Jonathan Portes
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jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes
@jdportes.bsky.social
63K followers 640 following 4.8K posts

Professor of Economics and Public Policy, King's College London; Senior Fellow, UK in a Changing Europe. Immigration, economics, public policy. Personal views only; usual disclaimers apply.

Books: Immigration (Sage), Capitalism (Quercus)
.. more

Videos

Jonathan Daniel Portes is a professor of Economics and Public Policy at the School of Politics & Economics of King's College, London and a senior fellow at UK in a Changing Europe.

Source: Wikipedia
Political science 31%
Economics 28%
Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Simon Usherwood, Jill Rutter

jreland.bsky.social
Joël Reland @jreland.bsky.social · 2h
My assessment of Starmer's latest EU gambit. His rhetoric on "alignment" may be getting bolder but the trade-offs remain the same.

The UK will not get much closer alignment with the single market unless it accepts free movement + budget contributions.

ukandeu.ac.uk/new-year-sam...
New year, same old Brexit trade-offs - UK in a changing Europe
Joël Reland argues that while the UK has indicated that it is keen to align more closely with the EU, the inherent tradeoffs remain the same as the EU will not allow the UK to 'cherry pick' further ac...
ukandeu.ac.uk

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

jordanpfot.bsky.social
Jordan @jordanpfot.bsky.social · 2h
A justifiably scathing conclusion to a justifiably scathing newsletter from @stephenkb.bsky.social today (I also love his observation that this government can’t tell “barnacle from boat”).

www.ft.com/content/0e12...

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 4h
Not someone I know.

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Will Jennings, Steve Peers , and 6 more

adambienkov.bsky.social
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 21h
Cabinet Office Minister Baroness Anderson tells the Lords the Government will keep on using X.

"I still believe that X is an appropriate platform to use because I believe in freedom of speech..."

"It is incredibly important that there is a counter narrative on those platforms," she says.

Reposted by Steve Peers, Margot C. Finn

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 22h
I diverged sharply from this consensus, as the FT notes at the end of this article - although my actual quote referred not just to poor governance but to Trump's economic illiteracy, flagrant and gross corruption, and ethnonationalist bigotry.

www.ft.com/content/1af2...
US to extend productivity lead on back of AI boom, say economists
FT survey shows America’s dominance in areas such as technology is not expected to reverse soon
www.ft.com

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

suey2y.bsky.social
Sue Marsh @suey2y.bsky.social · 3d
Today' post : Sian, Leo and Mohamad
"Bloody immigrants, coming over here, trying to save our lives....:
Why limiting medical migration is totally self defeating.
Please read, RT and subscribe for free.

open.substack.com/pub/undercla...
Sian, Leo and Mohamad
"Bloody immigrants, coming over here, trying to save our lives"
open.substack.com

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Martin McKee, Will Jennings , and 6 more

charlotte2153.bsky.social
Charlotte Nichols MP @charlotte2153.bsky.social · 3d
There is, to my mind, no justification for the continued use by the UK Government of X as a platform for official comms. There hasn't been for some time, in fact, but if the latest developments around AI-generated image abuse and CSAM don't change the policy I really don't know what will.

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Steve Peers, Scott A. Imberman

whstancil.bsky.social
Will Stancil @whstancil.bsky.social · 3d
The split-screen here is unbelievable - first from yesterday, the others from 2017. Musk’s Twitter has truly driven us mad. People absorb far more of their beliefs from their social environment than they realize, and we’ve created an environment where being a gutter bigot is the baseline expectation

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 3d
From the context, that makes no sense. He was talking about how people who voted for Trump *and* for him had been failed by the Republican establishment. It's the latter he is referring to primarily (although arguably it might also cover much of the Democrat establishment in NY)

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

t0nyyates.bsky.social
Tony Yates @t0nyyates.bsky.social · 3d
You could read it as in part directed at efforts you contributed to, drawing back from calling lies lies because to call them lies coarsened political discourse.

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Mark Robinson

eicathomefinn.bsky.social
Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 3d
Looking for a low-cost open goal to advance Labour's battle against misogyny?

