At a time when LGBT rights seem to be under threat across the world, Pride is more important than ever. A huge thanks to the Wokingham Pride team for inviting me to speak at Elms Field over the weekend.

Why should the Burnham government prioritise targeted grid upgrades in its first 100 days? How would this save consumers money, revitalise our industries and lead to new and innovative growth? And what are constraint costs anyhow? 👇

Labour Climate and Environment Forum@lcefuk.bsky.social · last mo.

Our Deputy Director @mcortonscott.bsky.social spoke to Arguably about our policy ideas for Andy Burnham’s first 100 days - including tackling grid constraints. www.arguably.uk/p/20-ideas-f...

Great to see everyone at the @britishprogress.org summer party – congratulations to Julia, David and the whole team for continuing to drive the economic growth agenda. Honoured to be your parliamentary champion!

The UK is paying the price of dependency on global oil and gas markets, as Trump’s war in Iran and the crisis in Ukraine has proven in the last few years. We must uncouple electricity prices from gas and reap the rewards of our investment in cheap, clean power.

One of the most fascinating chapters of 'We Are Not Machines' describes how Swedish trade unions and companies negotiated to find a win-win solution from automation thanks to the union representatives having seats on the company board. (1/3)

What might a ‘cost of living populism’ look like & how would it do electorally for Labour/Burnham? Some new research via @persuasionuk.bsky.social TL;DR such a platform boosts Lab’s vote share by 15ppt (!) to 34% in our MRP experiment. This & anti-Reform squeeze is prob their best hope 🧵

Rising food prices are one of the clearest examples of the cost of living crisis, and it's something that shoppers have to contend with every week. In @thefabians.bsky.social new pamphlet, I set out what a new Labour government can do to to bring inflation down.

Fabian Society@thefabians.bsky.social · last mo.

How do we raise living standards? 💸 Today, the energy price cap goes up, adding further pressure to the cost of living. Improving living standards will be the central priority for the next Prime Minister, and ultimately, the issue that decides the next election.

“Britain simply has an economy with no shock absorbers”. Trump’s war in Iran is crashing living standards - this story by Tom Calver in the Times describes the urgency of a bold cost of living agenda that improves domestic resilience to inflation👇

I gave a pitch at this year’s FT Women in Business summit: more business women should consider running for Parliament! Thanks Miranda Green for chairing a really fun panel. We need 60 women in order to achieve gender parity in Parliament – can you help us find them?

As Reading Buses and Manchester’s Bee Network have shown, a productive state can improve the supply of essentials - and supply-side reform is essential to a progressive, left economics.

On #Newsnight yesterday I set out how I'd like to see our next prime minister deal with the crisis at Thames Water. We have to accept that the Tory experiment with our water companies has failed. (1/2)

Keir Starmer has shown incredible grace and leadership with his moving statement today, which will allow the Labour Party to move forward and revitalise itself. (1/3)

Huge congratulations to Andy Burnham, our new Labour MP for Makerfield, and all the volunteers and campaigners who made this win possible - we saw a huge swing to Labour from Reform compared to the local elections in Wigan only a month ago🌹

Thames Water's HQ is in Reading, but it's the distant creditors who are running the show. Today in PMQs, I asked the Deputy Prime Minister how we can makes sure Thames Water's restructuring is in the best interests of customers, not the investors who have gotten us to this point.

I'm very glad to see the government has raised objections to the current Thames Water deal proposed by its creditors. I've previously written to Ofwat to ask them to reject this deal. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

I really welcome today's announcement that the government will be bringing in a social media ban for under 16s, after the consultation found the overwhelming majority of parents support it. (1/3)

labourlist.org/2026/06/capa... pleased to have written this with my good friend @graemedowniemp.bsky.social about focusing on outcomes over targets.

'Capacity first: Building a Britain that works' - LabourList

If we campaign on targets not capabilities, we risk lecturing the public not leading them.

labourlist.org

Tomorrow I’ll be bringing Thames Water’s management into Parliament to answer a simple question (that they have failed to answer so far): what are our constituents getting in return for their increase in bills? (1/2)

As an economist, former FT journalist and now Labour MP, l don’t think the bond markets have to fear a change of Labour leadership. The biggest problem for gilt investors and MPs alike is inflation – & it remains our common enemy. My @financialtimes.com op-ed 👇 (1/5) www.ft.com/content/2a64...

Politicians and the bond markets: lost in translation

Mutual misunderstanding and panicky commentary mask a joint desire to see the UK economy doing better

ft.com

Student loans are an issue of intergenerational fairness, and I'm glad to be digging into this issue as part of Parliament's Treasury Committee. Thank you to each of the 52,000 people who submitted evidence for the our inquiry into student loan fairness.

Thanks to Hannah Brenton for covering the much-needed revival of economics discussion in the Labour Party this (hot essay) summer. The "Great Moderation" of the pre-financial crisis decades is over – we need new ideas to tackle the new challenges we face.

Had a great time doorknocking in Makerfield last week with friends from Reading. Lovely to see all the many amazing volunteers!

We are all paying the cost of Trump’s war in Iran in the form of higher bills. Making it easier to trade electricity with our allies in Europe will strengthen our energy resilience and keeping bills down in such uncertain times.

Really enjoyed being part of the lively discussion @resolutionfoundation.org launching their new paper on economic priorities for the next three years. Thank you to my co-panelists Tom McTague, Sir John Curtice, James Smith and to Ruth Curtice for hosting!

I am aware of the localised meningitis outbreak in Reading, and my thoughts and condolences are with the young person who has tragically passed away.

The cost of living crisis and our low growth are two symptoms of the same problem: an economic structure that hasn’t been working for a long time. We need to take on the root causes of those costs.

From the many conversations I've had with my Labour colleagues in Parliament, there is a consensus about the importance of setting out clear fiscal rules and getting the cost of borrowing down. The best way to address the cost of living is to get growth up and inflation down.

My statement on the Prime Minister:

As we near the end of a busy campaign, a big thank you to all of our Labour friends & family who came to help canvass in South Reading & Woodley – you’ve been brilliant!

It's the big day! The Renters' Rights Act brings us: 🏘️ An end to no-fault evictions 🔑 The right to challenge unreasonable rent hikes 💷 A limit of one rent increase per year 👩‍👩‍👦 A ban on discrimination against renters with children

Matthew Pennycook MP@matthewpennycookmp.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Happy Renters’ Rights Day, England. This Labour government is delivering for private renters.