Defence spending – no free lunch The relationship between defence spending and growth has recently returned to the centre of policy discourse. This column argues that increased military expenditure should add modestly to economic act...

This is v useful.

cepr.org/voxeu/column...

The @IEA projected that the world would use ~105 million barrels per day in 2026.

With the disruption in the Strait we are already predicted to go down to an average of 100mbpd for 2026.🧵

ERC President explains stricter application measures amid rising demand for funding The text of an open letter sent by ERC President Maria Leptin to ERC panel members, grantees and other stakeholders on 16 April 2026.

The number of grant applications is rising sharply. Our capacity for their evaluation isn’t.

ERC President Maria Leptin explains why stricter resubmission limits are being introduced for 2027 calls and what they mean for applicants.

🔗 link.europa.eu/xF7kjc

1/ Goldman Sachs analysts report that the biggest oil crisis in history is about to hit globally, with profound and highly destructive consequences. A new report asks ""Are We Running Out of Oil?", and concludes that the answer is yes. ⬇️

War with Iran has exposed American fragility at sea The move from ‘efficiency’ to ‘resilience’ in maritime supply chains has a long way to go

Really interesting piece, on the case for more resilience in shipping (and how the US is struggling).
One of the key economic challenges (imo) of the post-Covid world is balancing supply chain resilience with keeping trade links open. Shipping combines both challenges

Should political donations be capped to protect against undue influence? I believe the answer is – yes. Should the House of Lords be elected or appointed? An elected Upper House would meet democratic aspirations, but would be a monumental mistake. It could – and would – challenge the primacy of the Commons and create constitutional confusion. It would not retain the wisdom and lifetime experience to enable it to discharge its primary function of revising legislation. It would not be a partner to the Commons: it would be a rival. Recent General Elections have thrown into doubt the continuing validity of the “first past the post” system of voting. As voting preferences spread more widely it provides distorted results. The democratic case for examining this is growing, although changes would come with distinct drawbacks. Should Members of Parliament who defect to a different Party be compelled to face a by- election? Constitutionally, no – as they are deemed to be elected as individuals. But, in the real world, they are elected as representatives of a political Party. So – yes: logic and common decency suggest they must face the electorate again in a by-election. If the House of Commons wishes to regain the respect it has lost, it must justify the status-quo – or change it. And one further thought: is it not time to recognise that Brexit has failed to deliver its many promises, and the loss, each year, of £100 billion of European trade, and £40 billion of tax revenue is doing enormous damage to the lives and livelihoods of the British people – and their future?

Big speech by John Major tonight delivering the Clement Attlee memorial lecture at Kings College. Some extracts: thinks that our electoral system may now need changing, Brexit needs revisiting.

I just wrote something that said both UK and EU agree they should in theory have close ties but neither can get there and here is an example of why not from the EU to go alongside others from the UK.

You can ask for anything in a trade deal, but you can also expect no at times.

‘Extraordinary cruelty’: images show longterm ‘starvation strategy’ in Sudan Experts argue sensor and satellite data reveal targeted attacks by the Rapid Support Forces on farming communities were intended to prevent villages producing food

‘There is strong evidence that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) committed a war crime by depriving the villagers of north Darfur of the means to produce food, legal experts argue’
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

Explained: why the next Horizon Europe needs philanthropy Complaints about Horizon Europe not having enough money are as old as the programme itself, with industry the first port of call when discussion turns to complementary funding. But what about…

As EU #research funding shifts toward #competitiveness, support for global challenges is tightening. A report from Centre for European Policy Studies argues that the next Horizon Europe should formally integrate philanthropy to help fill the gap:

Lord Vallance

Fantastic to have Science Minister Lord Vallance open our @britishacademy.bsky.social sector conference this morning. He talks eloquently about protecting and growing curiosity driven research which does not provide a return during a single Parliamentary cycle

Finally he stated the importance of international collaborations: "We can't do it alone and we shouldn't try - we benefit from people and ideas around the world. And we know that when we collaborate we do better than we do alone."

Some good UK science policy select committee sessions to look forward to next week, in both the Commons and the Lords:

🍿 Tuesday 3 Mar - Lords S&T Committee quizzing Liz Kendall, Patrick Vallance and Emran Mian (DSIT Perm Sec). I imagine they'll be trying to get a handle on those buckets (ahem).

