Woudhuysen



Author: James Woudhuysen

Professor Brian Cox

Brexit is not a threat to British science

August 16, 2019 Comments Off on Brexit is not a threat to British science

Will Brexit cause irreparable damage to British science? Eminent scientists seem to think so

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Harry and Megan

Massacre of the (future) innocents

August 13, 2019 Comments Off on Massacre of the (future) innocents

Two key papers form the theory behind today’s anti-natalism. They are junk science.

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Prince Harry's climate pledge

Prince Harry’s climate pledge

July 31, 2019 Comments Off on Prince Harry’s climate pledge

Sky News discussion on Prince Harry’s climate pledge to only have two children with Clare Farrell from Extinction Rebellion

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Hitachi HS2 train

In defence of HS2

July 30, 2019 Comments Off on In defence of HS2

Planning and execution have been pure Theresa May, but the principle is right

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Sky News on heat wave and climate change

July 2019 heat wave and climate change

July 26, 2019 Comments Off on July 2019 heat wave and climate change

Sky News debate with Angela Terry of One Home on the July 2019 heat wave in the UK and climate change

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China’s Yutu-2 rover parked to the left of its Chang'e-4 lander

China and India set the pace in space

July 19, 2019 Comments Off on China and India set the pace in space

Fifty years on from the first Moon landings, the human conquest of space has changed

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Weston air festival, 2019

The political economy of informal events, 2030

July 17, 2019 Comments Off on The political economy of informal events, 2030

Below, a summary of my book – available at the bottom of this page – on #LiveEntertainment #musicfestivals #livemusic #nightclubs and events in the #arts and #sport.

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Sky News on net zero carbon emissions by 2050

Net zero carbon emissions by 2050

June 12, 2019 Comments Off on Net zero carbon emissions by 2050

Sky News debate with Amy Mount on the UK Government’s pledge to reach Net Zero in carbon emissions by 2050

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Sky News on Justin Trudeau's plastics ban

Justin Trudeau’s ban on single-use plastics

June 11, 2019 Comments Off on Justin Trudeau’s ban on single-use plastics

Sky News discussion with Dr Sharon George around Canadian premier Justin Trudeau’s ban on single-use plastics, 11 June 2019 

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Sky News on Trump trade war with Huawei

Trump’s trade war with Huawei

June 6, 2019 Comments Off on Trump’s trade war with Huawei

Sky News discussion on Trump’s trade war with Huawei

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Normandy beachhead

D-Day: beyond the myth of the Good War

June 6, 2019 Comments Off on D-Day: beyond the myth of the Good War

Seventy-five years on, let’s reckon with what really happened

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Sky News on British Steel

Rescuing British Steel

May 30, 2019 Comments Off on Rescuing British Steel

Sky News discussion on rescue plans for British Steel with Faiza Shaheen from Centre for Labour and Social Studies and James Woudhuysen

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IPSOS Academy on Tech: disruption, climate change – and plastics

Speech to IPSOS Academy: Disruption, climate change – and plastics

May 9, 2019 Comments Off on Speech to IPSOS Academy: Disruption, climate change – and plastics

In this 30-minute talk, James interrogates trendy categories in innovation, explores the domains of forecasting and risk, and puts forward solutions to the problem of plastics 

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Sky News discussion on climate change

Climate change report

May 2, 2019 Comments Off on Climate change report

Sky News discussion on the latest report by the government Committee on Climate Change with Amy Mount from Greener UK and James Woudhuysen

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Sky News on climate change

Climate protests

April 27, 2019 Comments Off on Climate protests

Sky News discussion on the climate change protests by Extinction Rebellion with George Monbiot and James Woudhuysen

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Sky News on social media chimp

Chimp using Social Media

April 27, 2019 Comments Off on Chimp using Social Media

Sky News discussion on a chimp supposedly demonstrating an ability to use Social Media

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Sky News discussion on Extinction Rebellion

Climate change and the need for energy R&D

April 17, 2019 Comments Off on Climate change and the need for energy R&D

Sky News discussion on climate change and the need for energy R&D 

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Car industry production line

The car-industry crisis has nothing to do with Brexit

February 25, 2019 Comments Off on The car-industry crisis has nothing to do with Brexit

China is racing ahead of Europe in producing electric cars

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London taxi

Mobilität als Dienstleistung

February 9, 2019 Comments Off on Mobilität als Dienstleistung

Für die mobile Zukunft brauchen wir mehr als Apps und selbstfahrende Autos. Vor lauter IT dürfen wir die reale Infrastruktur und die Produktivität nicht aus dem Auge verlieren.

