Andrew Defty
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adefty.bsky.social
Andrew Defty
@adefty.bsky.social

Associate Professor of Politics, University of Lincoln. Parliament, the intelligence services, a little bit of social policy.

Political science 84%
Sociology 5%

Each week I share with students on my intelligence module, Vigilant State, an artwork relating to that week’s topic. This week we were discussing intelligence analysis and I selected ‘Road to Baghdad’ (1996) by Elwyn Lynn from the AustralianWar Memorial art collection #ArtofSpying

Continuing to collect artworks relating to intelligence. Struck by these from Australian War Memorial ‘Two types: Imperial and Colonial Intelligence Officer’ (1901) by Norman Hardy & untitled portrait of a member of the Australian Intelligence Corps, Afghanistan (2013) by Campbell Myers #ArtofSpying

Sad to hear of the death of former Lincoln MP, Dick Taverne. Labour MP for Lincoln from 1962 to 1972, after stepping down as a Labour MP won two elections (1973 and February 1974) standing as an independent Democratic Labour MP. Liberal Democrat peer since 1996. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Tributes paid to ex-Lincoln MP and Lib Dems founding member Dick Taverne
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey described him as
www.bbc.co.uk

What a great day’s teaching - comparing “INTS” in my intelligence module and students’ Private Members’ Bill ballot in Parliamentary Studies.

I’m again sharing artworks with students on my intelligence module Vigilant State. I now have more paintings than topics but this week we’re discussing intelligence collection and I’ll find space for Burton Silverman’s portrait of “Emil Goldfus” aka Soviet illegal Rudolf Abel. #ArtofSpying

Intelligence & Security Committee press notice. The ISC will be looking at the intelligence underpinning the Chinese spying prosecution but makes clear “the CPS does not fall within the remit of the ISC, and the Committee will not therefore be considering the actions of the CPS.”

Midway between writing chapters for two books one on social policy under Starmer’s Labour government, the second on the Conservatives under Truss and Sunak. My head is starting to spin, wishing I’d tackled them in chronological order.

University of Warwick are looking for a Professor of Intelligence Studies www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DOZ241/p...
Professor of Intelligence Studies (110902-1025) at University of Warwick
Discover Professor of Intelligence Studies (110902-1025) jobs and more in higher education on jobs.ac.uk. Apply for further details on the top job board.
www.jobs.ac.uk

Reposted by Gráinne McKeever

It’s good to see some of our students, current and former, in today’s Daily Telegraph enjoying themselves at the Conservative Party conference. The great woke indoctrination at U.K. universities is going well 😂😂

It's too early to know and investigations will quite properly follow into what was and was not known about the Manchester attacker. It is the first seminar of my intelligence module tomorrow and I'll be starting with this from @bricksilk.bsky.social following a previous attack in Manchester
For anyone who's published a book. (Source: www.alcs.co.uk/news/the-lat...)

🔎 Times are changing — and so are we. The King’s Centre for the Study of Intelligence is now on Instagram.

Follow for insights on intelligence, security, and global affairs, plus highlights from our research, events, and teaching.

👉 instagram.com/kcsi.uk

Reposted by Andrew Defty

UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.

By Glen O'Hara, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Oxford Brookes University

politicalquarterly.org.uk/blog/where-n...
Where now for Britain’s Universities?
UK higher education now faces a very bleak future, retreating in the face of little public sympathy and limited political interest.
politicalquarterly.org.uk

In one of his less well known roles, Menzies Campbell was a member of the Intelligence and Security Committee from 2008-2015, a period which saw significant reform of the committee. Here he is in 2011 advocating more power for the ISC in the annual House of Commons ISC debate.

Reposted by Andrew Defty

The Annual Welcome Week Lecture of School of Social & Political Sciences, Uni of Lincoln, this year is delivered by Dr Andrew Defty @adefty.bsky.social. His subject is Bridging Two Cultures: what’s scientific about the social sciences?

Just dropped through my letterbox - a great special edition of @intnatsecjournal.bsky.social on women in intelligence

Reposting my blogpost from November 2024 - What does the British public think about another Trump Presidency? whorunsbritain.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/2024/11/08/w...

In relation to the dropping of charges in the Chinese espionage case, a robust call for enhanced powers for the Intelligence & Security Committee from former member Mark Pritchard.

The Speaker’s statement about the CPS decision to withdraw charges against two individuals under the Official Secrets Act in relation to Chinese espionage in Parliament. He’s not happy. hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...

Always a special day, graduation with a great bunch of colleagues from Social and Political Sciences at Lincoln.

Some of which will be more concerning to the French people than the other.

The government has published its response to the Intelligence and Security Committee’s report on Iran www.gov.uk/government/p...
Government Response to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament Report 'IRAN'
The government’s response to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament's Iran Report.
www.gov.uk

Doing some tidying up in the office. Came across this CIA flyer on diversity and inclusion which I picked up at a CIA careers stand in the US a few years ago. I guess they don’t hand these out anymore. 😕

In Bruges

A few days in Bruges, took a short ride out to the small town of Sluis just across the Dutch border. Sluis was liberated by Canadian forces on 1 November 1944 but at a terrible cost, the town’s moving war memorial lists the names and ages of those who died in the bombardment of the town.

Continuing my summer reading on early modern intelligence with Postal Intelligence by @rmidura.bsky.social

More holiday reading, I’ve been looking forward to reading this for a while - Intelligence and espionage in the English Republic 1600 - 60 by Alan Marshall, with some great cover art - The Hired Assassins by Jean Louis Ernest Meissonier, from the Wallace Collection #ArtofSpying

The Sunday Telegraph’s report on Stella Rimington’s appointment as D-G of MI5 in December 1991.