Well, I for one am an economist who supports rent controls! Here’s why 🧵: Markets only work well if: -buyers & sellers have roughly equal power -producers respond to price signals & expand supply in response to scarcity -buyers can walk away if prices get too high

Saul Staniforth@saulstaniforth.bsky.social · 2w ago

Ash Sarkar: "The one thing the govt could do to improve the lives of young people is introduce some rent controls" Govt minister Jonathan Reynolds: "No economist supports rent controls" There you have it. Are you a young person trapped paying exorbitant rent? The Labour govt says f**k you.

Proud to have contributed to this report. Do have a butchers - lots of great ideas for Burnham and team...

Compass@compassoffice.bsky.social · last mo.

OUT TODAY: Our latest publication, 'Ending Business As Usual', brings together over 20 experts from a range of think tanks and academia to provide nearly 70(!) radical policy solutions to show the Prime Minister can deliver on that promise. www.compassonline.org.uk/publications...

Look, put simply, people should not be comfortable saying that in public and the way to fix society runs directly through making them afraid to say it again.

Gregory Kohn@kohngregory.bsky.social · 2mo ago

In the wake of Arday's death, Nathan Cofnas (who led the X mob against him) states his motivation. Beyond whistleblowing, he states that after a 'revolution' removes professors like Arday, it will open opportunities for him to become 'head of the department of eugenics and race science at Harvard'.

From this review- “Think of all the diligent, decent black academics who have been lumbered with the embarrassment of having Arday as a figurehead” - no, think of *why* black academics are held collectively responsible in ways that white academics are not

Stephen Bush@stephenkb.bsky.social · 2mo ago

I think functionally all of the post-resignation coverage that was about him rather than Cambridge was excessive (e.g. this poisonous review of a book nobody is going to buy - why)

⚡ Our new analysis finds that a windfall tax on bank profits could bring in *£19 billion* from just the UK's biggest four banks if announced in the Autumn Budget. Their profits for the first half of 2026 were £29.2bn (up 21% on the same period last year) 🤑 #TaxTheBanks

Windfall tax on colossal bank profits could raise £19bn in 2026

Burnham urged to resist lobbyists and tax banks to pay for his cost of living measures

positivemoney.org

🚨 NEW: @danneidle.bsky.social claims Scotland’s 48% tax rate has lost public revenue. But is this actually true? My new deep-dive says no – Dan’s analysis doesn’t prove anything. It’s a long read, so buckle up 🧵

Just loving how John Cleese, now reduced to one of his own caricatures, rages about immigrants coming to the UK and failing to accept "our" culture, from his home in ... (checks notes) ... Nevis in the Caribbean.

following friday announcement that the govt will not be bringing in rent controls, i looked at the growing case for them (ft. london renters union @acornunion.bsky.social , @bethstratford.bsky.social, @zackpolanski.bsky.social + more) + what burnham's inaction means about his govt (link below)

“The new Prime Minister has a clear chance to break away from the unpopularity of his predecessors by standing up to City lobbyists & taxing banks’ unearned windfalls.” This policy isn't just about raising billions, it's about showing the public whose side the Govt is on.

Andy Burnham urged to unleash tax raid on banks amid £55billion profit bonanza

EXCLUSIVE: As Britain's big bank prepare to announce a round of bumper half year profits, critics argue a windfall could pay for the government's cost of living crusade

mirror.co.uk

Also including: - @autonomy-institute.bsky.social on caps on political donations - @clesthinkdo.bsky.social on ending trickle down economics with community wealth building - @bethstratford.bsky.social on rent controls - @pollytoynbee.bsky.social on the @highpaycentre.bsky.social

The only historic sustained improvement in housing affordability came at the start of the C20th with rent controls – @bethstratford.bsky.social Catch up with the full Forum 2029 event: youtu.be/Uh1_AUP_dx0?...

Nigel Farage is correct about one thing. It’s the people vs the establishment. Reform are literally the establishment. And it’s the Green Party on the side of the people. Wealth tax. Rent controls. Now. Join.greenparty.org.uk

Rent controls would save households up to £2,400 a year and the Government £2 billion a year. It's a no-brainer. But only the Green Party has a policy to introduce them.

"Rent controls, an idea whose time has come" @zackpolanski.bsky.social at launch of joint NEF / @iipp-ucl.bsky.social report by @bethstratford.bsky.social Huge benefits for renters & gov. Negative impacts on landlords are marginal. Other countries have them, UK has had them before, so why not now?

