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Nick Bowes

@nickbowes.bsky.social

Northerner in SE London Politics. Football. Cats. Tinned Red Salmon. Baking. Accordion. Travel. Alan Partridge. HP Sauce. Gardening. Vintage shops. Yorkshire Tea. Let’s disagree but do so politely and with humour

220 Followers  |  351 Following  |  102 Posts  |  Joined: 07.12.2024  |  2.2754

Latest posts by nickbowes.bsky.social on Bluesky

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RIP Terry Farrell

02.10.2025 09:45 — 👍 3    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Secret BBC filming exposes hidden culture of racism and misogyny inside Met Police Panorama undercover investigation captures evidence that

There’s something seriously rotten in the culture at Charing Cross police station. This isn’t the first time. It needs lancing. I’d shut it down and empty out the building. Start from scratch. Brave undercover reporting by the BBC www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

02.10.2025 07:14 — 👍 3    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0
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2/ Compare that to Trump - him & his followers are the ones who aspire to a theocracy, intolerant of other religious beliefs or those with no religion. Besides, when was the last time Trump saw London up close? He flew in & out of the Ambassador's resident last week by helicopter!

24.09.2025 07:18 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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1/ Everyone will have views on Sadiq Khan's time as @london.gov.uk, but if there's one thing he's (successfully, in my view) tried to be is a Mayor that represents the global, diverse, liberal & tolerant city that London is

24.09.2025 07:18 — 👍 4    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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Trump attacks Khan at UN and claims London 'wants to go to Sharia law' US President reignites feud with Khan while Health Secretary Wes Streeting hits back at his claims

The ramblings of a mad fool - unfortunately for us, he's the in charge of the most powerful nation on earth www.standard.co.uk/news/london/...

23.09.2025 15:33 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Had an altercation with a stolen Lime bike. Shattered my wrist. But still managed to pen a piece for @davehillonlondon.bsky.social on what I found out about the big gaps in regulation. A public policy geek is never off duty, even when sat in A&E nursing broken bones.

18.09.2025 16:27 — 👍 4    🔁 0    💬 2    📌 0
Riders of rental e-bikes most likely to run red lights A study found up to half of e-bike riders, e-scooter riders and cyclists ignored traffic signals at junctions in London, Manchester and Glasgow last month

Honestly, this drives me insane. I’m wired in such a way that I just can’t cycle through red lights. I just wish others were too www.thetimes.com/uk/transport...

04.09.2025 10:20 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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When I'm 63 Yesterday, Keir Starmer refreshed the No 10 operation - perhaps to get it out the way before his 63rd birthday. Because, despite the spin to the contrary, yesterday demonstrated that ... When I'm 63 Yesterday, Keir Starmer refreshed the No 10 operation - perhaps to get it out the way before his 63rd birthday. Because, despite the spin to the contrary, yesterday demonstrated that not ...

Wrote something on this week’s No10 changes. Born out of my simmering anger at the continued & repeated mess at the heart of the Labour govt. It’s bad enough Labour were ill-prepared in July 2024 for govt - to continue to be so 14 months on is just negligent
www.linkedin.com/posts/dr-nic...

03.09.2025 05:55 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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President Donald Trump could be given Freedom of the City of London President Donald Trump could be offered the Freedom of the City of London as part of a charm offensive to help make the case against tariffs.

Glad to see that I beat President Trump to being awarded Freedom of the City of London. Can't wait to see him shepherd his sheep over London Bridge www.cityam.com/president-do...

05.08.2025 08:43 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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YouGov on it today with the big issues of our time -
DO YOU LIKE OR DISLIKE THE SMELL OF PETROL?

05.08.2025 08:40 — 👍 3    🔁 0    💬 2    📌 0
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2025 Kent County Council election - Wikipedia

3/ Given the near-wipeout of the Tories just over the border in Kent at May's local elections, this will be a by-election result that sends the shivers down the spine of the Bromley conservatives with May 2026's all out elections fast approaching. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_Ke...

25.07.2025 08:56 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Bromley and Biggin Hill (UK Parliament constituency) - Wikipedia

2/ In 2022, Labour came second in this ward. At the General Election, the Tories held on to the Bromley & Biggin Hill constituency (which includes this ward) by just 302 votes over Labour. Reform were third, but did get over 8,000 votes. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bromley...

