John Williams
@johnhuww.bsky.social
wine, gardens, churches and Wales will feature. Professionally interested in health and life sciences, mental health, academic clinical careers and science policy in general. I cross boundaries. @wi_john
Lib Dems call for ‘anti-growth’ Treasury to be split up – “We have world leading universities, creative industries and life sciences.”
I would say “currently have” and ask whether this will be the case my the end of the current Government’s term.
www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
I would say “currently have” and ask whether this will be the case my the end of the current Government’s term.
www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
Lib Dems call for ‘anti-growth’ Treasury to be split up – UK politics live
Liberal Democrats call for Treasury to be replaced with big growth department, and smaller spending department
www.theguardian.com
February 11, 2026 at 10:31 AM
Lib Dems call for ‘anti-growth’ Treasury to be split up – “We have world leading universities, creative industries and life sciences.”
I would say “currently have” and ask whether this will be the case my the end of the current Government’s term.
www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
I would say “currently have” and ask whether this will be the case my the end of the current Government’s term.
www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
What Happens in a Performer’s Brain While Playing Music?
“The pianist Nicolas Namoradze teamed with neuroscientists for a breakthrough in experiment design.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/a...
“The pianist Nicolas Namoradze teamed with neuroscientists for a breakthrough in experiment design.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/a...
What Happens in a Performer’s Brain While Playing Music?
www.nytimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:22 AM
What Happens in a Performer’s Brain While Playing Music?
“The pianist Nicolas Namoradze teamed with neuroscientists for a breakthrough in experiment design.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/a...
“The pianist Nicolas Namoradze teamed with neuroscientists for a breakthrough in experiment design.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/a...
No reason to be unhappy ! a pay off you can see from outer space, massive pension and likely various gongs/ennoblement.
“Wormald is understood to be negotiating an exit package”
“One source claimed he had been “terribly treated”
www.thetimes.com/article/1061...
“Wormald is understood to be negotiating an exit package”
“One source claimed he had been “terribly treated”
www.thetimes.com/article/1061...
Keir Starmer ready to appoint first female cabinet secretary
Antonia Romeo is likely to take over as head of the civil service from Chris Wormald, who is being forced out because of the Mandelson scandal
www.thetimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:13 AM
No reason to be unhappy ! a pay off you can see from outer space, massive pension and likely various gongs/ennoblement.
“Wormald is understood to be negotiating an exit package”
“One source claimed he had been “terribly treated”
www.thetimes.com/article/1061...
“Wormald is understood to be negotiating an exit package”
“One source claimed he had been “terribly treated”
www.thetimes.com/article/1061...
UK electricity will cost more in 2030 than after invasion of Ukraine, warns Centrica
“Britain’s electricity system had suffered years of under-investment and was trying to catch up at a time when the cost of new equipment had soared.”
www.ft.com/content/c6bd...
“Britain’s electricity system had suffered years of under-investment and was trying to catch up at a time when the cost of new equipment had soared.”
www.ft.com/content/c6bd...
UK electricity will cost more in 2030 than after invasion of Ukraine, warns Centrica
Investment in British energy system is happening at a time of soaring costs for new equipment, says CEO Chris O’Shea
www.ft.com
February 11, 2026 at 6:44 AM
UK electricity will cost more in 2030 than after invasion of Ukraine, warns Centrica
“Britain’s electricity system had suffered years of under-investment and was trying to catch up at a time when the cost of new equipment had soared.”
www.ft.com/content/c6bd...
“Britain’s electricity system had suffered years of under-investment and was trying to catch up at a time when the cost of new equipment had soared.”
www.ft.com/content/c6bd...
Quite! It’s called buying votes ..
“she was “never convinced by the crowding-in argument” for state investment and that it “sometimes is used as an excuse for a government subsidy and it doesn’t actually attract in the private capital behind it”.
www.ft.com/content/2e5e...
“she was “never convinced by the crowding-in argument” for state investment and that it “sometimes is used as an excuse for a government subsidy and it doesn’t actually attract in the private capital behind it”.
www.ft.com/content/2e5e...