Understanding the importance of SHAPE to the UK research ecosystem - MetaROR

🇬🇧 Our latest paper "uses broad bibliometrics to compare the STEM and SHAPE sectors over time in the UK, with comparisons to other countries"

Reviewers find it timely & useful, yet suggest a different analytical approach as well as a tighter definition of SHAPE

👇 Find the full evaluation on MetaROR

How tech turned against women As AI-generated sexualised images proliferate and app-facilitated abuse spreads, we are sleepwalking into a new age of gender inequality. It is time to regulate properly

Must-read of the weekend: How tech turned against women.
AI risks tumbling us into a downward spiral that risks accelerating the already alarming regression of women’s rights worldwide ↘️ giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

A shocking indictment of the intimidation and danger MPs now routinely experience.

The hostility routinely whipped up against "Westminster" and "politicians" has a real human cost.

The Bucket Stops Here UKRI’s new funding framework takes a stab at classifying budgets – but doesn’t yet govern research

Bucket theory is unglamorous but very important. @ersatzben.com is forensic here - a must read for those interested in UK research policy
www.ersatzben.com/p/the-bucket...

First-rate analysis.

Strong agree that ‘someone needs to own disciplinary health’ . At present, a fatal flaw of the UK system, centred in England on the separation of functions between DfE (and OfS) and DSIT, is that no one does.

This is what frustrates me the most about the British establishment's stubborn refusal to accept our massive comparative advantage in services.

It's already a key sector! It will only grow with time! Money is already being made!

Think of how much better it could be if it was properly supported.

Especially important in light of today's EPA news.

On how the privatization of climate data is creating a world where the best understanding of risk lives inside corporations, while the institutions of democracy increasingly struggle to insist upon full data and understanding. Essential reading.

Électricité : un rapport confidentiel d’EDF anticipe une explosion des coûts et des risques « Le Point » s’est procuré le rapport interne d’EDF sur les conséquences de la modulation de son parc nucléaire pour faire place aux renouvelables. Un document explosif, alors que le gouvernement s’ap...

France has ended up in a strange position after using some €250bn of tax-payer money to build a fleet of nuclear power stations. Wind and solar power is merrily entering the French power market at prices nuclear production can't match, resulting in huge surpluses of power.

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Understanding the interlocking shifts, actors and institutions contributing to peace and security today - document front cover

The latest round of discussion papers in our Global (Dis)Order programme with @carnegieendowment.org highlight critical interactions that require attention if we are to reverse the worrying trend of escalating conflict.

Read the papers now: www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/programmes/g...

In the Plenary Keynote talk 'Equitable Partnerships in Global Research: From Principles to Practice', Prof Quarraisha Abdool Karim FRS speaks on the five global challenges of our time and that we must tackle these as a global community. #EquitablePartnerships

Science is often funded based on the novelty of an idea, but doing this in isolation can miss out on the importance of the context in which the research will be conducted...leading to limited local ownership, leadership and often reduced impact; we need an integrated approach. #EquitablePartnerships

Professor Safiatou Doumbo explains how researchers are helping to improve community health and nutrition for thousands of children and mothers through collaboration and capacity building in rural Mali. #EquitablePartnerships

"The question we should be asking ourselves is not whether partnerships are equitable, but whether the system they operate in make equity possible." - Prof Similo Ngwenya #EquitablePartnerships

'Travel as research practice'

Prof Jude Robinson shares how unless we invest in hard software and good connectivity for all participants, research partnerships cannot be equitable. #EquitablePartnerships

A colour block banner with the words 'International Fellowships 2026' written on the left-hand side.

The International Fellowships 2026 scheme, run with the @royalsociety.org, supports international early career researchers to undertake a two-year research career with UK partner organisations. Find out more and apply ahead of 11 March deadline: https://bit.ly/3LaMIBC

"Equitability in partnerships starts before the research begins!" - Prof Vilma Irazola, Director of the Institute for Clinical Effectiveness and Health Policy (IECS) and the South American Center of Excellence for Cardiovascular Health., Argentina. #EquitablePartnerships

As we are building equitable partnerships, you need to optimise strengths of each partner.
"The objectives of partnerships should be to create a product that is the total summation of all the good things that come out of a research exercise.” - Professor Tshilidzi Marwala #EquitablePartnerships