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Sky News on rail delays

Rail delays

December 27, 2018 Comments Off on Rail delays

Sky News on rail delays after 13 year low according to the Office of Rail and Road, which is symptomatic of a wider problem than just the railways

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Sky News on wrapping paper

Christmas wrapping paper

December 22, 2018 Comments Off on Christmas wrapping paper

Sky News discussion on the bah humbug attitude by environmentalists towards waste at Christmas

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Francis Bacon

Sceptical employees and the office of the future

December 11, 2018 Comments Off on Sceptical employees and the office of the future

We need productivity and innovation in workplaces, not eulogies to the employee experience, wellness or the circular economy

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European Union CSDP missions, 2018

EU militarism is nothing new

November 27, 2018 Comments Off on EU militarism is nothing new

Macron’s plan for an EU army follows longstanding traditions 

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Sky News on internet freedom

Internet Freedom

November 26, 2018 Comments Off on Internet Freedom


Sky News discussion on Iceland advert

Banned Iceland advert

November 13, 2018 Comments Off on Banned Iceland advert

Debate with George Monbiot on Iceland Foods’ encountering censorship of its cartoon ad directed against palm oil

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UX Brighton, Nov 2018

Some ABCs of forecasting: UX Brighton, November 2018

November 13, 2018 Comments Off on Some ABCs of forecasting: UX Brighton, November 2018

In this talk, James outlines some Dos and Don’ts to remember when imagining how people are likely to evolve in the years to 2030

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India's untold story

After the war: India’s untold story

November 10, 2018 Comments Off on After the war: India’s untold story

The Indian Army’s contribution to the Allied war effort has been downplayed for far too long

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Consumption

Consumption: six myths to discard

November 8, 2018 Comments Off on Consumption: six myths to discard

An article for the Fair Design conference, Warsaw, Poland, May 2018

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Verint

Contact Centres 2030: The Shape of Automation to Come

October 22, 2018 Comments Off on Contact Centres 2030: The Shape of Automation to Come

Artificial Intelligence is spreading – above all, to help staff deal with customers better

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UK youth in Ibiza 1999

BBC documentary on Ibiza and UK youth, 1999

October 20, 2018 Comments Off on BBC documentary on Ibiza and UK youth, 1999

BBC documentary on Ibiza & UK youth from Winter 1999

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Keynote speech at Fujitsu conference

Keynote on Agility at a conference of Fujitsu Distinguished Engineers, October 2018

October 15, 2018 Comments Off on Keynote on Agility at a conference of Fujitsu Distinguished Engineers, October 2018

About software agility, business agility… and agile offices

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Frances O'Grady at TUC

A 4-day week in the UK?

September 10, 2018 Comments Off on A 4-day week in the UK?

The TUC hopes for a four-day week by the end of this century. It ignores Britain’s crisis of business investment

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Lab grown meat

Artificial meat

August 30, 2018 Comments Off on Artificial meat

The Adam Smith Institute claims that lab-grown meat could lower CO2, improve land use and re-wild the UK countryside. James would eat it, but says it’s no panacea, and a fair way off

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BBC Breakfast interview on retailing

BBC Breakfast interview on retailing

August 13, 2018 Comments Off on BBC Breakfast interview on retailing

As Sport Direct’s Mike Ashley takes over House of Fraser, James urges High Street retailers to innovate and be imaginative

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Mobile phone addiction

No, we are not addicted to smartphones

August 8, 2018 Comments Off on No, we are not addicted to smartphones

The idea that we’re at the mercy of Silicon Valley is an elitist myth

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Sky News interview on digital dependency

Mobile phone addiction

August 2, 2018 Comments Off on Mobile phone addiction

Reports of Ofcom figures on mobile use suggest we are addicted to them, but shouldn’t we question this coverage as misanthropic?

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What makes Fiat the big draw

What makes Fiat the big draw

July 29, 2018 Comments Off on What makes Fiat the big draw

With the death of Sergio Marchionne, can Fiat-Chrysler’s new CEO, Jeep chief Mike Manley, continue the car giant’s renaissance?

