Duncan Weldon

Once upon a time we’d have had to wait until the evening news for a correspondent to tell us what sort of noises they heard coming from the PLP meeting. Nowadays we can get live updates on the applause level. And maybe hear about some contradictory WhatsApps on the mood. Exciting times.

Deep(er than I expected when I clicked) dive in Japan’s public sector balance sheet from @tobyn.bsky.social.
Really interesting.

www.ft.com/content/f7d3...

The problem here is that format demands 800-1000 words but all the real info is in one short paragraph: no one really knows what happens next.

Chris Mason: Crunch time for the prime minister www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Landman is a good watch. (And also interesting in that it’s pretty clearly an attempt to make a more MAGA friendly prestige drama show).

One of the more depressing paragraphs in a throughly depressing read.

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/08/b...

Exactly this. And even doing it journalistically - coding up 200 speeches/articles/TV appearances for hawkishness is, conservatively, about 75-100 person-hours of work I reckon. Not something you could turn around this quickly.

Sure I’ve seen the data before.
Related and fascinating chart on a small win from more flexible working patterns:

Fantastic use of AI.

Untangling the ideas of Donald Trump’s Fed nominee
economist.com/finance-and-...

This is not a rule I apply to WhatsApp!

Absolute case for a third party audit given the leaks last time!

My unpopular opinion: releasing the emails & messages surrounding Mandelson’s appointment is entirely reasonable.
Releasing every communication between Mandelson and any ministers or Spads over the course of his ambassadorship is disproportionate, unnecessary and sets a really bad precedent.

Oh no.

Sure it’s fine.

BRB, just googling “what happens if you get rid of your lightning rod and there is more lightning?”

The thing is: I wouldn’t rule it out.

My gut feeling is that Trump’s ability to browbeat US media - which looked strong 12 months ago - has faded sharply.
Because booking Green Day for the Super Bowl isn’t the action of an entirely cowed media complex.

CoS since 1997. And also for a period in the 80s.

Well yes. Who did the average regular reader of political stories (not the average voter) know in the last two decades?
McSweeney, Cummings, maybe Hill/Timothy.

I think there’s a degree of this.
On the other hand: I think the average well informed reader of political news stories probably couldn’t have named Rishi Sunak’s CoS.

Boring opinion: if people know the name of the Downing Street Chief of Staff, the CoS is not doing a good job.

Phew.

Getting very nervous about this Nepal performance.

Wow

Run rate fine. The Nepal bowling seems very variable. Flashes of excellence and then an easy 6.

Sod me. Imagine getting Salt out on the first ball of your debut.

Love cricket pre-match analysis.
Something relaxing about watching an in-depth discussion of moisture levels in the ground.

I foresee slightly unusual working hours for me in the weeks ahead.

T20 World Cup in this time zone is an absolute joy. Great to get up on a Sunday, make a coffee and stick New Zealand/Afghanistan on.

I think, the current pol-strategist brain seems better suited to opposition. You can get much further with a tactical line & some positioning. In government you actually have to do things which have actual effects on actual voters. Also: much easier to pretend trade-offs don’t exist in opposition.

Checked the India-USA score. Put the cricket back on. Family groaned.