Andrew Hodder-Williams
@andrewhw.bsky.social
Lots of following though not much posting. Appreciating the chance to listen and learn.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Won't happen. But at some point a UK government is going to have to make a big decision to scrap the triple lock, and I suspect when they do it will prove to be far more popular than expected. Leadership rather than government by polling.
Reeves should risk it all on one last roll of the dice.
Raise income tax, break the triple lock, slay the deficit, spend the money on the things she believes in.
It may not work - but better than waiting for doom to overtake her.
open.substack.com/pub/edrith/p...
Raise income tax, break the triple lock, slay the deficit, spend the money on the things she believes in.
It may not work - but better than waiting for doom to overtake her.
open.substack.com/pub/edrith/p...
Reeves in Zugzwang
Incremental politics no longer works
open.substack.com
November 16, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Won't happen. But at some point a UK government is going to have to make a big decision to scrap the triple lock, and I suspect when they do it will prove to be far more popular than expected. Leadership rather than government by polling.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
if I was Rachel Reeves I'd be tempted to do what needs doing, grasp every nettle, Budget for the ages etc & resign at the end with a flourish, before buggering off to have a nice life & in 20 years people will say I did the right thing. This is why I am not chancellor (Rachel won't do this)
November 14, 2025 at 10:31 AM
if I was Rachel Reeves I'd be tempted to do what needs doing, grasp every nettle, Budget for the ages etc & resign at the end with a flourish, before buggering off to have a nice life & in 20 years people will say I did the right thing. This is why I am not chancellor (Rachel won't do this)
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Obama: "The weird videos of a US president with a crown on his head flying a fighter jet & dumping poop on American citizens - that's not even worth booing about. Because all of that is a distraction from the fact that your situation, your life has not gotten better. They do it so you won't notice"
November 1, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Obama: "The weird videos of a US president with a crown on his head flying a fighter jet & dumping poop on American citizens - that's not even worth booing about. Because all of that is a distraction from the fact that your situation, your life has not gotten better. They do it so you won't notice"
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
My review of Tim Wu’s new book in @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/47sYzC2 The Age of Extraction by Tim Wu — an urgent, pessimistic take on the dominance of big tech
The Age of Extraction by Tim Wu — an urgent, pessimistic take on the dominance of big tech
The author and scholar warns of the dangers of our reckless economic experiment with powerful platforms
on.ft.com
October 27, 2025 at 8:18 PM
My review of Tim Wu’s new book in @financialtimes.com on.ft.com/47sYzC2 The Age of Extraction by Tim Wu — an urgent, pessimistic take on the dominance of big tech
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
itcouldbesaid.substack.com/p/it-could-b... It's good to hear that Rachel Reeves is beginning to see the error of her ways, but when you've messed up as badly as she has, there's no coming back
It Could Be Said #76 Rachel Reeves Must Resign
Will argues that Rachel Reeves must be held accountable if Labour is to relaunch itself
itcouldbesaid.substack.com
October 27, 2025 at 8:30 PM
itcouldbesaid.substack.com/p/it-could-b... It's good to hear that Rachel Reeves is beginning to see the error of her ways, but when you've messed up as badly as she has, there's no coming back
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
October 27, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
An aside: there is *zero* representation of EU migrants in those advertisements (or in British soap operas, TV dramas or feature films), something which has long puzzled, but not surprised me. We are the invisibles. Now why should that be, when there are millions of us here?
October 26, 2025 at 5:22 PM
An aside: there is *zero* representation of EU migrants in those advertisements (or in British soap operas, TV dramas or feature films), something which has long puzzled, but not surprised me. We are the invisibles. Now why should that be, when there are millions of us here?
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Musk: X will delete all heuristics from its recommendation system within six weeks. ...the familiar logic of likes, replies, and reposts that shaped Twitter for years is about to disappear. In its place, Grok, the platform's in-house Al model, will read and watch more than one hundred million posts.
October 26, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Musk: X will delete all heuristics from its recommendation system within six weeks. ...the familiar logic of likes, replies, and reposts that shaped Twitter for years is about to disappear. In its place, Grok, the platform's in-house Al model, will read and watch more than one hundred million posts.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
New post just out:
"Never again?"
On how the radical right are trying to change our collective memory about World War Two as part of their assault on the postwar order.
And why that memory remains a critical defence against nationalism.
(£/free trial)
open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/n...
"Never again?"
On how the radical right are trying to change our collective memory about World War Two as part of their assault on the postwar order.