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HS2 and the buffers of Brexit

HS2 and the buffers of Brexit

July 25, 2018 Comments Off on HS2 and the buffers of Brexit

Between the old North-South divide and the more recent Referendum falls a tricky rail project

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Forecasting the future

Predicting the future

July 2, 2018 Comments Off on Predicting the future

Developments tomorrow and the day after are more certain than is often assumed

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Bitcoin on a tube advert

Cash: down, but not out

June 26, 2018 Comments Off on Cash: down, but not out

There’ll be lots of new kinds of money, but no real end to cash

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Sky News interview on Heathrow airport

Heathrow expansion

June 25, 2018 Comments Off on Heathrow expansion

Ahead of the parliamentary vote on a third runway for Heathrow airport, Sky News asked James to outline the technological dimensions of the issue

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Sky News interview on Grenfell anniversay

Grenfell

June 14, 2018 Comments Off on Grenfell

On the anniversary of the disastrous Grenfell fire, we are right to question the state of the construction sector

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Sky News interview on High Street closures

Debate with the IPPR on the UK’s crisis in retailing

June 7, 2018 Comments Off on Debate with the IPPR on the UK’s crisis in retailing

In the wake of the announcement of up to 6,000 job losses at House of Fraser, the High Street should combat Amazon with automation and new physical sensations

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The US under fire, January 1968

1968: North Vietnam strikes back

May 31, 2018 Comments Off on 1968: North Vietnam strikes back

In January 1968, Vietnamese communists launched the world-changing Tet Offensive

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Sky News interview on Ocean Rescue

Debate with Friends of the Earth on plastics in the oceans

May 28, 2018 Comments Off on Debate with Friends of the Earth on plastics in the oceans

You might think the EU would be more interested in genuine innovation than banning plastic straws, cutlery and cotton buds. James takes issue with FoE’s Julian Kirby on the EU’s plans

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Barbara Windsor

Dementia: we need action, not awareness

May 17, 2018 Comments Off on Dementia: we need action, not awareness

The response to Barbara Windsor’s diagnosis captured society’s low horizons

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Barbara Windsor

Dementia and the NHS

May 10, 2018 Comments Off on Dementia and the NHS

What’s required is a cure, not more ‘awareness’ as Barbara Windsor’s husband announces the actress has been diagnosed with alzheimer’s disease

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Fake News Phenomena

The Fake Phenomenon

May 2, 2018 Comments Off on The Fake Phenomenon

“Sincerity – if you can fake that, you’ve got it made.” US comedian George Burns

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Winged lion statue in venice

IT illusions: the case of transport

March 29, 2018 Comments Off on IT illusions: the case of transport

The future of the car is Mobility as a Service (MaaS)? That’s a chimera

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Sky News interview on pastic bottles

Debate with Green Alliance on plastic bottles

March 28, 2018 Comments Off on Debate with Green Alliance on plastic bottles

Michael Gove’s proposal on a plastic bottles deposit return scheme was debated with Amy Mount from the Green Alliance and James. We need a technological fix, not yet another guilt trip about our ‘behaviour’.

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On the internet, nobody knows you're a dog

Customer service: toward a new, very different agenda

March 18, 2018 Comments Off on Customer service: toward a new, very different agenda

Customer loyalty? The whole idea is past its sell-by date

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House building in UK

Why they can’t fix the housing crisis

March 12, 2018 Comments Off on Why they can’t fix the housing crisis

Both the Tories and Labour dread the radical shake-up we really need

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Wellbeing at work

The dogma of wellbeing

March 11, 2018 Comments Off on The dogma of wellbeing

With the Office for National Statistics, the British Medical Association and the Duke of Cambridge all behind the concept, a critique is long overdue

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Sky News debate on housing crisis

Britain’s housing crisis

February 26, 2018 Comments Off on Britain’s housing crisis

James and campaigner Kennedy Walker debate solutions to Britain’s housing crisis

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The Post

‘The Post’: missing the big story

February 7, 2018 Comments Off on ‘The Post’: missing the big story

Back in 1971, when this docudrama is set, it must have been tough being a newspaper baroness.

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Workplace biometrics

What CIOs need to know about workplace biometrics

January 31, 2018 Comments Off on What CIOs need to know about workplace biometrics

Biometrics, in which IT captures and checks a person’s unique biological and behavioral characteristics, is spreading through the world’s workplaces. It’s time to understand where the technology is headed

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SME's automating IT

Where SMEs should start in automating IT

January 29, 2018 Comments Off on Where SMEs should start in automating IT

Why the uptake of automation has been slow so far, and where to start now.

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Population control in Africa

The silent war against population growth in Africa

January 25, 2018 Comments Off on The silent war against population growth in Africa

Once again, Westerners are foisting population control on Africa.

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EU holding Africa back

How the EU is holding Africa back

January 10, 2018 Comments Off on How the EU is holding Africa back

It’s long been known, but often hushed over, that the subsidies the EU pays its farmers under the Common Agricultural Policy, plus the bureaucratic rules and standards it wields against food imports, have discriminated against African farmers.

