I am very much saddened to report that my friend, @nearlylegal.co.uk passed away this weekend.

nearlylegal.co.uk/2026/04/gile...

Rents staying flat very much suggests that any worries about a mass exodus of landlords in advance of the Renter's Rights Act coming in next month were unfounded.

Props to @jessmccabe.bsky.social for the scoop that led to this

Grenfell was tragic 'but everyone dies in the end', says Reform's new housing chief Reform UK's Simon Dudley suggested post-Grenfell safety rules have gone too far

Thanks to the i for picking up my interview with Reform’s housing spokesperson >>

inews.co.uk/news/grenfel...

The 22-year-old wunderkind whose aristocratic family inspired a novel In Lazar, the debut novelist Nelio Biedermann chronicles the vicissitudes of 20th-century Hungary through the fate of a single family

In today’s Sunday Times I review Lazar, the English language debut from Swiss wunderkind Nelio Biedermann. Hungarian aristocrats, edgy sex and shades of magical realism abound

www.thetimes.com/culture/book...

Author of heat network rules missed chance to disclose stake in smart monitor company The lead author of the government’s new heat network regulations missed a chance to disclose its boss’ stake in smart monitor company Guru Systems.

New: The lead author of the government’s new heat network regulations missed a chance to disclose its boss’ stake in a smart monitor company

www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/author-...

‘Golden brick’ reforms will specifically help for-profit providers, says MP Reforms to ‘golden brick’ tax relief for social housing developers will support for-profit registered providers, an MP campaigning for the changes has said.

I spoke to MP Mike Reader about his campaign to reform ‘golden brick’ tax relief and how this will help social housing developers. Good timing as the government is set to launch a consultation on the changes by the end of this month.

living.insidehousing.co.uk/news/golden-...

Been going through some old books and found this historical artefact from the analogue days of book reviewing.

Exclusive: Four Heylo Housing Group subsidiaries enter administration Four subsidiaries of BlackRock-backed shared ownership specialist Heylo Housing Group have entered administration, Inside Housing Living can reveal.

Exclusive: Four subsidiaries of BlackRock-backed shared ownership specialist Heylo Housing Group have entered administration

Around a third of Heylo’s 10,500 homes are affected and are expected to be sold to another registered provider

living.insidehousing.co.uk/news/exclusi...

Honestly the collective national level of disdain for Brits living in Dubai on all my social media platforms today really is bringing the UK together as one in a way that's hard to achieve in the modern era.

Dishing It Out, Taking It Writing and Reading

New newsletter, in which I consider stinky book reviews and overlong speeches

How did a 21-year-old man come to die on a driveway in the West of Ireland?

My investigation into the death of Joe Deacy and his family’s campaign for justice is available to read online now.

Many thanks to @thefence.bsky.social for the commission and support

Everyone deserves a decent, safe, secure and affordable home in which to live.

Today, our new £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme opens for bids.

At least 60% of homes delivered through the programme will be for Social Rent.

Thank you very much, Dominic

This is a beautifully, carefully written piece of journalism

How did a 21-year-old man come to die on a driveway in the West of Ireland?

My investigation into the death of Joe Deacy and his family’s campaign for justice is available to read online now.

Many thanks to @thefence.bsky.social for the commission and support

Pleased to be quoted in The Week for my review of Mark Haddon’s memoir Leaving Home

The original dark academia

On Politics: Mandelson and the Private Life of Power Podcast Episode · The LRB Podcast · 02/11/2026 · 1h 7m

The Mandelson story is a rare glimpse into the private life of power, and the extent of state capture by unconstrained wealth. @petergeoghegan.bsky.social & @ethanshone.bsky.social joined me on @lrb.co.uk ON POLITICS to lay out just what that corruption means: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...

The curious incident of the hangdog author In his illustrated memoir, Leaving Home, the author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time revisits his unhappy childhood in 1970s Northampton

The curious incident of the hangdog author - I reviewed Mark Haddon's new illustrated memoir of fear and loathing in 1970s Northampton for @thetimes.com

www.thetimes.com/culture/book...

Jeffrey Epstein circle’s ‘big ideas’ were vacuous guff Emails show that despite hooking up the rich, the powerful and intellectuals, the philosophising was utterly banal

One lesson of the Epstein emails is the total intellectual vacuousness of the international business elite

www.thetimes.com/comment/colu...

The curious incident of the hangdog author In his illustrated memoir, Leaving Home, the author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time revisits his unhappy childhood in 1970s Northampton

The curious incident of the hangdog author - I reviewed Mark Haddon's new illustrated memoir of fear and loathing in 1970s Northampton for @thetimes.com

www.thetimes.com/culture/book...

What did Starmer already know about Mandelson and Epstein? | UK Politics | The New Statesman YouTube video by The New Statesman

of all the interviews I’ve done this week, this podcast with @tommctague.bsky.social was probably the most reflective

m.youtube.com/watch?v=NiCH...

Not in the OECD data but tuition fees are free for Scottish students, so $0. Students in Scotland finish their degrees with an average of £17,000 in government loans

Striking data in here from the OECD (annual tuition fees for national students in public institutions)

How student debt in England compares to other countries England has some of the highest tuition fees in the world - how does graduate debt differ in other countries?

It’s good to see discussion picking up around student loans. But is the English system uniquely scandalous? I enjoyed writing this piece for @theipaper.com comparing graduate debt in countries around the world

inews.co.uk/news/educati...

Pension funds’ fury as government caps ground rents from 2028 Furious pension funds have lashed out at the government after it pledged to cap ground rents for leaseholders at £250 in a draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill.

Leaseholders are celebrating and pension funds are fuming after the government announced a cap on ground rents from 2028.

I spoke to some ground rent investors to find out more

living.insidehousing.co.uk/news/pension...

Who's secretly filming fake TikToks inside Londoners' homes? We tracked down the viral video account invading people's houses to spread false claims about immigrants.

This is one of the strangest and most screwed-up stories I’ve worked on. www.londoncentric.media/p/tiktok-lon...

Excellent article here by @jamesriding.bsky.social summarising the main things to know from the new Warm Homes Plan

Sir James Cleverly interview: Regulation is ‘always the wrong answer’ Shadow housing secretary Sir James Cleverly shares his views on Grenfell, the Renters’ Rights Act and the Conservative Party’s pledge to end stamp duty.

Exclusive: My interview with James Cleverly

🔵 Grenfell Inquiry “did not prove deregulatory attitude was the problem”
🔵 Vows to reduce headcount of planners
🔵 Renters Rights Act should be replaced by ‘’more targeted approach”

www.insidehousing.co.uk/insight/sir-...