New CBI boss criticises UK government policy of taking stakes in businesses
Cressida Hogg says she is ‘never convinced by the crowding-in argument’ for state investment
www.ft.com
February 11, 2026 at 6:40 AM
Quite! It’s called buying votes ..
“she was “never convinced by the crowding-in argument” for state investment and that it “sometimes is used as an excuse for a government subsidy and it doesn’t actually attract in the private capital behind it”.
www.ft.com/content/2e5e...
“she was “never convinced by the crowding-in argument” for state investment and that it “sometimes is used as an excuse for a government subsidy and it doesn’t actually attract in the private capital behind it”.
www.ft.com/content/2e5e...
“Does the country really need more ‘burning passion’ about problems – or does it need someone who knows how to address them,”
blend.spectator.co.uk/t/j-e-ydttah...
blend.spectator.co.uk/t/j-e-ydttah...
Evening Blend: Still Here Keir
blend.spectator.co.uk
February 10, 2026 at 9:17 PM
“Does the country really need more ‘burning passion’ about problems – or does it need someone who knows how to address them,”
blend.spectator.co.uk/t/j-e-ydttah...
blend.spectator.co.uk/t/j-e-ydttah...
The many-to-many problem of endophenotypes in psychiatry - a biological perspective
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
The many-to-many problem of endophenotypes in psychiatry - a biological perspective - Molecular Psychiatry
Molecular Psychiatry - The many-to-many problem of endophenotypes in psychiatry - a biological perspective
www.nature.com
February 10, 2026 at 10:57 AM
The many-to-many problem of endophenotypes in psychiatry - a biological perspective
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
are we in danger of overdiagnosing mental illness? |
“We have developed a tendency to categorise mild to moderate mental and emotional distress as a necessarily clinical problem rather than an integral part of being human – a tendency that is new”
www.theguardian.com/news/2026/fe...
“We have developed a tendency to categorise mild to moderate mental and emotional distress as a necessarily clinical problem rather than an integral part of being human – a tendency that is new”
www.theguardian.com/news/2026/fe...
‘What I see in clinic is never a set of labels’: are we in danger of overdiagnosing mental illness?
Our current approach to mental health labelling and diagnosis has brought benefits. But as a practising doctor, I am concerned that it may be doing more harm than good
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 6:56 AM
are we in danger of overdiagnosing mental illness? |
“We have developed a tendency to categorise mild to moderate mental and emotional distress as a necessarily clinical problem rather than an integral part of being human – a tendency that is new”
www.theguardian.com/news/2026/fe...
“We have developed a tendency to categorise mild to moderate mental and emotional distress as a necessarily clinical problem rather than an integral part of being human – a tendency that is new”
www.theguardian.com/news/2026/fe...
Is this the way the world ends? “Will anyone settle for a flawed human when they’ve become accustomed to an always-attentive bot which never leaves its socks lying around the house?”
Applies to PMs and party members?!
www.ft.com/content/e79f...
Applies to PMs and party members?!
www.ft.com/content/e79f...
Is this the way the world ends?
Romantic relationships with AI models will not heal the disconnect between young men and women
www.ft.com
February 10, 2026 at 6:32 AM
Is this the way the world ends? “Will anyone settle for a flawed human when they’ve become accustomed to an always-attentive bot which never leaves its socks lying around the house?”
Applies to PMs and party members?!
www.ft.com/content/e79f...
Applies to PMs and party members?!
www.ft.com/content/e79f...
“The unfortunate truth is that the loosening of marijuana policies — especially the decision to legalize pot without adequately regulating it — has led to worse outcomes than many Americans expected. It is time to acknowledge reality & change course”.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/o...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/o...
Opinion | We Legalized Marijuana. Now We Must Regulate It.
www.nytimes.com
February 9, 2026 at 10:41 AM
“The unfortunate truth is that the loosening of marijuana policies — especially the decision to legalize pot without adequately regulating it — has led to worse outcomes than many Americans expected. It is time to acknowledge reality & change course”.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/o...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/o...