And why that memory remains a critical defence against nationalism.
(£/free trial)
open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/n...
Never again?
Memory entrepreneurship and the radical right’s assault on the postwar order
open.substack.com
October 26, 2025 at 8:49 AM
New post just out:
"Never again?"
On how the radical right are trying to change our collective memory about World War Two as part of their assault on the postwar order.
And why that memory remains a critical defence against nationalism.
(£/free trial)
open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/n...
"Never again?"
On how the radical right are trying to change our collective memory about World War Two as part of their assault on the postwar order.
And why that memory remains a critical defence against nationalism.
(£/free trial)
open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/n...
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
The government should be legislating for as many constitutional guardrails as possible
There is talk of the need for stronger constitutional “guardrails”. In our constitution the strongest guardrail is primary legislation. Even that of course can be repealed in future. But that at least requires a conscious, overt political act, normally takes time & involves a measure of debate /1
October 22, 2025 at 10:58 AM
The government should be legislating for as many constitutional guardrails as possible
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Something that two years ago would have been a resigning issue for a frontbencher to say isn’t even the headline any more because - well, because those views are everywhere now apparently? I suppose. But they’re everywhere *within a very specific circle*
October 19, 2025 at 8:46 PM
Something that two years ago would have been a resigning issue for a frontbencher to say isn’t even the headline any more because - well, because those views are everywhere now apparently? I suppose. But they’re everywhere *within a very specific circle*
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Gold now above $4,300 a troy ounce - up more than 60 per cent since Trump was inaugurated. It's what you buy in times of turmoil and uncertainty, and is the best market indicator of the Trump effect.
October 16, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Gold now above $4,300 a troy ounce - up more than 60 per cent since Trump was inaugurated. It's what you buy in times of turmoil and uncertainty, and is the best market indicator of the Trump effect.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
It’s this multiple times a day
October 11, 2025 at 4:24 PM
It’s this multiple times a day
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
From the FT:
“UK consumers have curbed spending more than anywhere else in the G7 since the pandemic…
Since the start of the Covid pandemic in 2020, UK household spending has risen just 1 per cent in real terms and fallen 3 per cent on a per capita basis.”
#economy #uk @financialtimes.com
“UK consumers have curbed spending more than anywhere else in the G7 since the pandemic…
Since the start of the Covid pandemic in 2020, UK household spending has risen just 1 per cent in real terms and fallen 3 per cent on a per capita basis.”
#economy #uk @financialtimes.com
October 11, 2025 at 7:53 PM
From the FT:
“UK consumers have curbed spending more than anywhere else in the G7 since the pandemic…
Since the start of the Covid pandemic in 2020, UK household spending has risen just 1 per cent in real terms and fallen 3 per cent on a per capita basis.”
#economy #uk @financialtimes.com
“UK consumers have curbed spending more than anywhere else in the G7 since the pandemic…
Since the start of the Covid pandemic in 2020, UK household spending has risen just 1 per cent in real terms and fallen 3 per cent on a per capita basis.”
#economy #uk @financialtimes.com
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
What Trump and his ilk claim versus what they can support with actual evidence are always leagues apart.
October 10, 2025 at 6:33 PM
What Trump and his ilk claim versus what they can support with actual evidence are always leagues apart.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
If a news organisation is making -200% margin after five years, it is not a commercial operation and should be assumed to have a different purpose.
The channel lost £33 million to communicate its content to a large audience
www.business-live.co.uk/enterprise/g...
www.business-live.co.uk/enterprise/g...
GB News suffers huge loss despite doubling revenue and growing audience
The TV channel, whose well-known presenters include Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, fell to a pre-tax loss of £33.4m in the year to 31 May, 2024
www.business-live.co.uk
October 9, 2025 at 9:28 AM
If a news organisation is making -200% margin after five years, it is not a commercial operation and should be assumed to have a different purpose.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Plenty of big economic arguments right now:
- was the pre-Crisis rate of growth sustainable?
- AI! Extraordinary general purpose technology, or "as good as spreadsheets"?
- Are net zero and growth in conflict?
But I don't think there is much debate about our being in a supply side crisis ... 1/
- was the pre-Crisis rate of growth sustainable?
- AI! Extraordinary general purpose technology, or "as good as spreadsheets"?
- Are net zero and growth in conflict?
But I don't think there is much debate about our being in a supply side crisis ... 1/
I have written a quick response/critique to the very provocative "whatever it takes" column from @adamtooze.bsky.social in today's FT.
freethinkecon.wordpress.com/2025/10/07/i...
freethinkecon.wordpress.com/2025/10/07/i...
