YIMBY Pod – formerly The Abundance Agenda

We explain why The Abundance Agenda has a new name! James digs into a crazy story about how about how one village was almost cut off from civilisation for an entire year by… badgers. And the reason why is more infuriating than you think. And Martin tells the story of the biggest infrastructure project you’ve never heard of. * Plus we speak to Michael Hill from Britain Remade , about how to reconci...

On The Abundance Agenda this week, a special look back at four of our favourite segments from the show in 2025. James’s newsletter is here . (He wrote last week about why it’s time to reboot Back to The Future …) You can find Martin’s newsletter here , and his YouTube channel here . Don’t forget to tell your friends about the pod – and leave us a nice review on Apple Podcasts! The Abundance Agenda...

This week, we’re hosting a Christmas Quiz – all about transport, infrastructure, urbanism… and all the stuff we usually talk about, basically. The quiz master is Only Connect question-writer Stephen Jorgenson-Murray . On James’s team we have the excellent YouTuber CityEd ! (We particularly love his video about Manchester .) And Martin is joined by comedian, author, and QI Elf Andrew Hunter Murray!...

James explains why the National Grid’s queuing system is maddeningly broken – and how the government is trying to fix it. Martin takes us back to World War II to tell the story of an extraordinary railway bridge in Weston-super-Mare. And we speak London Assembly Member James Small-Edwards to dig into his new report, Gridlocked , which explains why data centres and new homes are forced to fight for...

The London Assembly has called for the Mayor to restart HS2 planning, so we dig into Crossrail 2 – and how construction has already (sort of) started. Martin has been down in the dumps, literally, and has been figuring out why Oxfordshire has an enormous pile of rubbish dumped just off the A34. We have a very quick chat with Chris Curtis MP , who has been down to Ebbsfleet to see where the ‘jumpin...

We dig into the findings from the Independent Nuclear Taskforce led by John Fingleton, on why Britain is so bad at building nuclear energy, and what we can do to fix it. And we speak to Shadow Secretary of State For Energy Security and Net Zero, Claire Coutinho , about why she has taken the abundance pill, why she advocates making energy cheap – and why she wants to repeal the Climate Change Act....

Martin digs into fascinating new public opinion research from CaSE about attitudes towards research and development. James looks at newly announced planning changes to make it easier to build near train stations – and why the government wants to stop theatres from vetoing development. And we speak to Fabian Chessell from the DATA Alliance about why the government needs to get better at sharing dat...

James explains why Manchester should bid for the Olympics as an insurance policy for Northern Powerhouse Rail. And we speak to architect Ivan Jordan about why the way we protect historic buildings is broken – and why the listed system needs replacing. James’s newsletter is here . Martin’s newsletter is here . Don’t forget to tell your friends about the pod – and leave us a nice review on Apple Pod...

Martin makes the surprisingly persuasive case for building a tunnel to the Isle of Wight. And we speak to Ed Jennings , founder and editor of Kent Current about the maddening story of how NIMBY concerns killed a significant battery storage facility, and just how much worse Reform is making things in Kent, now that the party is in charge of Kent County Council. The answer might surprise you! You ca...

Martin tells us the jaw-dropping story of a bridge built for HS2 which is even more egregious than the infamous bat tunnel. This is seriously not to be missed. James explains how a clever new database could make driving much less annoying. And we speak to Lord Ben Gascoigne , Chairman of the Built Environment Select Committee in the House of Lords, about the findings from the first module of the i...

We make the case for new build houses, explaining why they’re so much better than people think, and why you can save frankly an astonishing amount of money on energy bills. Then, relatedly, we speak to Barratt Redrow CEO David Thomas about how volume house-builders navigate Britain’s notorious planning laws, and his pitch for how building on existing carparks could unlock over 700,000 new homes. Y...

Martin describes how NIMBY activists in Cambridgeshire have destroyed a popular ‘cow experience’ – and what it says about our relationship with the countryside. James looks at the potential for chaos following the introduction of the European Entry/Exit System, and explains why the way we handle cross-channel freight traffic is broken – and how to fix it. Plus we speak to Tym Syrytczyk from Paradi...

