Black square graphic with the text “Spare a Thought” in yellow handwritten script at the top. A white line drawing of a graduation cap sits in the centre. Below in bold white text reads “Student Loans:” and beneath that in large bold yellow text “How Much Do You Owe?”

New episode of Spare a Thought 🎓 Six Plan 2 graduates share how much they owe in student debt. Plus Ollie from Rethink Repayment on why the system needs to change. How much do you owe? 🎧 open.spotify.com/episode/75sWx9

Book cover for ‘The Three Trees: An Easter Story, Adapted by Tom Spare.’ Three dark evergreen tree silhouettes stand on a hill against a warm orange and amber sunset sky. Website: tomspare.substack.com.

The Three Trees: an old parable about three trees on a hill, each dreaming of what they’ll become. Four years ago during lockdown, I adapted this story for my mum. A tale about purpose, intention, and unexpected roles. Happy Easter.

open.substack.com/pub/tomspare...

Two years is very long time in modern politics. No PM has made it past 3 in 10 years. We have this idea that British politics is stable, very few PMs have made it past 5 years. Blair and Thatcher are the exception. This guy has blown a historic majority in part bc lowest voter share in history.

That feeling of wanting to prove people wrong has echoes of Biden running a second term. Two completely different situations of course, but that will ultimately be Starmer’s downfall. Not asking the question: should I still be doing this?

“If Keir Starmer abhors politics so much, why does he keep going?”, asks Lewis Goodall.

“He wants to prove people wrong, as he feels he's done repeatedly throughout his life. He wants to be vindicated”, says Patrick Maguire.

“The guy has a very high opinion of himself”.

It’s really giving the tree of Gondor vibes

A promotional graphic for a podcast or audio series with a blue, starry night background. At the top, yellow text reads "SPARE A THOUGHT," followed by large, bold white text that says "JESUS WAS A REFUGEE." Below this is the phrase "Now streaming" above the icons for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music. At the bottom, a black silhouette depicts a traditional nativity scene with Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus in a stable under a bright star, set against a dark, hilly landscape.

In this Christmas special, I explore what the nativity story teaches us about welcoming refugees and asylum seekers today with @welshrefcouncil.bsky.social & chaplains from Cardiff University.

Listen here: spareathought.podbean.com/e/jesus-was-...

Nation of Sanctuary Awards 2026: Nominations now OPEN! - Welsh Refugee Council Last year, people across Wales shared a record number of nominations and stories that inspired, moved, and energised communities. Now we’re inviting you to celebrate even more extraordinary people.

Nation of Sanctuary Awards 2026 nominations are now OPEN 🌟

Every day, incredible individuals and groups work tirelessly to create welcoming spaces. And now is your chance to give them the recognition they deserve!

✅ Everything you need to nominate is right here: wrc.wales/nation-of-sa...

Our response to the proposed asylum reforms - Welsh Refugee Council In Wales, our Nation of Sanctuary vision starts from a simple truth: people begin rebuilding their lives the moment they feel safe.

When someone is recognised as a refugee but only offered a short-term status, what follows isn’t safety: it’s limbo.

Read our full statement to hear why the UK Government's proposals will lead to insecurity without solving any of the real issues ⬇️

wrc.wales/our-response...

How Refugees Transform Cities

Professor Karen Jacobsen discusses her new book, "Host Cities: How Refugees Are Transforming the World's Urban Settings," and her career as a scholar of forced migration. @tomspare.bsky.social@yalebooks.bsky.social

open.spotify.com/episode/6g3o...

The gap between electricity and gas prices in Jan will now be 20% larger than a year before, pushing up bills for a typical household using electric storage heating by £100, compared to typical dual fuel billpayer seeing bills rise by just £2.50 www.nesta.org.uk/press-releas...

MAGA in Manhattan When Trump headlined Madison Square Garden

On 4th November it will be a year since the US went to the polls to re-elect Donald Trump. In the lead-up to voting day I crisscrossed the US before spending voting day in Washington DC. Over the next couple of days I’ll be reflecting on my trip via Substack.

What lessons can we draw from future? Let's time-travel and find out.

In the latest episode of Spare a Thought, author and activist Rob Hopkins takes us in his time machine to the year 2030 so we can fall in love with the future. 🌍🔮🎉

Listen here: spareathought.podbean.com/e/how-to-fal...