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China's supernova cities

China’s supernova cities

December 30, 2017 Comments Off on China’s supernova cities

By 2020, the Chinese government hopes to have a new and national Social Credit System (SCS) ready.

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Progress in Africa. Foto: Axel Schmidt/ddp

Gelingen würde

December 29, 2017 Comments Off on Gelingen würde

Bundesentwicklungsminister Müller  will einen Marshall-Plan zur Entwicklung Afrikas. Stattdessen muss der Kontinent sein Schicksal selbst in die Hand nehmen und kann dabei gar nicht ambitioniert genug denken

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AI Machine Learning for business

What AI and Machine Learning mean for business

December 15, 2017 Comments Off on What AI and Machine Learning mean for business

First things first. There’s no such thing as genuine Artificial Intelligence.

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Technology predictions, 2018

What we can expect to see in technology

December 8, 2017 Comments Off on What we can expect to see in technology

As 2018 gets underway, it’s time to take a look at what the year ahead holds for us. There are many areas we could focus on but the one that seems to be on many peoples’ minds is technology.

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Alfredo Gauro Ambrosini, Aeroritratto di Benito Mussolini Aviatore, 1930.

Fascism: mobilisation of passions

December 2, 2017 Comments Off on Fascism: mobilisation of passions

This introduction was presented to the Leeds Salon as part of its Tetley Talks series in December 2017

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Progress in Africa. Foto: Axel Schmidt/ddp

Africa: what would real progress look like?

November 27, 2017 Comments Off on Africa: what would real progress look like?

After the faltering of Angela Merkel and the fall of Robert Mugabe, here are some principles of economic development that could form an alternative to Germany’s policy and practice in Africa

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Modular home

The future of housing

November 20, 2017 Comments Off on The future of housing

The future of housing

In 2004, with the architect Ian Abley, I published a book titled Why is construction so backward?.

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Globalisation

Is globalisation over? The future of world trade

October 29, 2017 Comments Off on Is globalisation over? The future of world trade

Listen to the debate ‘Is globalisation over? The future of world trade‘ from Battle of Ideas 2017

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We are all collaborative now

September 5, 2017 Comments Off on We are all collaborative now

When suppliers and consumers use IT to ‘co-design’ new products and services, does that really represent democracy and empowerment?

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The Great Firewall of China

China isn’t the only country censoring the web

August 8, 2017 Comments Off on China isn’t the only country censoring the web

Last weekend, that supreme and unimpeachable force for worldwide progress, Apple Computer, withdrew perhaps 60 Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) from its App Store in China.

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Dialectical progress in India

India’s dialectic of progress

July 31, 2017 Comments Off on India’s dialectic of progress

Two new books show how far post-independence India has come, and how far it has still to go

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Chinese NextEV electric car

Electric car, Made in China

July 12, 2017 Comments Off on Electric car, Made in China

Few in the West have taken the full measure of China’s drive toward electric vehicles

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Fascism in the colours of France

July 3, 2017 Comments Off on Fascism in the colours of France

This book review, written more than 35 years ago, gives some historical clues as to why Marine Le Pen did relatively well in the French presidential elections of 2017

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The future of sleep

The future of sleep

June 15, 2017 Comments Off on The future of sleep

Folks, I have seen the future of sleep. It is Chinese, and cheap. Man Wah Holdings, a £700m furniture company headquartered in Hong Kong, has brought its new SleepCheers mattresses to showrooms in North Carolina.

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Mondlandung Astronaut

Innovation früher und heute

May 17, 2017 Comments Off on Innovation früher und heute

Politik und Medien begegnen technischen Innovationen heute nicht mehr mit Begeisterung, sondern mit Furcht. Dabei herrscht an ehrgeizigen Ideen kein Mangel – es bräuchte nur ein wenig Mut

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Wannacry ransomware

Why we shouldn’t weep over WannaCry

May 16, 2017 Comments Off on Why we shouldn’t weep over WannaCry

The hacking of the NHS was bad, but not that bad

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2016 Nissan leaf range

Wanted: a post-Brexit industrial strategy for electric cars

May 10, 2017 Comments Off on Wanted: a post-Brexit industrial strategy for electric cars

When Britain was fully signed up to the EU, the EU’s German-inspired bans on most state aids meant that Whitehall couldn’t really develop a genuine industrial strategy.

