Nick Clarke
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nickclarkegeo.bsky.social
Nick Clarke
@nickclarkegeo.bsky.social

Geographer, social scientist, student of politics

Political science 49%
Business 16%
Human Geography at Leicester is facing closure. Staff contracts are to end in June 2026; students are to be relocated to other universities, or taught out by a maximum of two (!) teaching-only staff. Other departments and subjects are facing closure, too. Please join the demo!

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We're now over halfway through our @sotonpolitics.bsky.social department seminars!

It's been such a good line-up and very grateful for all those who've joined us - today @dafnoukos.bsky.social and last week Peter Dinesen.

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This explains a lot (Source: www.ft.com/content/20d6... )

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For those that weren't able to make our webinar with @patcollier.bsky.social and Jim Connolly, you can now catch up on YouTube!

Learn more about the Everyday Life in Middletown archive as well as how the writers in archive write about comprehend crisis

www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

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Everyday life in Middletown - YouTube
Find out more about the Everyday Life in Middletown project here: https://bsudsl.org/edlmiddletown/. Cover image: A photo submitted to the Everyday Life in M...
www.youtube.com

Latest on UK productivity crisis:
After submitting a FOIA request UKRI, I obtained success rates by three grant call scheme and I can only say that I am disheartened by the results:

- AHRC Responsive Mode 2025: 2%
- ESRC New Investigator Grant 2025: 1%
- ESRC Research Grant Round 2025: 1%
A democracy isn’t (just) an electoral system. It’s also a culture of deliberation, debate, sensitivity to public concern, attention to social movements and community leaders, respect for civil rights and minority interests, free expression and association and due process. How’s your country doing?

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How are recent Westminster scandals likely to have impacted political trust in Britain? @nickclarkegeo.bsky.social and I reflect on (updated) insights from our research - with Gerry Stoker and Jonathan Moss - in the book The Good Politician.
Do incidents of Westminster “sleaze” damage trust in politicians? | British Politics and Policy at LSE
Trust in politicians has never been high, and even though the global trend is towards people trusting governments less, not every event of corruption will contribute to that trend.
blogs.lse.ac.uk

Reposted by Will Jennings

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Do we trust politicians less now than in previous years and decades? @nickclarkegeo.bsky.social and @drjennings.bsky.social make use of MO materials to consider the extent to which we trust politicians and the factors which influence our opinions.

blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...
Do incidents of Westminster “sleaze” damage trust in politicians? | British Politics and Policy at LSE
Trust in politicians has never been high, and even though the global trend is towards people trusting governments less, not every event of corruption will contribute to that trend.
blogs.lse.ac.uk
💡New! Nick Clarke and Will Jennings remind us that trust in politicians has never been high, and even though the global trend is towards people trusting governments less, not every single event of perceived corruption will further contribute to that trend.

blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...
Do incidents of Westminster “sleaze” damage trust in politicians? | British Politics and Policy at LSE
Trust in politicians has never been high, and even though the global trend is towards people trusting governments less, not every event of corruption will contribute to that trend.
blogs.lse.ac.uk
After submitting a FOIA request UKRI, I obtained success rates by three grant call scheme and I can only say that I am disheartened by the results:

- AHRC Responsive Mode 2025: 2%
- ESRC New Investigator Grant 2025: 1%
- ESRC Research Grant Round 2025: 1%
There is no need for a moral panic about the UK's welfare system.

Far from perfect but recent discourse is nuts

Spending is controlled, not spiralling

Worklessness is near record lows

My column www.ft.com/content/ee67...

Print and send this chart (from your newsletter on Tuesday) to every household in the country.

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My latest on trust for The Big Issue... drawing on various research from our ESRC projects on anti-politics over the last decade.
There's no trust left in the world. How can we get it back?
As The Celebrity Traitors comes to our screens, academic Will Jennings looks at why we've lost trust in our institutions, and each other.
www.bigissue.com
Are you, or do you know, someone who wants to do a PhD?

Applications are open for full funding (scholarship + maintenance) @sotonpolitics.bsky.social through the @scdtp.bsky.social

Get in touch if you're interested

southcoastdtp.ac.uk/apply/
Apply - South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership
Our call for applications for studentships commencing in 2026/27 is now open (from 26th January 2025, 12:00am) The deadline for application is 17:00 GMT 16th Jan 2026. Below are our current applicatio...
southcoastdtp.ac.uk

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Our next event, 'Everyday Life and the Crisis Ordinary in Middletown, U.S.A.' is now open for booking! www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/everyday-l...
We’re delighted to publish a new Policy Paper today by Jonathan Moss & @emilyrobinson.bsky.social. They suggest that Mass Observation @massobsarchive.bsky.social - founded in the 1930s - can help us understand the reasons behind contemporary voter apathy. historyandpolicy.org/policy-paper...
Mass Observation and Political Engagement in Britain - History & Policy
Low turnout in the 2024 General Election and other signs of voter disengagement from politics pose serious challenges for the UK’s democratic system. To meet these, this policy paper argues, we need a...
historyandpolicy.org

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NEW: Just 11% of the public today agree with Margaret Thatcher’s declaration that there is "no such thing as society" – but this rises to 49% among those who are presented with her full quote.

💬❓Our new study tests how context shapes public reaction to four influential political statements ⬇️
The Mass-Observation Critical Series documents and archives the everyday lives, thoughts and attitudes of ordinary Britons.

Found out more https://bit.ly/4lPM60w
My book Understanding Policy Mobility is out this month, for anyone interested in my take on this literature that has emerged over the last 15 odd years www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/und...
Understanding Policy Mobility
‘With great clarity and insight, Russell Prince’s Understanding Policy Mobility not only explains why and how public policy ideas move, but why it matters. An indispensable guide through decades of sc...
www.e-elgar.com
Shot, chaser

Young men more likely to vote Green than Reform. Young men second most progressive group of any demographic. Combined right-wing vote barely bigger than Green vote alone for young men

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Commentary on asylum hotels considering how govt can develop dignified community-based housing that meets multiple social needs. Warehousing people in camps and continuing a failed experiment in privatisation causes nothing but further harm @geogdurham.bsky.social theconversation.com/after-the-ep...
After the Epping Forest case, the government needs to be bold and build asylum housing that works
Asylum housing needs to come back under public control.
theconversation.com
"public opinion should only be one consideration among many in policymaking and party strategy, and never the prime mover of politics."

@philswatton.bsky.social on the pitfalls of poll-driven politics and the importance of political leadership.
renewal.org.uk/blog/public-...
Public Opinion and the Survey Response
Political scientists know that survey responses cannot be taken at face value. For most respondents, most of the time, responses are not the product of deeply held, pre-existing, coherent views on par...
renewal.org.uk

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Across all ages, Reform UK and the Conservatives have increased their combined vote share by 8pts. Among the under 30s, they have only increased 5pts
Britain is now one of very few countries where Gen Z are firmly left-of-centre
The BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants scheme is now open for applications. This opportunity allows postdoctoral – or equivalent – scholars in the humanities and social sciences to apply for funding to support their research projects. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3K4kEyA