michaelujacobs.bsky.social

With the Budget on Wednesday, this is my piece for the New Statesman on why he is hamstrung, not just by the fragile public finances, but by the particular way the OBR models the economy. This is less technical and more interesting than it sounds, promise! michaelujacobs.substack.com/p/its-the-ob...

The UK will soon take over the presidency of the G20. Amid geopolitical turmoil, what should its priorities be? I argue in the Guardian how focusing on 'national security through international cooperation' can help bring 'hope again' to people across the world. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The received wisdom is that Andy Burnham cannot do very much radical because of the UK's dire fiscal and economic position. I strongly disagree. I explain why in a piece with Neal Lawson in Labour List, drawing on my Compass report Ending Business as Usual. labourlist.org/2026/09/andy...

Andy Burnham wowed the Labour Conference this week. But his radical plans - a National Care Service, electoral reform and maybe rejoining the EU - depend on Labour winning the 2029 election. That will require him to do much more, and sooner, than he described. Me: insidestory.org.au/burnham-slay...

Can the UK develop a 'new economic model', as Andy Burnham wants? In an article for the New Statesman (also on my Substack), I explore Britain's existing economic model and why it performs so poorly; and set out what a new (progressive) one might look like michaelujacobs.substack.com/p/new-model-...

Will this summer’s record temperatures and wildfires in Europe make any difference to climate policy? In a piece for @insidestory.bsky.social I look at new polling evidence. Support for climate policy is increasing, but so are left-right divisions on it. insidestory.org.au/europe-takes...

Andy Burnham has pledged to 'end business as usual'. A new Compass report shows what that could mean, describing 68 radical policies in 18 areas, including the cost of living, growth, taxation, housing, democratic reform and foreign policy. Only 230 pages :-) www.compassonline.org.uk/publications...

I failed to post here my piece in the Guardian a week ago on the British government’s forthcoming decision whether or not to approve new oil and gas licences. My answer is ‘yes and no’ - but with some careful reasoning that may be of interest: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Our fabulous guests were @michaelujacobs.bsky.social , @clequere.bsky.social and @edconway.bsky.social

There has been an outbreak of soul searching in the global North about the future of development aid. The more aid is slashed, the more conferences and initiatives are organised. But there is some good new thinking emerging. Some reflections from me: michaelujacobs.substack.com/p/aid-and-th...

For people not in the UK... you may have seen that British politics is in turmoil (again), with Keir Starmer possibly about to be overthrown as Prime Minister. I have written a piece for Inside Story explaining what is going on. I hope is is helpful! insidestory.org.au/starmer-on-t...

I have written my very first Substack! It's on climate finance, and who governs it. Since most of the $1.3tn annual goal by 2035 will need to come from sources not governed by the UNFCCC, we need a wider agenda in the G20, IMF and other fora. Here's some recommendations substack.com/home/post/p-...

I see that Your Party has temporarily mislaid half its leadership, expelled a whole swathe of members and cannot agree on a name. The Judean People’s Liberation Front already having been taken, may I respectfully offer Party McPartyface? www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

The conclusion of COP30 in Brazil has left a bitter taste in the mouth. A new ‘axis of obstruction’ has emerged to block stronger commitments to reduce emissions - Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Russia - with Donald Trump urging them on. My analysis for inside Story: insidestory.org.au/not-so-good-...

On the penultimate day of COP30 we are still waiting for new text from the Brazilian presidency. The key issue is whether there should be a ‘roadmap on transitioning away from fossil fuels’. I have tried to explain what this is and why it’s important. www.linkedin.com/posts/michae...

So, COP30: what’s happening? I have tried to explain in a post on LinkedIn:

What’s happening at COP30? A very significant shift in the dynamics of climate diplomacy. With the US absent, the faultlines between countries are becoming clearer - between countries that want faster collective action on climate and those that don’t. Me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/posts/michae...

COP30 is up and running. What are the issues on the agenda? This is my first report from Belem, which is not actually ‘the capital of the Amazon’, but is nevertheless an appropriate venue for a conference in search of sustainable and equitable economic development. insidestory.org.au/for-whom-wil...

So this COP30 thing. You’ve probably heard about it. It’s a talking shop. It has way too many people attending, burning fossil fuels as they fly in. 30 years of COPs have failed to stop emissions rising. And so on. But the criticisms miss the point. My analysis: theconversation.com/the-un-clima...

So what’s this COP30 all about? I shall be posting regular explainers from Belem. To kick-off here’s a very readable analysis of climate geopolitics and geoeconomics by my ODI Global colleagues Sarah Colenbrander and Shandelle Steadman. For more, watch this space! www.linkedin.com/posts/odi_co...

BREAKING: Govt has published a new plan to hit UK climate goals out to 2035 (Unlike prev govt's plans) it says it'll deliver **100%** of required reductions under the sixth carbon budget 2033-2037, 96% of the 2030 NDC and 99% of the 2035 NDC We'll have full details tomorrow 1/2

Donald Trump’s impact on global climate policy is not as great as feared. In this piece for Inside Story I give both the ‘glass half full’ and ‘glass half empty’ versions: what Trump is doing, and how rapid the clean energy transition has now become, despite him. insidestory.org.au/trump-vs-ear...

What on earth is happening in British politics? A far right party topping the polls barely a year after Labour won an election landslide, 100,000 white nationalists marching through London… I have written an article for Inside Story trying to explain. insidestory.org.au/disunited-ki...

We’re told that Keir Starmer may not attend the critical Leaders’ Climate Summit in Brazil just before the start of COP30. This would be an appalling abdication of responsibility - handing victory to Donald Trump. Me in the Guardian: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

It’s been a hot (41C!) and fascinating week at the 4th UN Financing for Development Conference in Sevilla. I have written an article for @insidestory on what happened, and the implications of the US’s non-participation for wider global governance: insidestory.org.au/can-the-worl...

🚨🚨The White House is pissed off about this ad so you know what to do, share it everywhere! ICE is disappearing people just because of the color of their skin! No Warrant! No Due Process! This is not who we are as Americans! #MAGAKidnappers want an all white America, fuck that‼️

Interesting survey of Labour MPs on the Chancellor’s options ahead of the Spending Review. Adds to the pressure on Rachel Reeves to bend fiscal rules and/or raise taxes to avoid spending cuts.

Why would the government choose to cut vital benefits and services rather than tax the richest? And why aren’t the main opposition parties calling for taxes on the super-rich either? Our full Sunday Times Rich List analysis at sharethewealth.org.uk

I have written an article in the Guardian on the economic policies of the Starmer government in the UK. It seems to me that it is (seeking to be) much more radical than people have generally appreciated, and indeed than it publicly admits. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

I have written an account of what happened at COP29, what it means and where we go from here: insidestory.org.au/neither-triu...

US set to forgive US$ 4.5 billion in loans to Ukraine. To place this figure in context, it’s equivalent to 4.5 times the debt forgiven to 31 countries through the IMF CCRT between 2020 and 2022 (US$ 967 million). Debt relief has always been a matter of political will. www.reuters.com/world/biden-...

Hello Bluesky people! My first post. I’ve written an analysis of COP29 and the G20 and the relationship between them. insidestory.org.au/authors/mich...