Is this really a BOE “whatever it takes” moment?
There is a striking column in the FT from Adam Tooze, the incredibly prolific Chartbook author , which as I see it boils down to this: prolonged stagnation has thrown the UK into a desperate positi…
freethinkecon.wordpress.com
October 7, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Plenty of big economic arguments right now:
- was the pre-Crisis rate of growth sustainable?
- AI! Extraordinary general purpose technology, or "as good as spreadsheets"?
- Are net zero and growth in conflict?
But I don't think there is much debate about our being in a supply side crisis ... 1/
- was the pre-Crisis rate of growth sustainable?
- AI! Extraordinary general purpose technology, or "as good as spreadsheets"?
- Are net zero and growth in conflict?
But I don't think there is much debate about our being in a supply side crisis ... 1/
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
It seems clear—I think to everyone, now—that a false and illegal invocation of the Insurrection Act is coming before the end of the year. Media outlets should be telling us how they will prepare for this potential Treason. State governments should be telling us. Activists should be developing plans.
October 6, 2025 at 11:17 PM
It seems clear—I think to everyone, now—that a false and illegal invocation of the Insurrection Act is coming before the end of the year. Media outlets should be telling us how they will prepare for this potential Treason. State governments should be telling us. Activists should be developing plans.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
The Bishop of Birmingham has written to the Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick about his comments about Handsworth
October 7, 2025 at 6:56 PM
The Bishop of Birmingham has written to the Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick about his comments about Handsworth
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Jenrick being the loudest member of the Conservative party has already been a huge contributor to the poisoning of our politics. We really don't need any four-dimensional chess about him becoming leader. When it happens, it will be a terrible day for our country.
A Tory party under Jenrick might take a few of the racist votes from Reform, but they’d haemorrhage bucketloads to the Lib Dems.
So, on balance…
So, on balance…
October 7, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Jenrick being the loudest member of the Conservative party has already been a huge contributor to the poisoning of our politics. We really don't need any four-dimensional chess about him becoming leader. When it happens, it will be a terrible day for our country.
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Magnificent peroration to Simon Schama’s @financialtimes.com weekend essay on defending freedom of speech in the era of Trump - with help from Milton, Jefferson et al.
on.ft.com/4gSqvDw Simon Schama: What America’s Founders can teach Trump about liberty
on.ft.com/4gSqvDw Simon Schama: What America’s Founders can teach Trump about liberty
October 4, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Magnificent peroration to Simon Schama’s @financialtimes.com weekend essay on defending freedom of speech in the era of Trump - with help from Milton, Jefferson et al.
on.ft.com/4gSqvDw Simon Schama: What America’s Founders can teach Trump about liberty
on.ft.com/4gSqvDw Simon Schama: What America’s Founders can teach Trump about liberty
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
A politician who embodies the current direction of the Tory party: a supporter of all the big policy shifts of 2016-24, who literally worked in Downing Street, who has decided oh, no, it is actually the fault of the immigrants. No, it’s your fault!
October 4, 2025 at 5:21 PM
A politician who embodies the current direction of the Tory party: a supporter of all the big policy shifts of 2016-24, who literally worked in Downing Street, who has decided oh, no, it is actually the fault of the immigrants. No, it’s your fault!
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
In other words, it was obvious before the election. Holding back enabled Hunt to push through tax cuts that were simply unaffordable. Which explain half our immediate fiscal problems
September 28, 2025 at 5:42 PM
In other words, it was obvious before the election. Holding back enabled Hunt to push through tax cuts that were simply unaffordable. Which explain half our immediate fiscal problems
Reposted by Andrew Hodder-Williams
Trump's deal to sell TikTok won't just enrich his billionaire pal Larry Ellison.
It also gives UAE investment firm MGX — a key business partner of the Trump family's crypto company — a major ownership stake and board seat at TikTok.
Everything is for sale.
It also gives UAE investment firm MGX — a key business partner of the Trump family's crypto company — a major ownership stake and board seat at TikTok.
Everything is for sale.
September 28, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Trump's deal to sell TikTok won't just enrich his billionaire pal Larry Ellison.
It also gives UAE investment firm MGX — a key business partner of the Trump family's crypto company — a major ownership stake and board seat at TikTok.
Everything is for sale.
It also gives UAE investment firm MGX — a key business partner of the Trump family's crypto company — a major ownership stake and board seat at TikTok.
Everything is for sale.