A disgrace - given well known performance issues- if HMRC allow queue jumping!
As always self interest of a politician trumps the problems the wider electorate face.
Angela Rayner offers help to speed up HMRC inquiry into tax affairs
www.thetimes.com/article/969f...
As always self interest of a politician trumps the problems the wider electorate face.
Angela Rayner offers help to speed up HMRC inquiry into tax affairs
www.thetimes.com/article/969f...
Angela Rayner offers help to speed up HMRC inquiry into tax affairs
The former deputy prime minister is seeking to speed up the process that threatens to stall a potential leadership challenge to Sir Keir Starmer
www.thetimes.com
February 9, 2026 at 7:36 AM
A disgrace - given well known performance issues- if HMRC allow queue jumping!
As always self interest of a politician trumps the problems the wider electorate face.
Angela Rayner offers help to speed up HMRC inquiry into tax affairs
www.thetimes.com/article/969f...
As always self interest of a politician trumps the problems the wider electorate face.
Angela Rayner offers help to speed up HMRC inquiry into tax affairs
www.thetimes.com/article/969f...
Labour’s industrial strategy is misfiring, says Make UK
Britain’s industrial strategy has misfired and is making little progress, the lobby group for leading manufacturers has warned.”
Gosh I wonder why!
www.thetimes.com/article/8c1e...
Britain’s industrial strategy has misfired and is making little progress, the lobby group for leading manufacturers has warned.”
Gosh I wonder why!
www.thetimes.com/article/8c1e...
Labour’s industrial strategy is misfiring, says Make UK
Apprenticeships and energy bills are two of 30 policy initiatives where little or no progress has been made, manufacturers insist
www.thetimes.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:46 AM
Labour’s industrial strategy is misfiring, says Make UK
Britain’s industrial strategy has misfired and is making little progress, the lobby group for leading manufacturers has warned.”
Gosh I wonder why!
www.thetimes.com/article/8c1e...
Britain’s industrial strategy has misfired and is making little progress, the lobby group for leading manufacturers has warned.”
Gosh I wonder why!
www.thetimes.com/article/8c1e...
“UK science is world class, but UK investor participation falls off sharply after early rounds. This is when many biotech companies enter the costliest phases of clinical development, manufacturing and global expansion.”
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Letter: Diagnosis of how British biotech could do better
From Sir John Lazar, President, Royal Academy of Engineering, London SW1, UK
giftarticle.ft.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:41 AM
“UK science is world class, but UK investor participation falls off sharply after early rounds. This is when many biotech companies enter the costliest phases of clinical development, manufacturing and global expansion.”
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Label of the day! Imagine the working group that came up with it.
Given the sophistication of “bad actors” this positively 20th century label/process feels inadequate. Fill in a form anyone…
“academic interfering reporting route”
www.ft.com/content/888a...
Given the sophistication of “bad actors” this positively 20th century label/process feels inadequate. Fill in a form anyone…
“academic interfering reporting route”
www.ft.com/content/888a...
UK universities told to step up defences against intimidation by China
Security services to launch advisory scheme for threatened academics in wake of Sheffield Hallam row
www.ft.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:34 AM
Label of the day! Imagine the working group that came up with it.
Given the sophistication of “bad actors” this positively 20th century label/process feels inadequate. Fill in a form anyone…
“academic interfering reporting route”
www.ft.com/content/888a...
Given the sophistication of “bad actors” this positively 20th century label/process feels inadequate. Fill in a form anyone…
“academic interfering reporting route”
www.ft.com/content/888a...
The Demise of U.S.A.I.D.: depressing!
“Ten years from now, a world shaped by Mr. Trump’s aid policies will be meaner and more opaque — one where hunger, preventable diseases and desperation spread. It will be a world in which America stands isolated and friendless.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
“Ten years from now, a world shaped by Mr. Trump’s aid policies will be meaner and more opaque — one where hunger, preventable diseases and desperation spread. It will be a world in which America stands isolated and friendless.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
Opinion | The Demise of U.S.A.I.D. Was a Warning
www.nytimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 7:22 AM
The Demise of U.S.A.I.D.: depressing!