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The future of work

People are great: a conversation on the future of work

May 9, 2017 Comments Off on People are great: a conversation on the future of work

At a conference staged by the office furniture firm Kinnarps UK, James had a chat with Mark Eltringham of Workplace Insight

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The future of work

Don’t Shout at the Telly: The Future of Work

May 1, 2017 Comments Off on Don’t Shout at the Telly: The Future of Work

In this engaging on-the-sofa discussion, young volunteers for WORLDwrite, a charity, quiz James on IT and jobs

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Roboter auto karosseriebau

Warum die amerikanische Wirtschaft schwächelt

April 28, 2017 Comments Off on Warum die amerikanische Wirtschaft schwächelt

Der Verlust von Jobs im Produktionssektor kann nicht einfach China oder der Automatisierung zugeschrieben werden.

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Internet of things - bed

Origins and future of Industry 4.0

April 24, 2017 Comments Off on Origins and future of Industry 4.0

At the University of Missouri’s Center for Eldercare and Rehabilitation Technology, professors of engineering and nursing hook up sensors to perform clever feats in medicine.

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AI: racist or sexist?

The psychobabble behind the ‘AI is racist’ claim

April 21, 2017 Comments Off on The psychobabble behind the ‘AI is racist’ claim

Astonishing news is in. Apparently, artificial intelligence can be bigoted, too.

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Stillstand im Verkehr überwinden

April 4, 2017 Comments Off on Stillstand im Verkehr überwinden

Zur Reduktion von Treibhausgasen soll auf das Reisen verzichtet werden. Wir brauchen aber nicht weniger Verkehr, sondern mehr echte Innovationen

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Smart pipes

Industrial strategy, UK: where to back labs, prototypes and designs

April 1, 2017 Comments Off on Industrial strategy, UK: where to back labs, prototypes and designs

This document is part of an Institute of Ideas Economy Forum response to the British Government’s Green Paper on industrial strategy, a consultation launched by business minister Greg Clark.

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Fake news

Fake news, IT and the right kind of office for 2022

March 30, 2017 Comments Off on Fake news, IT and the right kind of office for 2022

Reviewing US and UK debate on automation, James compares the impact of facilities on workplace output with the legitimacy crisis that management now faces

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Augmented and Virtual Reality

Let’s get real about Augmented and Virtual Reality

March 22, 2017 Comments Off on Let’s get real about Augmented and Virtual Reality

In the medium term the real deal looks like being AR, more than VR

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Boris Mikailovich Kustodiev, Bolshevik, 1920, Oil on canvas, 101 x 140.5 cm, State Tretyakov Gallery, Photo © State Tretyakov Gallery. All images supplied by Royal Academy of Arts

The art of revolution

March 3, 2017 Comments Off on The art of revolution

The RA’s Russian Revolution show captures the idealism of 1917 – and the gloom of what followed

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Rodchenko: the complete work

Back in the USSR

March 3, 2017 Comments Off on Back in the USSR

As a centenary show at the Royal Academy of Art revives British interest in the design output of Russia after 1917, this review of SO Khan-Magomedov, Rodchenko: the complete work (Thames and Hudson, 1986) looks at one of the founding fathers of Soviet design

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Industry 4.0

Myths & Realities of Industry 4.0

February 27, 2017 Comments Off on Myths & Realities of Industry 4.0

Speech to ‘Industry People Ideas 4.0’, Moscow, February 2017

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Oracle talk

Myths and Realities of the Future of Work

February 1, 2017 Comments Off on Myths and Realities of the Future of Work

In this keynote address to 300 delegates at Oracle’s Modern Business Conference at ExCel, East London, James challenged the perceived wisdom about IT, so as to highlight where real opportunities may be found

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Donald Trump & Trade

The liberal West was protectionist before Trump

January 31, 2017 Comments Off on The liberal West was protectionist before Trump

Obama and the EU pursued their own PC-flavoured trade wars before the Donald arrived

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Retail Banking

The future of retail banking

January 24, 2017 Comments Off on The future of retail banking

In retail banking, the elephant in the room is that there simply may not be any left in years to come. More and more people, and not just the young, do their banking online.

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Innovation: then and now

Innovation then – and the challenge now

January 22, 2017 Comments Off on Innovation then – and the challenge now

In 1965 the debating society at my old school held a parents’ evening in which a debate took place on the motion: ‘The spirit of adventure has been lost’.

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Fragile days of revolution

January 20, 2017 Comments Off on Fragile days of revolution

As a centenary show at the Royal Academy of Art revives British interest in the design output of Russia after 1917, this review of Nina Lobanov‑Rostovsky, Revolutionary ceramics: Soviet porcelain 1917‑1927 (Studio Vista, 1990) highlights the contribution made by potters

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Problem with US economy

Trade, automation and US decline

January 19, 2017 Comments Off on Trade, automation and US decline

Job losses in US manufacturing can’t simply be put down to China or IT

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Robots aren't taking over. Photo by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images.

