-establishment candidate in this by-election at least www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Nigel Farage's political rivals rule out standing in Clacton by-election
The Reform UK leader says he wants an "establishment versus the people by-election" but Labour calls it a "circus".
bbc.co.uk
I loved The Sweeney. Ian Kennedy Martin wrote some memorable (gritty) scripts. RIP www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...
Ian Kennedy Martin obituary
TV writer who created the 1970s police drama The Sweeney and later worked on Juliet Bravo and The Chinese Detective
theguardian.com
AI won't deliver us a 4-day work week. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/06/o... I would add that business-led trials won't either (at least on their own). On the wider barriers to work time reduction, see below: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Opinion | The Elusive Promise of the Four-Day Workweek
nytimes.com
Hard to classify as “utopias” given their purpose and ownership. They were perhaps ruinous from the outset www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Ruined utopias: the afterlife of the Amazon’s forgotten company towns – in pictures
For decades, foreign firms established settlements in the Brazilian Amazon to support extractive activities, only to eventually abandon the buildings and workers. The remains show human resilience as ...
theguardian.com
Late to this, but the poem, "V", shaped me too as a sixth former (in my case, I was living in Leeds and attending Leeds United games). Hopefully, as the below article says, Burnham can turn his knowledge of poetry into positive political and economic change www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
At a poet’s memorial, I saw how Andy Burnham could be a different kind of prime minister | Blake Morrison
The putative PM-to-be explained how one of Tony Harrison’s poems gave him a new outlook, says poet and author Blake Morrison
theguardian.com
This report seems to miss the fact that the Green Party will be competing against Labour and will offer competition for any radical economic reform agenda www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Andy Burnham urged to be radical on economy to help Labour win next election
Exclusive: Poll shows policies such as rent control and higher wealth taxes could fend off Reform UK in key seats
theguardian.com
The human capital theorists are winning (and seemingly helping economics graduates to earn more) www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Find out which university degrees could earn you most across your lifetime
New data suggests which university degrees have the highest and lowest financial returns over a lifetime.
bbc.co.uk
Burnham going for the “over 50s who like indie music” vote thequietus.com/interviews/b...
Party Pieces: Andy Burnham's Favourite Albums | Page 6 of 14 | The Quietus
I played this to death, I loved it and it had everything for me. I love guitar bands, if there’s anything I’ve always loved it’s soaring guitar bands and George Best is the kind of album that does tha...
thequietus.com