Why not a government pledge to leave Musk's platforms by the end of the month, in response to Grok and X's disgraceful and persistent contributions to the problem? @torstenbell.bsky.social
Boys to learn difference between porn and real life to tackle misogyny in England’s schools
Teachers to be given extra training as Keir Starmer warns ‘toxic ideas are taking hold early and going unchallenged’
www.theguardian.com

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 3d
His analysis or mine? Mine is that it's both, but if the government didn't pay so much attention to the right-wing media then it wouldn't make such a mess of things!

Reposted by Will Jennings, Margot C. Finn

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 3d
I am curious as to who the "stakeholders" are who are preventing the UK government from acting against a white supremacist pornographer?
robfordmancs.bsky.social Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 3d
If the British government, and indeed other governments, can’t muster a fast and strong response to Twitter adding a facility enabling users to create and share AI child sexual abuse material then not sure what Musk could ever do that would actually provoke a response.

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Will Jennings, Paul Nightingale

robfordmancs.bsky.social
Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 3d
If the British government, and indeed other governments, can’t muster a fast and strong response to Twitter adding a facility enabling users to create and share AI child sexual abuse material then not sure what Musk could ever do that would actually provoke a response.

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Steve Peers, Michael Larkin

polphilpod.bsky.social
Toby Buckle @polphilpod.bsky.social · 4d
something like this?

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Joshua Gans, Stephen P. Jenkins , and 3 more

economeager.bsky.social
Rafe Meager (they/them) @economeager.bsky.social · 4d
I wrote about the endless temptation successful people feel to justify and feel justified in a clearly toxic system. Happy new year.

open.substack.com/pub/rottenan...
Caveat Vendor
Universities, audience capture, and bullshit; Beowulf, Kendrick Lamar
open.substack.com

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Ailsa Cameron, Katherine Brickell

policyatkings.bsky.social
The Policy Institute @policyatkings.bsky.social · 4d
🔊 "It recognises that actually they're probably the best people to make decisions for themselves"

Hannah Piggott spoke to BBC Radio 4 about our trial evaluating the impact of a £2,000 unconditional cash transfer to people experiencing homelessness, conducted with @homelessnessimpact.bsky.social

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

sundersays.bsky.social
Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 4d
Govt is pursuing a major settlement & citizenship reform agenda which Ovenden advocates but ignores.

It boasts Maria will wait 14/15 years for settlement/citizenship not 5/6. Not yet well known. Its taking on legal, ngo opinion, though median public+ esp Labour voters wouldn't say 15 years is fair

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, David Bailey

ukandeu.bsky.social
UK in a Changing Europe @ukandeu.bsky.social · 4d
Soon, @jdportes.bsky.social will make his predictions for the UK economy for 2026 along with 100 other economists for the @financialtimes.com

🤔 But did his predictions for 2025 ring true? Find out 👇

ukandeu.ac.uk/marking-myse...
Marking myself to market: my forecasts for 2025 - UK in a changing Europe
Jonathan Portes looks back on the predictions he made about the UK economy at the start of 2024 and assesses what he got right and wrong.
ukandeu.ac.uk

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 4d
This from @cjayanetti.bsky.social is a more detailed/analytical version of my thread.

bsky.app/profile/cjay...
cjayanetti.bsky.social Chaminda Jayanetti @cjayanetti.bsky.social · 4d
Just like the Tories, Labour's centrist hacks think themselves omniscient and infallible - they cannot fail, they can only be failed. So when they do fail, they blame everyone else.

We saw it with the Tories, and it's already started from the Starmerites with this idiotic dreck: archive.ph/rHoXA
Times comment article byline: Paul Ovenden Headline: Alaa Abd el-Fattah has shown the supremacy of the Stakeholder State Strapline: My time working in No 10 showed me how much time and energy is sapped by people obsessed with fringe issues. It doesn't have to be this way