The robots aren’t taking over

January 15, 2017 Comments Off on The robots aren’t taking over

The idea that IT is surpassing human beings sells us short

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Postcapitalism

A postcapitalist pseuds’ corner

December 15, 2016 Comments Off on A postcapitalist pseuds’ corner

Two books prophesying the future show a distinct ignorance about present-day capitalism

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WiFi kettle

No, your home won’t be hacked

October 31, 2016 Comments Off on No, your home won’t be hacked

The panic about every household gadget being hit by computer hackers is overdone

On Friday 21 October an unprecedented cyber-attack hit many important websites, including Twitter, eBay and the New York Times.

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Galaxy Note 7 explodes

Samsung’s critics: recalling the future

October 17, 2016 Comments Off on Samsung’s critics: recalling the future

Three dozen melted-down batteries among 2.5m new mobile phones is no reason to slow down innovation

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Manuservice

Time for manufacturers to intensify their drive into services

October 13, 2016 Comments Off on Time for manufacturers to intensify their drive into services

Webinar with Matt O’Neill for software specialists Epicor

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Innovation and retailing

Innovation and Retailing, 2030

September 21, 2016 Comments Off on Innovation and Retailing, 2030

James looks at international disputes around trade, FDI and innovation – and at technology in shops. He also issues a call for higher wages

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Heathrow's third runway

Heathrow’s third runway: delayed, delayed, delayed

September 15, 2016 Comments Off on Heathrow’s third runway: delayed, delayed, delayed

After decades of dithering, we must demand action on airport expansion.

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Future of work

Automation anxiety and the future of work

September 14, 2016 Comments Off on Automation anxiety and the future of work

Until fairly recently, most of the literature on the future of work was all too familiar: mobile working, working from home, hot-desking, teams, fun interiors to stimulate creativity, etc.

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Drugs, devices and digital media

Drugs, devices and digital media

September 12, 2016 Comments Off on Drugs, devices and digital media

As the first line of the blues song might now have it, I went down to the Boots audiology specialist.

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Cybersecurity

Hinkley, cybersecurity, China and the New Protectionism

August 15, 2016 Comments Off on Hinkley, cybersecurity, China and the New Protectionism

To much controversy, Britain’s new prime minister, Theresa May, last month insisted on a fresh review of the building of two new nuclear reactors in the west of England.

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Hinkley Point

Hinkley Point and the fear of nuclear

August 15, 2016 Comments Off on Hinkley Point and the fear of nuclear

Delaying building a new power station is a brake on progress.

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Internet of Things

Das Internet der Befürchtungen

August 10, 2016 Comments Off on Das Internet der Befürchtungen

James Woudhuysen und Mark Birbeck

Das Internet der Dinge hat viel zu bieten. Unsere Ansprüche müssen wir jedoch höher ansetzen

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14GW Itaipu Dam, photo by Angelo Leithold.

Innovation in megaprojects

August 1, 2016 Comments Off on Innovation in megaprojects

Mostly, experts in innovation think about it in terms of the products and processes of industry and services: a new Dyson, or the software in Google or Uber. 

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Internet of Things

Internet of Things, Internet of Apprehension

July 15, 2016 Comments Off on Internet of Things, Internet of Apprehension

The IoT has much to recommend it – but we need to set our sights higher: co-authored with Mark Birbeck

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Maglev

Toward a new customer experience, European rail, 2030

July 12, 2016 Comments Off on Toward a new customer experience, European rail, 2030

The opportunity to do better

In the past 20 years, neither energy suppliers nor telecommunications firms have truly completed their journey toward providing a good customer experience, whether off-line or online.

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Robot

Financial services: is a robot stealing your job?

June 11, 2016 Comments Off on Financial services: is a robot stealing your job?

This keynote speech, delivered for the financial IT platform Intelliflo, looked at technology advances from both a consumer and business point of view

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Another fracking melodrama

Another fracking melodrama

June 6, 2016 Comments Off on Another fracking melodrama

For the first time, American scientists have published a paper showing that wastewater from a shale-gas well and a coalbed methane site, disposed of by injecting it into a deep well, has reached a surface stream.

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Driverless cars

The Queen’s speech: all talk and no tech

May 23, 2016 Comments Off on The Queen’s speech: all talk and no tech

Promises of driverless cars and space travel ring empty without funding for research.

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James Watt

Scots manufacturing: time to revive Enlightenment traditions

May 20, 2016 Comments Off on Scots manufacturing: time to revive Enlightenment traditions

Why it’s time for Scottish manufacturing to revive Enlghtenment traditions

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Innovation in India

Where is Indian design going?

