YIMBY Pod – formerly The Abundance Agenda

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * Martin debunks the myth of ‘land-banking’ – and explains why all of the incentives for housing developers are totally broken. * James explores a new paper which sets out how the government could conceivably build Heathrow’s notorious third runway… before the next election! * And we speak to the excellent Michael Dnes about how a focus on time can speed up infra...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * Martin digs into the Ten Year Plan for the NHS (which is more important than whether Rachel Reeves was smiling) – and we get mad at the stupid moralising about the use of weight loss drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic. * James explains why the innocuous new GOV.UK app is actually a major step towards the total transformation of the British state. * And we speak to A...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * James looks at the government’s new attempt to make phone signal on trains better – and explore why getting reliable 4G and 5G on the rails is a really difficult problem. * Martin reveals why the Office of National Statistics might have inadvertently broken a whole bunch of economic statistics – and why this is bad if you care about knowing what is actually hap...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * Martin digs into the Stewart Review on why HS2 has been such a nightmare construction project. Spoiler: It ain’t pretty. * James looks at progress towards having autonomous cars driving on London’s roads – and explores a new report on some of the second and third-order consequences of autonomous vehicles becoming a real thing in the world. * Then we speak to te...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * James is vindicated as Sizewell C has finally been funded! * Martin digs into the economics of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) * We explore the implications of Rachel Reeves supporting Northern Powerhouse Rail * …And James enters ‘The Cope Zone’ and explains how maybe – just maybe – the northern leg of HS2 might not be quite dead yet * Plus we speak to Kirsty Inn...

On The Abundance Agenda this week: * Martin digs into the NIMBY assault on the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which is back in Parliament this week. * We get mad at the Guardian and Natural England (again). * We explore the big Abundance question at the heart of the Spending Review. * And in a surprisingly candid interview, former Conservative cabinet minister Sir Simon Clarke makes the case fo...

On a packed episode of The Abundance Agenda this week: * James and Martin run through five reasons to be optimistic, including the exciting news that the government has taken control of the planning powers for two major new reservoirs. * James heads to Old Oak Common, the massive new HS2 station in West London, and speaks to HS2 Station Delivery Director Huw Edwards about progress inside the 1.8km...

On The Abundance Agenda this week, Martin explores new research which reveals that the planning system is – amazingly – even more dysfunctional than we thought. Then James digs into some new polling from Ipsos , which reveals that a plurality of people are actually supportive of building new homes. Then we have an update on the National Parking Platform, which we swear is more interesting than it...

On The Abundance Agenda this week, James explains why buses are cool – and shares depressing news about what appears to be another delay to HS2. Then Martin digs deep into a new report packed with ideas for increasing Britain’s housing supply. The secret? More air conditioning and smaller homes! And finally, we speak to writer, comedian and prolific podcaster Andrew Hunter Murray about the phenome...

On this week’s Abundance Agenda , we discuss Sadiq Khan’s dramatic YIMBY U-turn, announcing this week that London needs to build on its green belt – and why the real villains are London’s golf courses. Then we dig into the failure to build a massive new North Sea wind farm – and wonder what the changing economics of wind mean for the government’s 2030 Net Zero grid pledge. And finally, we speak to...

On this week’s Abundance Agenda , James reveals the secrets of what Tony Blair actually said about climate policy – by actually reading the words he has written. Then because it’s the 80th anniversary of VE Day this week, Martin shares some utterly mind-boggling numbers from D-Day – and explains why it was Abundance wot won it. And finally, we speak to Lindy Fursman , author of the aforementioned...

On this week’s episode of The Abundance Agenda , Martin tells James a frankly horrifying story about another attempt to delay the construction of HS2, and then we speak to former OpenAI frontier AI researcher Rosie Campbell about why her new non-profit, Eleos Research , is focusing on the emerging field of “AI Welfare”. The Abundance Agenda is available on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , and hopefully...

On this week’s episode of The Abundance Agenda , hosts James O’Malley and Martin Robbins make a bold prediction about when the Sizewell C nuclear plant will get the green light. Then Martin horrifies James with a frankly shocking deep dive into caravans – or trailer homes. And finally, we speak to Robert Colvile , Director of the right-leaning Centre for Policy Studies about his views on the Plann...

In Episode 6 of The Abundance Agenda podcast, hosts James O'Malley and Martin Robbins explore positive developments in the UK, particularly focusing on new theme park projects and the challenges facing British Steel. The episode kicks off discussing Universal's plan to build a massive theme park resort in Bedfordshire, expected to create thousands of jobs and boost the local economy. The conversat...

In the fifth episode of The Abundance Agenda , hosts James O’Malley and Martin Robbins explore (rage at) a deeply terrible proposal to make it harder for the Mayor of London to do their job. Then they dig into plans to double the capacity of Luton Airport, looking at how the airport democratised air travel in the past – and how to reconcile caring about climate change with the need to expand airpo...

The Future of Infrastructure: Examining the Lower Thames Crossing and Everything-ism In this episode of the Abundance Agenda podcast, hosts James O'Malley and Martin Robbins discuss the UK government's plan to invest £2 billion in affordable housing and the significant approval of the Lower Thames Crossing. They explore the transport infrastructure project's details, challenges with the existing r...

In this episode of 'The Abundance Agenda,' hosts James O'Malley and Martin Robbins dive into a story from Braintree in Essex where local resident Barry Thompson has faced ongoing challenges from the council in his efforts to install solar panels on his house. They discuss the irony of councils blocking green initiatives while declaring climate emergencies. The hosts also touch on broader issues su...

In this episode of the Abundance Agenda, hosts James O'Malley and Martin Robbins delve into the implications of the new planning and infrastructure bill, exploring its potential to address issues like high-speed rail project inefficiencies and the infamous 'bat tunnel' problem. They discuss how the bill seeks to simplify the planning process and remove bureaucratic hurdles, emphasizing the signifi...

The Abundance Agenda: Navigating the Impatience of Progress In the inaugural episode of 'The Abundance Agenda,' hosts James O'Malley and Martin Robbins delve into the concept of abundance and why it matters in today's world. They discuss the slow progress of major infrastructure projects in the UK, like HS2 and the Bakerloo Line extension, and the resulting frustration. The conversation also cover...

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