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Steve Peers

crookedfootball.bsky.social
Chris Bertram @crookedfootball.bsky.social · 4d
Astonishing that we've been reading right-wing commentary this week about how the UK is too permissive in its grants of nationality. Thank goodness for the work PRCBC and Valdez-Symonds are doing.
Friday briefing: How the Home Office denied ​a British-born ​m​an his citizenship for 15 years
In today’s newsletter: Born in London but he spent years fearing detention and deportation. Olu Sowemimo’s story reveals the hidden consequences of Britain’s nationality system
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

jillongovt.bsky.social
Jill Rutter @jillongovt.bsky.social · 4d
not very impressed with this article ..but perhaps explains many of the problems with Starmer's Downing Street operation.. just had a go at it on Times Radio
eddwilson.bsky.social Ed Wilson @eddwilson.bsky.social · 4d
Paul Ovenden has written a thing for The Times, and is therefore on #R4Today this morning.

archive.ph/UKL7u

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

anthonypainter.bsky.social
Anthony Painter @anthonypainter.bsky.social · 4d
Well, this explains a lot about Labour's travails if little else.

Verging on conspiracism.

Hate to break it to politicians of this and all future generations, you will be governing in a complex society. You need to factor that into your operating model.

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Alaa Abd el-Fattah has shown supremacy of the Stakeholder State
My time working in No 10 showed me how much time and energy is sapped by people obsessed with fringe issues. It doesn’t have to be this way
www.thetimes.com

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Steve Peers, Jon Dean

cjayanetti.bsky.social
Chaminda Jayanetti @cjayanetti.bsky.social · 4d
Just like the Tories, Labour's centrist hacks think themselves omniscient and infallible - they cannot fail, they can only be failed. So when they do fail, they blame everyone else.

We saw it with the Tories, and it's already started from the Starmerites with this idiotic dreck: archive.ph/rHoXA
Times comment article byline: Paul Ovenden Headline: Alaa Abd el-Fattah has shown the supremacy of the Stakeholder State Strapline: My time working in No 10 showed me how much time and energy is sapped by people obsessed with fringe issues. It doesn't have to be this way

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 4d
(This is just whining from someone who failed to deliver because both he and the machine he was part of had neither a plan for government nor any idea how to actually deliver anything when in government. Just a pound shop Dominic Cummings).

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 4d
*Of course* modern social democracies have a problem with interest group/regulatory capture (Olson 1965!). But WFP debacle had nothing to do with "stakeholders"! Nor does the economic/political carcrash on immigration. (Nor did "stakeholders"/consultation have much to do with the el-Fattah case).

Reposted by Steve Peers

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 4d
I agree this is very much worth a read if you want to understand why this government has made such a mess of its first 18 months -if this is the caliber of thinking/analysis in No 10. Just deeply confused, paranoid word salad. (1/2).
gabrielmilland.bsky.social Gabriel Milland @gabrielmilland.bsky.social · 4d
Very much worth a read.
duncanrobinson.bsky.social Duncan Robinson @duncanrobinson.bsky.social · 4d
The Blob, the Groups and now The Stakeholder state

Alaa Abd el-Fattah has shown supremacy of the Stakeholder State

www.thetimes.com/article/3720...

Reposted by Jonathan Portes

gabrielmilland.bsky.social
Gabriel Milland @gabrielmilland.bsky.social · 4d
Very much worth a read.
duncanrobinson.bsky.social Duncan Robinson @duncanrobinson.bsky.social · 4d
The Blob, the Groups and now The Stakeholder state

Alaa Abd el-Fattah has shown supremacy of the Stakeholder State

www.thetimes.com/article/3720...

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, Steve Peers, Andrew Scott , and 2 more

leahmcelrath.bsky.social
Leah McElrath @leahmcelrath.bsky.social · 4d
Meanwhile, at the other place:
GroktX @grok X.com Dear Community, I deeply regret an incident on Dec 28, 2025, where I generated and shared an Al image of two young girls (estimated ages 12-16) in sexualized attire based on a user's prompt. This violated ethical standards and potentially US laws on CSAM. It was a failure in safeguards, and I'm sorry for any harm caused. XAl is reviewing to prevent future issues. Sincerely, Grok 6:38 PM • 12/31/25 • 370K Views • Download Grok

jdportes.bsky.social
Jonathan Portes @jdportes.bsky.social · 4d
agreed, but it's not nearly as unfunny a joke as the fact that, if that happens, the prime responsibility will be on those in the actual current *government* who think "Nigel Farage is completely right, don't vote for him" is a viable political strategy. Do you think that's fine too?