“Ten years from now, a world shaped by Mr. Trump’s aid policies will be meaner and more opaque — one where hunger, preventable diseases and desperation spread. It will be a world in which America stands isolated and friendless.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
“Ten years from now, a world shaped by Mr. Trump’s aid policies will be meaner and more opaque — one where hunger, preventable diseases and desperation spread. It will be a world in which America stands isolated and friendless.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
“The policy tools exist to minimize the harms and maximize the benefits of a system that provides food, much of it healthy, in abundance. But first we need to stop demonizing industrial food, and instead think about how to make it better.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
Opinion | We Shouldn’t Want to Eat Like Our Great-Great-Grandparents
www.nytimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 7:20 AM
“The policy tools exist to minimize the harms and maximize the benefits of a system that provides food, much of it healthy, in abundance. But first we need to stop demonizing industrial food, and instead think about how to make it better.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/o...
“But Britain, despite our historic strengths in this area, risks missing out. Our ingenious science sector consistently produces pioneering innovation, yet equity financing for British biotech was down 49 % in 2025 and venture capital funding fell 13 per cent”
www.thetimes.com/article/d39d...
www.thetimes.com/article/d39d...
Rishi Sunak: Britain must not squander its brilliance in biotech
It would be a tragedy if the country where the structure of DNA was discovered fell behind to China. That will happen if we don’t play our cards right
www.thetimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 1:34 PM
“But Britain, despite our historic strengths in this area, risks missing out. Our ingenious science sector consistently produces pioneering innovation, yet equity financing for British biotech was down 49 % in 2025 and venture capital funding fell 13 per cent”
www.thetimes.com/article/d39d...
www.thetimes.com/article/d39d...
Officials Pressed Schumer to Help Name Penn Station and Dulles Airport for Trump
“Administration officials told the top Senate Democrat the president would release frozen funding for the Gateway project if the transportation hubs were renamed for him.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...
“Administration officials told the top Senate Democrat the president would release frozen funding for the Gateway project if the transportation hubs were renamed for him.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...
Officials Pressed Schumer to Help Name Penn Station and Dulles Airport for Trump
www.nytimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 7:14 AM
Officials Pressed Schumer to Help Name Penn Station and Dulles Airport for Trump
“Administration officials told the top Senate Democrat the president would release frozen funding for the Gateway project if the transportation hubs were renamed for him.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...
“Administration officials told the top Senate Democrat the president would release frozen funding for the Gateway project if the transportation hubs were renamed for him.”
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...
Lessons for UKRI (and relevant Ministers) as it pivots towards “picking winners”
‘I thought we’d be faster and I was wrong’: Sanofi chief defends R&D pivot
“he had “underestimated” the difficulty of turning the group into a more innovative company.”
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
‘I thought we’d be faster and I was wrong’: Sanofi chief defends R&D pivot
“he had “underestimated” the difficulty of turning the group into a more innovative company.”
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
‘I thought we’d be faster and I was wrong’: Sanofi chief defends R&D pivot
Paul Hudson struggles to convince investors he can plot a more profitable future for French pharma group
giftarticle.ft.com
February 7, 2026 at 7:11 AM
Lessons for UKRI (and relevant Ministers) as it pivots towards “picking winners”
‘I thought we’d be faster and I was wrong’: Sanofi chief defends R&D pivot
“he had “underestimated” the difficulty of turning the group into a more innovative company.”
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
‘I thought we’d be faster and I was wrong’: Sanofi chief defends R&D pivot
“he had “underestimated” the difficulty of turning the group into a more innovative company.”
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Why independent analysis of DHSC/NHSE PR releases is essential.
“We would expect activity among the trusts participating in the programme to have grown if the programme was successful, yet completed pathways have barely increased.”
www.thetimes.com/article/86da...
