Michael Bell

Text reads: I am humbled and excited to be elected the next UCU Vice-President for Higher Education. Now is a devastatingly difficult and challenging time for our sectors and so many workers in post-16 education, but as a union we cannot succumb to despair. We have the skills, knowledge and capacity to help chart a way out of this mess and restore higher and further education. That you have put your trust in me to help do that is a huge honour and responsibility. I do not take this lightly. Thank you to the many thousands of members who voted for me and also to those who did not – we need to build better engagement in our union and part of that is voting, no matter who you voted for. I promised in my election materials to work hard to bring our union together and that is what I will do.

Text reads: Thank you to the other HE candidates Sean and Steve, both committed trade unionists. I know they will continue to fight for members and the future of Higher Education and I look forward to doing that alongside them. Congratulations to those elected to the National Executive Committee and commiserations to those who missed out this time. Your willingness to put yourself forward for election is hugely valued and I know you all will continue to contribute in other ways. So what next? Until the end of May, I’ll be tying up some loose ends and taking some time off to visit family and friends back in Australia. I will take up my role after UCU’s annual Congress at the end of May, this year in Harrogate.

Text reads: For the following three years, I will be lead negotiator for pay and conditions and for USS pensions across UK Higher Education, working with our team of elected negotiators and officials. I will also chair UCU’s Higher Education Committee and HE sector conferences, serve on other national committees and represent you in various forums. In 2029-30 I will become UCU’s President after the excellent Suzi Toole, who has also been elected as Vice-President for Further Education and will spend two years leading on further education matters before becoming President. She will take over from Dyfrig Jones, who succeeds early to the Presidential role for a two-year term this May, due to the casual vacancy that arose last year, replacing Maria Chondrogianni. Maria stays on as immediate past president, rounding out the presidential team. I want to again acknowledge David Hunter who stepped down as President-Elect last year for health reasons and continue to wish him and his family all the best.

A picture of two smiling people (Suzi Toole and Mark Pendleton) wearing UCU beanies. Text reads: That’s a lot of work, and a lot of moving parts, but at the heart of it will be my commitment to build a better union, alongside members and branches, and through that transform our sectors. I am ready and I know from the responses to this election that many of you are too. I’m looking forward to getting to work, together with you all.

UCU’s elections concluded this week and I am honoured to have been elected as the next Vice-President for Higher Education, to become President in 2029-30.

Thank you for all the support.

A short statement about the election and what’s to come after I take up the role in May.

The sight of Matt Goodwin being sad has understandably galvanised the nation to make it happen some more

Those first few responses got a chuckle out of me.

He wasn't joking when the Vatican was choosing the Pope and he suggested himself

Falkland discussions are fun because it’s one of the few times you get to be pro British and not feel bad about yourself

Happy to announce my brand new album “Song of the Siren” with my band Trio Eclectic is now available on all streaming platforms….

My voice is still totally gone from when Osula scored

Wolves 2-0 Aston Villa Wolves 2-1 Liverpool

Well the good news for the Toon is thankfully we've already played both of our games against Wolves

Trump of course is much more like Churchill in that he’s doing a bad job of hiding the fact he’s had several strokes

In the legend yes, but it's Penshaw in the song

Incredible work from the photo editor there. Penshaw Monument being the location that the infamous Lambton Worm wrapped its tail ten times round after eating all the cows and calves

Yeah that's what I mean, they aren't gaining the votes of the old party of government for the last however many generations, they're gaining a large chunk of the voters who couldn't get Sunak over the line

(and also, given the referendum was ten years ago, probably worth saying that that 4million was probably the younger section of the Tory vote)

(I know the Tory vote dropped by more than 4million, but I remember reading somewhere that was the estimate of the referendum vote, and obviously other Tories had other reasons for dropping them or not turning out in '24)

Reform don't get to just go "ok we're the new Tories we get keep all the Tories"

I think Reform's problem with usurping the Tories is that they only really gain the 2024 Tory vote. The 4million Tories who voted Remain got told to fuck off by Johnson and may have had stayed in '19 out of fear of Corbyn but they did fuck off in '24. They aren't becoming part of the Reform vote

I'd be surprised if a million Brits have even heard of them, and if they have then I doubt 1 in 10 have joined

Willing to bet that that just isn't remotely true tbh

Brian Bilston's Poem "How much I dislike the Daily Mail"

Should you ever be tempted to read or believe the headlines in The Daily Mail
Remember the wise & true words of fantastic Poet Brian Bilston

(He is here on Blue Sky but I deliberately did not tag him, I suspect others will remember this poem too)

Picture of Marjane Satrapi alongside a quote from her. The quote reads: The world is not divided into countries. The world is not divided between East and West. You are American, I am Iranian, we don't know each other, but we talk together and we understand each other perfectly. The difference between you and your government is much bigger than the difference between you and me. And the difference between me and my government is much bigger than the difference between me and you. And our governments are very much the same... - Marjane Satrapi, Iranian-French graphic novelist

Thinking about this quote from Persepolis creator Marjane Satrapi again.

What I love most about this map is the amount of dots in the sea. I don't think those people think Iran is in the sea, I think they look at this and literally don't recognise a map of their own home planet

My bonds mature for the monthly draw on April 1st so that morning I'm gonna have a massive cup of coffee in this mug to try to invoke E.R.N.I.E.

Very clear that for Starmer, 'sectarian voting' is when British Muslims don't vote Labour, and for many others, it is just when British Muslims vote.

Rebuilding some of my old Spotify playlists onto Tidal, so having a real binge of "what was I listening to in 2021"

YouTube video by Madness Madness - E.R.N.I.E. (Official Audio)

youtu.be/gIPunT-qVQA?...

Is that Prudhoe station?

It's striking that the learning from the referendum and its aftermath appears to be 'in order to win back a minority of our core vote, we should alienate the remaining majority'

Nick Cohen's article about the shamelessness of Zack Polanski

This might surprise people who aren't from the UK, but over here there's a publication that, in order to write for it, you have to be a sex offender.

Large white mug with gold paint round the top. Image on it is a man and woman either side of a robot. Text says "Ernie's lucky mug." And "Horseshoes, wishbones, cats of black All that something extra lack To make our Ernie draw your bond Have this lucky mug then he'll respond"

My latest obsession is premium bonds, both the bonds themselves and the quaint culture around it. So @avaoftyne.bsky.social has bought me this mug of E.R.N.I.E the machine that draws the numbers