DR SIMON LEE

@ENGLISHFUTURES

Defunct academic scribbler still working on rethinking political economy, the politics and governance of England, and public policy.

Hornsea, East Yorks, England Joined September 2011

1.5K Following 1.9K Followers 17K Posts

Latest posts 5

DR SIMON LEE @ENGLISHFUTURES 1d

How ironic. The creation of confected 'regional' mayors in #England, without prior approval referendums, has been an act of #centralisation in sheep's clothing, bypassing local government. Now the mayors are hoisted by their own petard.
theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/n…

www.theguardian.com ‘Super-force’ plans a real threat to local policing, English mayors say Regional leaders criticise Met chief’s call for merging of 43 forces into eight or 10, saying it runs counter to devolution drive

DR SIMON LEE @ENGLISHFUTURES 1d

What is truly frustrating is how delusional this all is. MPs demand cuts in welfare while trousering expenses and contemplating spending £40bn on refurbishing their own workplace. Their constituents' real pay has stagnated for 18 years. Think again.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

www.bbc.co.uk Parliament restoration delays 'frustrating', says Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle urges action after a committee warns it is "crunch time" for the ailing building.

DR SIMON LEE @ENGLISHFUTURES 2d

The same old priorities for the developmental market British model of #politicaleconomy: make policy (2008 bailout; QE; fiscal rules; interest on central bank reserves etc) to protect the wealth-extracting private interests of asset-owning rentiers in our #renterprise economy.

josh ryan-collins @jryancollins 3d

2/ Inflation hit 3.5% in September. The big push came from petrol and energy bills: energy inflation was 17.9%, food just 1.3%. This is a war-driven oil shock, not a home-grown inflation problem.
ons.gov.uk/economy/inflat…
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DR SIMON LEE @ENGLISHFUTURES 2d

Spending £40bn on a single building over decades, when the UK budget for '#levellingup' was less than half this sum is preposterous. #Westminster must be abandoned. Power must be devolved to national parliaments elsewhere, including an #English one.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

www.bbc.co.uk More asbestos found in Parliament, as MPs urged to get on with revamp MPs told it's crunch time for a decision on refurbishment amid warnings of a Notre Dame-style fire.

DR SIMON LEE @ENGLISHFUTURES 3d

This is the politics of deflection. Only public ownership can redress the shortfall in investment in #England in reservoirs,sewage treatment and maintenance of this vital public good. Regions in #England are confections,not locally accountable institutions.gov.uk/government/new…

www.gov.uk Communities to get a stronger say over billions of pounds of water investment Eight new regional water councils will put communities at the heart of decisions on tackling sewage, flooding, drought and securing future water supplies