May 17, 2016 Comments Off on Where is Indian design going?

On 17 February 2016 in Mumbai, after a two-year gap, the India Design Forum (IDF) holds its third conference.

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Automation anxiety

Automation anxiety and the future of IT

May 17, 2016 Comments Off on Automation anxiety and the future of IT

Every new day finds a fresh, still more breathless report about how robots, Artificial Intelligence and IT generally are poised to take up to half of all jobs in the West.

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Worldwide protectionist measures taken between 2008 and 2013. Source: Global Trade Alert

The spiral into neo-protectionism

March 5, 2016 Comments Off on The spiral into neo-protectionism

Especially since the 1980s, design and architecture have been international in character.

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China's consumer spending

Chinese consumer markets cannot be turned back

February 24, 2016 Comments Off on Chinese consumer markets cannot be turned back

Can China develop a coherent, vibrant internal market and break its dependency on large state-owned industries?

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Facebook is not the British Raj

No, Facebook isn’t the British Raj

February 18, 2016 Comments Off on No, Facebook isn’t the British Raj

The row about India’s access to the internet is a storm in a chai cup.

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Dido Harding, CEO Talk Talk

Navigating the new landscape in cybersecurity

February 16, 2016 Comments Off on Navigating the new landscape in cybersecurity

Martin Sorrell, CEO of the giant marketing services firm WPP, usually has a handle on the global zeitgeist in business – as an advertising man, it’s his job.

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Child migrants in Europe

Child migrants: Britain is far from full

February 8, 2016 Comments Off on Child migrants: Britain is far from full

David Cameron says he hates racism. He says he cares, deeply, about children – enough to cosset the charity Kids Company until well past its sell-by date.

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Disaster relief

Design and the future of disaster relief

January 8, 2016 Comments Off on Design and the future of disaster relief

I believe in man-made climate change. Yet with or without it, the world needs more growth, not less, if it’s to prevent extreme weather or man-made chaos bringing disaster. The same holds for design after a disaster has struck. We need an approach that’s practical, not preachy.

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Cop21 Paris 2015

Mass wind and solar? They’re 25 years away

December 19, 2015 Comments Off on Mass wind and solar? They’re 25 years away

After COP21, the Paris conference on climate change, it’s time to puncture Green euphoria about renewable energy

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China's productivity

China’s productivity

December 7, 2015 Comments Off on China’s productivity

The use of labour has been China’s main economic strength. Can it move beyond that?

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Manufacturing at Heart

November 29, 2015 Comments Off on Manufacturing at Heart


This manufacturing.fm interview, entitled ‘Thinking about the future’ was produced as a Manufacturing at Heart podcast

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Stuffitis, Affluenza and the Circular Economy

Stuffitis, Affluenza and the Circular Economy

November 28, 2015 Comments Off on Stuffitis, Affluenza and the Circular Economy

Lecture to design students at Central Saint Martin’s, University of the Arts, London, November 2015. The session was aimed at questioning the contemporary Green zeitgeist, which completely dominates the design scene, both in higher education and in practice.

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‘Ethical’ design – or the ethic of progress?

November 21, 2015 Comments Off on ‘Ethical’ design – or the ethic of progress?

Years ago, I saw the great US graphic design writer Stephen Heller address a big crowd of students in London.

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Circular economy

Circular business models won’t revive urban manufacturing

November 17, 2015 Comments Off on Circular business models won’t revive urban manufacturing

In design, one needn’t always accept the problem as given. So why are we talking business models anyway?

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Mockup of Retail 2020

Retail 2020: Of robots, shelves and packs

November 12, 2015 Comments Off on Retail 2020: Of robots, shelves and packs

In all today’s euphoric-apocalyptic hysteria about how the robots are coming, one sector is woefully neglected (1).

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US Secretary of Defense, Ash Carter

New wars, new technology

October 28, 2015 Comments Off on New wars, new technology

James Woudhuysen joined a panel discussion entitled New wars, new technology at the Battle of Ideas in the Barbican, October 2015

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Over the Black Sea, by Alexei Leonov (1973)

Cosmonauts: a tribute to Russian grit

October 20, 2015 Comments Off on Cosmonauts: a tribute to Russian grit

What is it about the Russians and space flight?

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Design magazine 1979

Design and the future of IT

October 16, 2015 Comments Off on Design and the future of IT

I will tell you one thing about IT. In international design, the Powers That Be are infatuated with it.

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Martin Winterkorn

VW: a panto of Green politics

October 1, 2015 Comments Off on VW: a panto of Green politics

Paul Seaman and James Woudhuysen

Last week, everyone learned that Volkswagen (VW) fitted special, duplicitous software to its diesel-powered cars.