25.07.2025 08:56 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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1/ Overnight London by-election result 🚨Reform win a seat from the Tories in Bromley - the shape of things to come in outer London boroughs at next May's local elections? #byelection #London #Bromley

25.07.2025 08:56 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

The racist right hate London because it defies their portrayal of diversity as bad. And @london.gov.uk is the embodiment of that diversity - a football mad, liberal, inclusive, multi-faith Mayor who happens to be Muslim. How frustrating to racists who make out all Muslims hate our values & culture

28.06.2025 03:27 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

In the same spirit (but better than mine!) here’s @iandunt.bsky.social’s take down of brainwashed Goodwin’s piece on London iandunt.substack.com/p/they-hate-...

28.06.2025 03:17 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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Reports of London's Demise are Greatly Exaggerated Writing off London is suddenly fashionable. Some is transparently political – doom-laden variation on the theme of “Khan’s London”.

A bit of London boosterism from me in this week's
@thisislca.bsky.social LDN Newsletter. Don't forget to sign up (link at the end) to receive LDN direct to your inbox every week - the indispensable guide to London's politics & public policy news that matters for the built environment...and more!

27.06.2025 07:46 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 1
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More evidence, if needed, that the @greenparty.org.uk is now the progressive alternative for disgruntled @teamlabouruk.bsky.social voters in inner London. Next May’s local elections in London have all the ingredients of a bloody night for Labour

27.06.2025 06:23 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
Bullitt | The Car Chase | Full Scene | Warner Classics
YouTube video by Warner Bros. Classics Bullitt | The Car Chase | Full Scene | Warner Classics

RIP Lalo Schifrin. So many cool scores and themes but nothing beats the combo of his music, the throaty roar of a Mustang and the San Francisco backdrop. Ladies & gents I give you the coolest car chase in movie history #Bullitt #LaloSchifrin

27.06.2025 06:15 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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How to lose political support and alienate people - Exhibit #1

26.06.2025 04:37 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Tory peer Liam Booth-Smith takes job at AI firm he encountered at No 10 Rishi Sunak’s ex-chief of staff lands role at Anthropic, which has memorandum of understanding on working with government

He shouldn’t have taken a peerage AND do this job. He needs to pick one or the other. I’ve worked in/around this world for a few years now, and ‘external affairs’ includes advocacy and influencing of decision-makers despite what ACOBA might say. It’s wrong to be a legislator and a lobbyist.

25.06.2025 05:41 — 👍 2    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Oh man. Looks like London AND New York will have Muslim mayors soon. I cannot imagine how frenzied some on the right will be at this prospect. Cue lots of “New York is fallen…” etc etc blah blah

25.06.2025 05:26 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

And the Telegraph would have hated Virginia and the Bloomsbury Group. Liberal decadence and votes for women hardly the Telegraph’s thing back in the 1920s and 1930s. I imagine the Bloomsbury Group would have felt very at home in a liberal, tolerant, diverse modern London.

22.06.2025 12:11 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

Amazing to think that she *would* have recognised it right up to 4 May 2016 though

22.06.2025 11:09 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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🚨 Batshit Telegraph headline of the day 🚨 ‘Woman dead for nearly 100 years wouldn’t recognise today’s London’ shocker

22.06.2025 11:06 — 👍 1    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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Fairer funding for councils across the country in major reform An overhaul of the outdated and complex council system will bring fairer funding, more stability and improve lives of people across the county

Of course, there won't be any meaningful reform of Council Tax, perhaps the most broken of all taxes. Instead, the Government will place more burden on it, stretching it to breaking point. Oh, and look! A quote from IPPR North - we know what that is code for... www.gov.uk/government/n...

20.06.2025 12:13 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0
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Cats ruled out for parliamentary pest patrols over welfare concerns Free roaming felines have been rejected as potential pest controllers in Westminster because of concerns for their safety.

Pity. They'd have made a big difference in Pawtcullis House www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...

20.06.2025 11:40 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

With Heathrow expansion so controversial, I suspect quite a few Londoners - given the choice - would have preferred the Chancellor to show her backing for London by backing the Bakerloo Line Extension or DLR to Thamesmead.

11.06.2025 16:50 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

And the Chancellor saying "backing London by backing a third runway" felt unnecessary. It might look clever written down on paper, but it will annoy the Mayor, London Labour MPs & council leaders. Plus, Rachel Reeves quote will be plastered across next May's Green & Lib Dem local election leaflets!

11.06.2025 16:50 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0

Much to say about the Spending Review, but first - when did a third runway at Heathrow and completing HS2 to Euston become "London" projects? Rather cheeky spin by the Government in my opinion

11.06.2025 16:50 — 👍 0    🔁 0    💬 1    📌 0
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Every political activist is with you, @anneliesemidgleymp.bsky.social 💪🏼✉️📮

11.06.2025 07:19 — 👍 4    🔁 0    💬 0    📌 0

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