Neil Goodrich
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ngoodrichhsg.bsky.social
Neil Goodrich
@ngoodrichhsg.bsky.social
Housing, Rugby, Gym.
Pinned
Some thoughts on assurance, culture, and social landlords doing the right thing.

ngoodrich87.medium.com/bend-your-ar...
Bend Your Arms to Look Like Wings
Sky News have been running a piece on the appalling approach to completing fire safety actions within one of the UK’s largest Housing…
ngoodrich87.medium.com
Dylan Thomas: Do not go gentle into that good night.

Labour: How about meekly, whilst blaming immigrants?
November 27, 2025 at 9:57 PM
There is only one direction to head for confected outrage, and that is more extreme. One does wonder when he'll have had enough.
It sure would be good if Heath woke up one morning, went to his computer, opened a new document, and did not go on to wet and soil himself.
November 27, 2025 at 9:36 PM
Feels like exactly the thing you'd say about someone who's in your pocket.
November 27, 2025 at 8:51 PM
All the cash in the world and then you have a home gym like these. Seen better set ups in the garages of mates.
I feel like there's a good Instagram account in the making here: Crap Private Gyms of Belgravia.
November 27, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Interesting pieces in here. Below pick of the quotes.

"The architecture of housing systems—mortgage finance, land-use planning, and the scale of public & non-profit provision—determines outcomes. Housing affordability is not a natural market result but the product of political and policy choices."
Research briefs - Nuffield Politics Research Centre
politicscentre.nuffield.ox.ac.uk
November 27, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Interesting point. But given the stock would just move to home ownership or build out the portfolio of existing landlords it's not necessarily a bad thing, no?.Given these folks don't assist in net additions (at least not to a statistically significant amount) this is deckchair moving, is it not?
From the OBR, who don't seem to buy the theory that squeezing landlords has no impact on rents obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...
November 27, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Yes, this is a stupid plan. You front up on tax increases, the pain is then built in by the next election. Maddeningly bad from Labour. Should have used February's Trump-created panic in Europe to Merz-style shift - sell on National security threat and bit the bullet. But what do I know...
Looking forward to the 2029 general election campaign, when the incumbent government will run on "Public services haven't improved, those tax rises we announced years ago just kicked in, and now we have to increase immigration because it went too low and we are skint again."
The government figuring this out slowly over the coming two years is going to be quite something to behold.
November 27, 2025 at 5:04 PM
This sounds like a sensible compromise. Though would have preferred day one.
NEW - the government poised to water down flagship workers rights bill, ditching day one rights to unfair dismissal but reducing qualifying period from two years to six months.

But in concession to unions, government will remove provisions for up to nine months probation.
November 27, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Americans will mock British food, then make some abomination involving marshmallows and vegetables for Thanksgiving. Presumably in penance for the atrocities carried out against the indigenous populations they claim to be thanking.
November 27, 2025 at 2:36 PM
I will naturally say this given my area of knowledge (housing). But our failure on temporary accommodation post 2010 has been nothing short of catastrophic.
New homelessness figures today show a continued upwards trajectory in the numbers of children and households living in temporary accommodation, reaching new record highs.

Yesterday the OBR reported cost of TA to local authorities increased 20% *a year* between 2022-23 and 2024-25.
November 27, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Brexit did severe damage here, & deliberately so. There was no sound economic argument for leaving, so focus was on undermining its role in our national discourse (people tired of experts, etc). The thing is, imperfect & as biased as economic theories can be, it's an essential component of politics.
I also think that part of this is the weird disappearance of economics from our national debate.

It just... doesnt seem to matter that much to many people
Starmer and Reeves run probably the most economically left-wing government of past five decades and yet bleeding support to its left thanks to dumb strategy www.economist.com/britain/2025...
November 27, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Reposted by Neil Goodrich
With the Progressive Politics Research Network, we have published 8 new research briefs on the politics of housing. What does a progressive agenda on housing look like? Which elements are important? What the hurdles are and how can they be overcome?
politicscentre.nuffield.ox.ac.uk/progressive-...
November 27, 2025 at 8:02 AM
I really cannot get my head around people who are willing to let others live in abject misery just because it means they otherwise would have to pay more tax. Hyper individualism is a virus that eats away at your morality and compassion.
November 27, 2025 at 7:21 AM
Can see the Times article now:

Budget remorse: How Reeves' raid ruined our ability to send Tarquin to private school after our modest £2m mansion meant we have to pay some tax.

Earning a modest £100,000 each per year Mr and Mrs Middle Class can barely afford the £40,000 a year fees for St Titmus.
the next couple of days are going to see a hell of a lot of "the rich declare themselves poor"
November 26, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Instagram, are you on crack?
November 26, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Rent convergence: looks like a response will be delayed until January (as per Inside Housing).
November 26, 2025 at 7:08 PM
General mood.
November 26, 2025 at 7:03 PM
A critical cause of repairs issues in social housing is that orgs. operate on a low value high volume model. One that treats a repair as a task not a case management process. Awaab's law will fundamentally re-wire that approach leading to better outcomes for all.
November 26, 2025 at 6:26 PM
I like outright racist Matt. Makes it a lot easier to call him a cunt.
Reflections on the budget from the head of Students4Reform
November 26, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Yes, same. This is a consistent dereliction of duty. Since coalition govt LHA rates have not been enough. Last uplift was in 2024 (if remember correctly).
No mention of Local Housing Allowance that I can find in Budget documents (so assume freeze in rates will continue) or of benefit cap (assume will continue at current rate). Both would blunt some of the impact on child poverty of scrapping two-child limit
November 26, 2025 at 3:04 PM
No wonder Tice and Farage keep making erroneous statements on SEND kids. Easier to make cuts for those who need it if you don't believe the conditions they have are genuine.
OBR identifies SEND spend as one of the key medium term risks for its forecasts and particularly the number of councils who will not be able to balance budgets once the statutory override. Huge battle to come on that in the next year.
November 26, 2025 at 12:54 PM
A reminder that when one of Gordon Brown's budgets clashed with an important horse racing event some Tories called for him to resign. But this does sit up there in terms of stupid reactions.
lol c'mon dog

*UK TORY LAWMAKER STRIDE SAYS OBR LEAK MAY BE 'CRIMINAL OFFENCE'
November 26, 2025 at 12:44 PM
Anyone spotted anything on LHA rates? Not expecting owt, but it's a critical area that needs uplifting.
November 26, 2025 at 12:24 PM
The two child benefit cap was one of the most regressive, mean-spirited and blatantly irresponsible pieces of welfare policy changes in living memory. Very glad to see it is going.
November 26, 2025 at 12:16 PM
Always shocked by these figures. And whilst I'm very glad the overall trend is heading in the right direction it's deeply saddening that so many did hold such views. Regardless, they're wrong whatever the majority opinion was (or is).
Those defending purported views of younger N Farage are right that people were much more likely to openly affirm racially discriminatory views in the 1970s and 1980s

In 1983, 75-80% agreed that white ppl would mind someone in their family marrying a Black or Asian person

Views shifted in late 90s
November 26, 2025 at 10:01 AM