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The Future of Innovation – at Fujitsu

September 24, 2015 Comments Off on The Future of Innovation – at Fujitsu

James Woudhuysen delivers the keynote address to Fujitsu UK & Ireland’s conference of Distinguished Engineers, held on 24 September 2015 at Warwick University

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Sexbot

Invasion of the sexbots? Get a grip

September 23, 2015 Comments Off on Invasion of the sexbots? Get a grip

In 1988, before the internet arrived in anybody’s house, I helped lead Britain’s first study of e-commerce – what was then known as ‘teleshopping’.

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Sheffield Crucible Theatre

Report on Sheffield City Centre, September 2015

September 22, 2015 Comments Off on Report on Sheffield City Centre, September 2015

This report suggests how technology and a fresh, libertarian approach to the future of Britain’s cities could go one better than the samey, grey spatial determinism that passes for urban policy these days

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Molten man

What agility means for small business

September 17, 2015 Comments Off on What agility means for small business

With the new digital tools that are now available, organisations of every size can trade ideas and collaborate more easily than ever before.

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Where next for company cars?

The attractiveness of cars in a Green age

September 4, 2015 Comments Off on The attractiveness of cars in a Green age

Britons want to do their bit for the environment. We are conscious of energy ratings when we buy or rent houses; we give money and time to green causes; we recycle more of our waste. Moreover Britain’s political parties continuously repeat how committed they are to fighting global warming.

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Our hero: Gensets provide critical power where it’s needed

August 6, 2015 Comments Off on Our hero: Gensets provide critical power where it’s needed

After April, when Nepal suffered its worst earthquake in 80 years, the technology made it to the front page of the New York Times.

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Lewis Carroll and Children

Why Alice is still wonderful

July 26, 2015 Comments Off on Why Alice is still wonderful

In July 1865, the Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, a mathematics lecturer at Christ Church, Oxford, published the first edition of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll.

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Mobility trends in rail

Mobility trends and the professional use of IT in European rail, 2015-2025

July 18, 2015 Comments Off on Mobility trends and the professional use of IT in European rail, 2015-2025

Perhaps the growing attention given to major disasters at sea, on the roads, in the air and on the railways is just to do with the speed and video quality of news now available on the Web.

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Mobility trends in aviation

Mobility trends and the professional use of IT in European aviation, 2015-2025

July 18, 2015 Comments Off on Mobility trends and the professional use of IT in European aviation, 2015-2025

In 2012, the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development said that air passenger traffic could double in 15 years; airfreight could treble in 20 years.(1)

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Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State

Humanitarian design = cultural imperialism

June 16, 2015 Comments Off on Humanitarian design = cultural imperialism

Developed economies have all done raw material-munching, pollution-belching industrial revolutions.

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Glaskugel Crystal Ball

Futureproofing your business

June 2, 2015 Comments Off on Futureproofing your business

I feel good about not booking my Amtrak train from Washington to New York City two days earlier than I did. In this manner I avoided the murderous crash that happened on that line.

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The coming niches for UK design

May 13, 2015 Comments Off on The coming niches for UK design

Where could the UK economy go next? Manufacturing accounts for 70 per cent of UK R&D, and large foreign firms take 54 per cent of it.

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Transport in UK election

Transport in the UK election, 2015

May 1, 2015 Comments Off on Transport in the UK election, 2015

While Japan is building floating trains, British politicians are promising (slightly) lower fares.

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Manufacturing

New ideas that could give UK manufacturing a lift

April 23, 2015 Comments Off on New ideas that could give UK manufacturing a lift

Advocates often exaggerate the speed of development and the impact of new technologies. Yet by 2035, those that are now emerging will have matured – and in some of them the UK is already strong.

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China's patent assessed

China’s leap forward on patents

March 30, 2015 Comments Off on China’s leap forward on patents

How groundbreaking are China’s patents? How innovative really is China?

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China's patent assessed

China’s leap forward on patents – in German

March 30, 2015 Comments Off on China’s leap forward on patents – in German

How groundbreaking are China’s patents? How innovative really is China?

What a difference seven months makes.

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Greening of education

The greening of the ivory towers in education

March 26, 2015 Comments Off on The greening of the ivory towers in education

A National Association of Scholars report interrogates the tyranny of sustainability in education.

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The future of retailing

The future of retailing

March 24, 2015 Comments Off on The future of retailing

I confess. Like most men, I find shopping boring. Yet what retailers do next is more interesting than the travails of Tesco today, or the more general problem of too much retail floorspace in the UK

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