“We would expect activity among the trusts participating in the programme to have grown if the programme was successful, yet completed pathways have barely increased.”
www.thetimes.com/article/86da...
Case of the vanishing patients suggests NHS ‘crack teams’ failed
Experts say waiting lists shrank because thousands of people were removed without a reason — not because operatives inspired by Formula 1 made a difference
www.thetimes.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:54 AM
Why independent analysis of DHSC/NHSE PR releases is essential.
“We would expect activity among the trusts participating in the programme to have grown if the programme was successful, yet completed pathways have barely increased.”
www.thetimes.com/article/86da...
“We would expect activity among the trusts participating in the programme to have grown if the programme was successful, yet completed pathways have barely increased.”
www.thetimes.com/article/86da...
“Social normalisation of deviance means that people within [an] organisation become so much accustomed to a deviant behaviour that they don’t consider it as deviant,”
Surprising the NoD principle isn’t widely discussed in certain professional settings!
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Surprising the NoD principle isn’t widely discussed in certain professional settings!
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Trump and the normalisation of deviance
Allowing dangerous behaviour to become the norm desensitises us, paving the way for disaster
giftarticle.ft.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:36 AM
“Social normalisation of deviance means that people within [an] organisation become so much accustomed to a deviant behaviour that they don’t consider it as deviant,”
Surprising the NoD principle isn’t widely discussed in certain professional settings!
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Surprising the NoD principle isn’t widely discussed in certain professional settings!
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
How economies forget: “Knowledge loss is counterintuitive because we live in a world overflowing with learning. That pushes us to think of knowledge as infrastructure:a building that,once erected, will stand for ages. But knowledge is both alive & fragile”
www.ft.com/content/fba0...
www.ft.com/content/fba0...
How economies forget
From Nasa’s shuttle programme to Polaroid film, societies can lose capabilities as well as gain them. Why they are so hard to get back?
www.ft.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:27 AM
How economies forget: “Knowledge loss is counterintuitive because we live in a world overflowing with learning. That pushes us to think of knowledge as infrastructure:a building that,once erected, will stand for ages. But knowledge is both alive & fragile”
www.ft.com/content/fba0...
www.ft.com/content/fba0...
We need new drugs for mental ill-health |
“The shocking lack of progress in developing transformative psychiatric medicines, and a dearth of innovation has left clinicians with few weapons in their armoury to relieve mental pain”
www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
“The shocking lack of progress in developing transformative psychiatric medicines, and a dearth of innovation has left clinicians with few weapons in their armoury to relieve mental pain”
www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
We need new drugs for mental ill-health | Letter
Letter: The government must prioritise research into new drugs, rather than relying on interventions first made available 60 years ago, writes Marjorie Wallace of Sane
www.theguardian.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:26 AM
We need new drugs for mental ill-health |
“The shocking lack of progress in developing transformative psychiatric medicines, and a dearth of innovation has left clinicians with few weapons in their armoury to relieve mental pain”
www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
“The shocking lack of progress in developing transformative psychiatric medicines, and a dearth of innovation has left clinicians with few weapons in their armoury to relieve mental pain”
www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
Channel 4’s pioneering NFL coverage fronted by Gary Imlach amongst others was transformative. Still the best format for viewing NFL games.
“Well before streaming – Durde watched whatever game was on Channel 4.” www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...
“Well before streaming – Durde watched whatever game was on Channel 4.” www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...
From London to LX: the British mastermind behind the Seahawks’ standout Super Bowl defense
Seattle’s Aden Durde will be the first British coach to appear in the Super Bowl. He wants to ensure he’s not the last
www.theguardian.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:25 AM
Channel 4’s pioneering NFL coverage fronted by Gary Imlach amongst others was transformative. Still the best format for viewing NFL games.
“Well before streaming – Durde watched whatever game was on Channel 4.” www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...
“Well before streaming – Durde watched whatever game was on Channel 4.” www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...