By Huw Macartney, Associate professor in Political Economy, University of Birmingham
On April 29, 2026, the remaining hereditary peers left the House of Lords. These 92 individuals were the last vestiges of an era in which the landed aristocracy dominated the UK’s second chamber. In the recent past, as many as 800 aristocrats filled the red benches. Now though, a new financial elite appears to have taken their place.
Gradually, the dominance of the aristocrats gave way to a more meritocratic order of life peers. In 1999, Tony Blair’s government removed most…
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By Ronan Lordan, Postdoctoral Researcher in Circadian Biology, FutureNeuro Research Ireland Center & School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences
An extra hour in bed sounds like a good deal. But while our phones may update to the autumn time change automatically, our body clock isn’t quite so quick. You may even find yourself waking up earlier than normal and ready for bed before your evening has properly begun.
The reason for this partly lies in our circadian system: the roughly 24-hour internal timing system that helps organise tiredness and alertness. Changing the time on a clock does not instantly reset that system.
But there are some things you can do to support your body…
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By Monika Brusenbauch Meislová, Visiting Professor, School of Law and Social Sciences, Aston University
Andy Burnham has reopened a debate that successive UK prime ministers tried to settle. But the history of Brexit suggests that getting closer to the European Union may prove just as difficult as leaving it.
For years, prime ministers have attempted to put Brexit behind them. Burnham has just done the opposite. By suggesting that Britain could “go all the way” and rejoin…
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By Louise Gentle, Principal Lecturer in Wildlife Conservation, Nottingham Trent University
In the northern hemisphere, days are getting shorter and temperatures are dropping – autumn has arrived. A common sign that winter is coming is trees losing their leaves. But, did you know that autumn also sparks changes in animals’ sexual behaviour – including ours?
For example, humans actually have a breeding season. The hormone testosterone surges in autumn, particularly in males, linked to a decrease in daylight and increased social activity indoors. This leads to more…
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By Caterina Nirta, Associate Professor in Critical Theory, Royal Holloway, University of London
Provocation became a currency for profitability, but what did this rebellion actually change – who benefited and who remained excluded?
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By Isabelle Feng, Chercheuse au Centre Perelman de Philosophie du Droit, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
In response to China, the EU is transforming its single market into a legal lever: employees, subsidies and forced labour are becoming new battlegrounds.
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By Guest Contributor
"Artistic activism uses the emotional experience of art as a prompt for action and directs that action towards change, turning a complex problem into a clear public message."
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By Dominic D Ahiaga-Dagbui, Director of Deakin Megaprojects Research Group and Senior Lecturer of Construction and Project Management, Deakin University
From the $93 billion High Speed Rail project to Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop, Australia needs a better approach on megaprojects – or history will keep repeating,
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By GV Contributor
Georgia’s deteriorating press freedom is part of a broader process of democratic backsliding, with the right to peaceful protest severely restricted, opposition politicians jailed, a decline in judicial independence, and more.
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Thursday, October 22, 2026
Long-range Russian attacks across Ukraine are intensifying, including in Kyiv, causing at least 14 civilian deaths and 78 injuries overnight into Thursday, as UN agencies continue to provide aid.
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