Andrew Brightwell
@andbwell.bsky.social
Communications director for the Centre for Governance & Scrutiny some of the time and a sort-of journalist when not. Based on the UK's south coast. All views, however unoriginal, are solely mine and not those of my employer.
Yes. I’ve always thought the mark of a seasoned traveller is getting inside the cramped metal cage with recycled air at the last possible minute
November 1, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Yes. I’ve always thought the mark of a seasoned traveller is getting inside the cramped metal cage with recycled air at the last possible minute
I did a year and that was enough. I was a journo in my early 30s and yes it can be fun. But it’s a huge tell when people say we could learn a lot from there. IME even the people who love it are aware it’s the extreme income disparities that make the lifestyle attractive to the (relatively) wealthy
October 11, 2025 at 8:06 AM
I did a year and that was enough. I was a journo in my early 30s and yes it can be fun. But it’s a huge tell when people say we could learn a lot from there. IME even the people who love it are aware it’s the extreme income disparities that make the lifestyle attractive to the (relatively) wealthy
Yes, leading is bringing people with you. Not waiting for enough of them to tell you they like something
October 1, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Yes, leading is bringing people with you. Not waiting for enough of them to tell you they like something
Ah, was hoping she’d finally beat it - so close
September 18, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Ah, was hoping she’d finally beat it - so close
I guess being sensible centre right and longterm looks like a 20% position at the moment - and that implies an entirely alien set of consequences for the Conservatives? Like… well… electoral reform? I can’t see that being a big discussion at conference though!
September 15, 2025 at 11:39 AM
I guess being sensible centre right and longterm looks like a 20% position at the moment - and that implies an entirely alien set of consequences for the Conservatives? Like… well… electoral reform? I can’t see that being a big discussion at conference though!
I really should have said ‘convincingly authentic’. Keir Starmer for example is v much a proper football fan who just doesn’t really have a way of engaging people publicly on something he loves, bless him
September 12, 2025 at 11:31 AM
I really should have said ‘convincingly authentic’. Keir Starmer for example is v much a proper football fan who just doesn’t really have a way of engaging people publicly on something he loves, bless him
oh I'm not trying to convince people! I am trying to stay positive - and the pandemic really was a human success story, even considering the enormous suffering, failure, and the repressive qualities of lockdown. From a personal perspective, it's a useful corrective to the 'we're all doomed' stuff
September 2, 2025 at 11:40 AM
oh I'm not trying to convince people! I am trying to stay positive - and the pandemic really was a human success story, even considering the enormous suffering, failure, and the repressive qualities of lockdown. From a personal perspective, it's a useful corrective to the 'we're all doomed' stuff
The more I think about the pandemic the more I'm convinced it is the thing we should talk about more in this moment. Human ingenuity and organisation saved millions of lives - and I'm not sure we celebrate that enough
September 2, 2025 at 9:53 AM
The more I think about the pandemic the more I'm convinced it is the thing we should talk about more in this moment. Human ingenuity and organisation saved millions of lives - and I'm not sure we celebrate that enough
I do think UK is quite good at the pain points of airports: security, bag drop, etc. I think that's probably because it all ties up to the commercial imperatives (which is why it seems to take less time to get through security, but you are forced to spend more time looking at perfume and whisky)
August 14, 2025 at 11:12 AM
I do think UK is quite good at the pain points of airports: security, bag drop, etc. I think that's probably because it all ties up to the commercial imperatives (which is why it seems to take less time to get through security, but you are forced to spend more time looking at perfume and whisky)
There is a thing (from memory - working at Engage Britain) about 'latent opinion' i.e. 'this is where your public opinion ends up once public has been exposed to this issue' that a CA can help you explore
July 7, 2025 at 11:51 AM
There is a thing (from memory - working at Engage Britain) about 'latent opinion' i.e. 'this is where your public opinion ends up once public has been exposed to this issue' that a CA can help you explore
I kinda assume a lot of the people who were involved with GDS at the start thought their way of doing and thinking would become more embedded across the CS (ie knowledge sharing, transparency of practice etc). Arguably we only got the websites!
June 17, 2025 at 3:14 PM
I kinda assume a lot of the people who were involved with GDS at the start thought their way of doing and thinking would become more embedded across the CS (ie knowledge sharing, transparency of practice etc). Arguably we only got the websites!