Martin tells the extraordinary story of how Natural England appears to have assumed absolute power to stop all development in West Sussex… because of some pesky snails. James looks at shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho’s conference speech, and is pleasantly surprised. And we speak to Praful Nargund from the Good Growth Foundation about how four rapid reforms that can unblock house building, a...

We dig into the recommendations of the government’s New Town taskforce – and explore the twelve locations that have been selected for a new generation of New Towns. Martin takes the Guardian ’s NIMBY nonsense to task – and wonders if nature activists actually know what nature is. Plus we speak to Kane Emerson about the plan for the new town of Tempsford – and how it could be under construction by...

We get mad about a new document published by the government that seems like a beginners guide to jamming up the build-out of new energy infrastructure. And we speak to the amazing YouTuber CityEd , all about architecture, urban design, and how to build liveable cities. James has written an accompanying piece about the NIMBY charter here . James’s piece about Liam Byrne – and whether he’s had his W...

James looks at the big US-UK nuclear agreement, and explores some of the exciting nuclear projects that might happen here because of it. Martin explains the 18 year long redevelopment sage playing out in Bristol, where plans have been consistently derailed by a single barge. And then we speak to Michael Jenner , CEO of Last Energy UK , the nuclear firm building a nuclear reactor at the London Gate...

Martin tells us about his trip to see one of HS2’s ‘green tunnels’ under construction – and why digging a cut-and-cover tunnel is so much more complex than it sounds. James explains why the Sunday trading laws might be about to change – and why he’s going to unjustifiably take credit for it, if it happens. And we speak to Simon Dudley , chair of the Representative Planning Group about how the new...

How Angela Rayner’s department killed a major new brownfield housing development in Cambridge – and how her replacement Steve Reed might be able to undo this terrible mistake. Plus Martin discovers that Reform in Lincolnshire is building its own bat tunnel. And we speak to Dr Alicia Greated , executive director of the Campaign for Science and Engineering about industrial policy and how even Reform...

Martin looks at the BBC’s coverage of the Universal theme park and asks… why is it so weirdly negative? James reminds everyone about Eurostar’s forgotten stations – in Ebbsfleet and and Ashford, which haven’t seen international trains since 2020. And we speak to Sally Gimson about her new book Off The Rails: The Inside Story of HS2 (out now!) . The Good Growth Foundation’s report on re-opening Ash...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * James talks about ‘London Unchained’, a new paper by Labour Together and the YIMBY Alliance that figures out how we could actually pay for the much-needed Bakerloo line extension, level-up the north, and protect the credibility of the public finances… all at the same time! * And we speak to Sam Freedman , author of the Comment is Freed newsletter , about what t...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * Can deleting emails and photos really save water? James unpacks possibly the worst government advice ever published. * Martin pitches a bold new strategy for wiping out obesity and saving the NHS billions of pounds. * And we speak to Ruth Cadbury , Chair of the Transport Select Committee in Parliament, about integrated journeys, HS2, autonomous cars… and James’...

Is AI actually a big deal or not? Following the launch of GPT5, James and Martin finally hash out the biggest unresolved tension on the podcast. Martin, an AI sceptic makes the case that the tech bro hype is out of control. And James, a wide-eyed optimist argues that actually maybe Large Language Models are a significant technology after all. Plus we talk about why the AI critics are so annoying,...

Plus is the government about to legalise e-scooters? And how did the government persuade the Daily Mail that it's a good idea? Plus we speak to Alistair Strathern MP about Old Bridge Way and what it tells us about the fraying social contract between politicians and voters. Martin’s big post on Old Bridge Way is here . James’s post on a similar mess in Kent is here . Martin’s post on “WASPInomics”...

Does the populist left believe in abundant energy and housing? Why was a major housing development rejected in Peckham? And we speak to former nuclear minister Lord Hunt of Kings Heath. You can find James’s piece on amendments wrecking the planning bill here . Martin’s piece on WASPInomics will be here . Don’t forget to tell your friends about the pod – and leave us a nice review on Apple Podcasts...

Why the government is surrendering to Big Nature. And we speak to the Deputy Mayor of London about building homes in the capital. James’s piece on the Planning Bill amendments and why the government might screw it up is here . Martin’s piece on climate emergencies will be here . James’s other piece on the vacuum where Starmerism should be – and how Abundance can fill it, is here . Don’t forget to...