I know that there are a lot of Welsh politics folks out there missing the @hiraethpod.bsky.social while it is on hiatus.

While I would ofc point anyone needing a fix either to ‘For Wales, See Wales’ by the ever excellent Will Hayward and BBC Wales’s #WalesCast I’m happy to say that I have *news*

Happy to confirm that our new Welsh politics pod is on the way filled with informative, astute, and what I would euphemistically refer to as “robust“ debate between Lee Waters MS, Prof Laura McAllister and former Conservative Special adviser Lauren McEvatt.

We’ll be ready to share soon! #Senedd26

New pod alert. Coming soon...

Big thank you to @jaychard.bsky.social for coming on the show - we worth a listen

Weight-loss jabs are not enough to tackle the obesity crisis, experts warn Weight-loss drug Mounjaro will be rolled out to a quarter of a million NHS patients. But leading experts tell Rebecca Thomas and Alicja Hagopian that weight-loss jabs alone will not be enough to…

🗞️ New analysis by Nesta, featured in @the-independent.com, shows the high cost of reducing obesity rates in the UK with weight-loss medication alone, compared to a strategy that includes prevention policies ⤵️

What’s it like to find yourself at a Trump rally? Well you can find out today! I’m releasing a mini series focused on the my travels to the US during last year’s Presidential Election. Here’s a video taster of what’s in store, listen now: spareathought.podbean.com

To all the people having Roast dinner today, god bless you, but aren’t you a tad hot? To all the people making Roast dinner in this heat, there should be a law prohibiting you from doing so.

Call To Action | Dr Julia Grace Patterson💙 | Substack I am very concerned about what UK politicians are doing to the NHS, and so I have decided to write about it! This is my personal newsletter, sharing my perspectives +important info about the NHS and m...

The NHS is in the news a lot right now! If you’d like to know what’s going on, from someone who worked as a doctor for 10 years+is now an NHS campaigner, sign up to my newsletter. I’ll give you important info (plus there’s no trolls, it’s lovely!🤣🥰💙)

jujuliagrace.substack.com

I learned so much from my conversation Dr Julia Patterson, CEO of @everydoctor.org.uk we talk NHS privitsation, the state of healthcare in the UK and the welfare of NHS staff

Image of cover of Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill.

Govt just published the Bill to cut disability benefits for > 3 million people, revealing that mitigations for those with the most severe conditions ministers have been telling MPs about will protect only up to 10% of new claimants from a halving of UC's health element 1/5

1 or 2 depending on the way things go. I work in comms and policy in the third sector. I think there’ll always be a need for gatekeepers, storytellers etc but in my work world it’ll mean smaller teams, more specialism.

Text: Spare a Thought Saving the NHS with Dr Julia Grace Patterson on a blue background with a black and white image of Dr Patterson on the left side.

Can we save NHS? I spoke to @jujuliagrace.bsky.social of @everydoctor.org.uk to discuss government reforms, the role of private providers in NHS services, the wellbeing of staff and patients & her own journey from Doctor to campaigner.

Listen here: spareathought.podbean.com

How to make electricity cheaper Reforming the levies on energy bills

Well, electricity levies and heat pumps are in the news this morning…
… and we have a brand new Nesta report out on levy reform.

We’ve looked closely at all the options, and this is what we think the best approach is…
www.nesta.org.uk/report/how-t...

Today Nesta publishes recommendations on how to make energy bills fairer & greener ⬇️

Levies are driving up the price of electricity bills, making it harder for people to switch to low-carbon heating.

We’re proposing to rebalance levies in a way that is easy & fair, using new Nesta modelling.

Two images, one of a Birds Eye view of Gaza buildings destroyed and rubble, the second children clambering for food holding empty containers. Text over the top reading: The Political Dispatch Gaza Starves

I’ve interviewed Zoe Daniels from the International Rescue Committee to discuss Gaza. You can listen here: thepoliticaldispatch.podbean.com

Opinion | Bruce Springsteen Will Never Surrender to Donald Trump

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com

Bruce Springsteen and Donald Trump are “two opposing faces of modern America as it was built and performed by their generation,” Eric Alterman writes in a guest essay. “They offer their fan bases a promise of entirely different futures.”