Right, only two days until we're back with our final Forum 2029 of this series! Don't miss out Weds 8th July, 18:30 'Tackling the private rental sector' w/ @bethstratford.bsky.social | Rosie Worsdale (@jrf-uk.bsky.social) | Beka Hesse (LRU) Sign-up: actionnetwork.org/events/forum...

61% of all political donations in the last quarter came from just 14 people Reform took in £9.3m from a handful of super rich donors British democracy is being bought. We urgently need action to take the money out of our politics

Steve Goodrich@stevejgoodrich.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Some quick thoughts on Q1 2026 donations data from @electoralcommission.org.uk 🧵 HEADLINE STATS Total: £20.7m (excl. public funds) Biggest recipient: Reform £9.3m Biggest donor: Ben Delo £4m to Reform Donors giving £1m+: £9.2m (44%) from 3 donors Donors giving £250k+: £12.7m (61%) from 14 donors

"Landlord profit margins are on average around 42% and ordinary business owner's margins are on average 8%. [...] Vast majority of landlords are making supernormal returns" Economist @bethstratford.bsky.social #ChangeNOW 🤝

If you read one thing today, make it @stephenkb.bsky.social's admirably clear and rational analysis of the police's actions following Henry Nowak's murder, from the @financialtimes.com Inside Politics newsletter www.ft.com/content/aa94...

What Henry Nowak’s murder does — and does not — tell us about policing

Kemi Badenoch says his killing needs to be seen as a ‘Stephen Lawrence moment’ but the failures in both cases differ

ft.com

Last year, we shared a paper showing that Labour's accommodation of the radical right did not work. We now have a new version of the paper online: osf.io/preprints/so...

Everyone should be able to access a safe, secure, affordable home. But unaffordable rents make it impossible for people to live good lives. That's why we're calling for an "emergency brake" which would cap rent increases at the lower of inflation or 2%. Read more: neweconomics.org/2026/05/a-mo...

Around a quarter of private renters in the UK spend over 40% of disposable income on rents. This is among the highest rates across the world. Meanwhile new analysis for JRF finds being a private landlord has been one of the best investment options available to individuals.

A tiny 2% annual wealth tax could raise over £5bn a year from the top 15 billionaires on the Sunday Times Rich List alone. That could cut household energy bills by an average of £150 a year using @jrf-uk.bsky.social's Rising Block Tariff proposal. So why isn't the government doing it now?

Our new report – The Property Premium – is out today, with @jrf-uk.bsky.social 🎙️ Key finding: being a private landlord has been the best investment option available to individuals in England over the past decade. Read the full report here: autonomy.work/portfolio/th...

The property premium: the nature and trajectory of landlord profits in England

New Autonomy analysis of landlord profits in England over the previous decade.

autonomy.work

Finally, we have data to show vast majority of landlords earn supernormal returns: even with high interest rates, 63% outperform a 60:40 equity-gilt portfolio & 71% beat the broader real estate sector. Proud to have co-authored this with @autonomy-institute.bsky.social autonomy.work/portfolio/th...

Millionaires are five times more concerned about doctors leaving the UK than they are about other millionaires emigrating 💸 Our poll also found millionaires are proud to live in the UK, and they're willing to pay more tax to invest in our country and its young people.

Trump’s War On Iran: Myth Vs. Fact https://theonion.com/trumps-war-on-iran-myth-vs-fact/

The @europarl.europa.eu looks set on tuesday to vote through a report on the EU housing crisis that rejects the idea that financialisation has been a key driver. Read my co-authored letter with @danielagabor.bsky.social arguing aginst the report's findings www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/pub...

Letter to the European Parliament's HOUS Committee

Authored by Josh Ryan-Collins and Daniela Gabor

ucl.ac.uk

🏠 A foundation for future housing strategy 'Taking Stock', a paper led by IIPP's @stefanhorn.bsky.social & @bethstratford.bsky.social, outlines the foundational analysis and key frameworks of the Homes that Don’t Cost the Earth (#HDCE) project. ✍️ Read the paper here: buff.ly/TWVFHMn

EVENT: 'Housing, Power and Property' 🏠 Join @jemgilbert.bsky.social, @bethstratford.bsky.social, Nick Bano & more for an afternoon symposium on the politics of housing, rent, urban space and tenants' organising Fri 12th Dec | 1pm | UEL, London (FREE) 👇

🏘️There's huge focus around Labour’s pledge to build 1.5 million homes, and whether they can « build, baby, build ». But the sheer numbers obscure a more important question: can they do it right? @bethstratford.bsky.social and @aydindikerdem.bsky.social give their analysis on our latest episode.👇