Great trustee roles at @bedehouse.bsky.social - the fantastic Southwark based community charity working on tackling domestic abuse and supporting people with learning disabilities. Please share with anyone you know who might be interested bedehouse.org.uk/volunteering/

I’m not sure it reflects all that well on Mason that the most aggressive interview he’s managed with a politician in quite some time is in defence of his own journalism. It’s also a fairly extraordinary attack to make in response to a fairly mild critique. Not sure his judgment on the money here.

There should be a high bar for politicians attacking the media, but maybe Ed Davey has half a point here? For example, the first three paragraphs of this BBC story repeat Reform's £243bn figure without saying that the thinktank behind the estimate now disowns it. (This is mentioned in paragraph 35)

Imagine you're in a weird romcom where Paul Hollywood is your rival. Do you go "let's have a bread baking competition" or do you emphasise your own relative strengths? Because that in short has been the central problem with the traditional two's approach to anti-immigration voters and Reform UK.

This is entirely right from Tony. You do not lead an argument against morally repugnant policy on the basis that it's impractical (even if it is: you save that for after the 'besides ...'). Unless you combat their values, you let them dictate what is acceptable.

It's obviously true unless something unexpected happens, but a) the incumbent government needs to actually have *delivered for its coalition* to lead a republican front b) the leader needs to be a plausible leader of it and c) they do need to actually be able to say 'Vichy was bad'.

Some very obvious cases that Farage and Yusuf need to be hammered on: 1. 78 year old pensioner on ILR for last 30 years who obviously cannot get work visa 2. 35 year old born in UK to non-nationals, never got UK citizenship because of cost, loses job and has to move to country they've never lived in

The reduction in the number of people coming to the United Kingdom is going to improve Labour's polling, the political debate around immigration and the British economy any day now.

It took ~9 months for Farage to go from disavowing mass deportations to promising them, and then 25 days to go from promising them to expanding that promise. At this rate I really dread to think where this policy will be by the next election... bsky.app/profile/sund...

Reform are now coming after people with permanent residency. It'll be citizens next. No one is safe from authoritarian governments.

Disappointed to learn @therestpolitics.bsky.social were bigging up Enough rape kits - behind the press releases there are real concerns about the kits, the company’s attitudes, claims, & lack of safeguarding As I reported! www.opendemocracy.net/en/enough-br...

her name couldn’t really be WILL OBEY

NEW Has the government overreached in using terrorism law against Palestine Action? A disclosed MI5 document indicates that the basis for proscription may be weak By me, at @prospectmagazine.co.uk www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

It's My Party and I'll cry if I want to

I just think it's so great that there's now a film called Steve

Exc: 13 Afghans who worked with the British Army are being deported back to Afghanistan despite being under the care of the British High Commission in Pakistan after delays getting them to the UK. inews.co.uk/news/politic...

An actual quote from the Secretary of State for Business and Trade Too often people go to university to ‘explore research and knowledge’ Look forward to Wes S saying 'too often people go to hospital to have operations' or Heidi Alexander saying 'too often people go to the station to catch a train'

About a third of ethnic minority respondents saw the flags as primarily pride and patriotism (33%) and a third as primarily worrying far right extremism and racism (35%) with a lot of 'it depends' responses about the context and intent

Opinium asked 500 ethnic minority respondents about racism and flags for ITV Good Morning Britain www.opinium.com/resource-cen...

Lol. How well did the last govt insulting load-bearing parts of their electoral coalition work out for them? Like they watched what the Lib Dems did to the home counties and wondered what it'd be like if the Greens did that to the two dozen largest university towns.

This & the rape last week in Oldbury should be national news but will be ignored by newspapers too excited at the thought they might get to play at being court press for fascists

Right. My students working two part time jobs and/or having an hour and a half commute to uni because they have to live at home due to the cost of student accommodation lack drive and vigour. Sure thing, Peter. The UK Govt still haven't a clue about the realities of universities today.

MHCLG estimating that "196,500 net additional homes have been delivered in England between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025". The numbers are heading in the wrong direction for the government to get anywhere near their 1.5m target and they'll be lucky to hit 1m at this rate.

I see Prospect Magazine has a new editor...

They are still trying to push for a way to blame trans people for Kirk's death. They wanted the killer to be trans SO BADLY. Now they are basically saying "who cares, let's kill trans people anyway, that's the retribution the right demands."

Best description of Arron Banks I've ever seen

Banks would be the outcome if shit shat.

This is really significant. For months, people have been telling me that if Teresa decides to call it a day it means she's given up on a) the Tories holding on to Bexley next May and (b), the Tories in general. And who can blame her? www.mylondon.news/news/south-l... #london #conservatives

More than 80% of the death toll in Gaza took place under President Biden, with his very active support. Under Trump, the genocide has taken a different shape: starvation, complete destruction of cities, and an explicit green light for annihilation. But without Biden we wouldn't be here.

Demand an end to the freelance rip off. Have your say in the UK government's consultation on late payments and poor practices. All freelance journalists are welcome to use the NUJ's resources to help shape your response. Let's stop the freelance rip-off! www.nuj.org.uk/resource/dem...

Umm...What's going on here then? find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/1661...

Spent the afternoon in north Bristol where police are doing door to door inquiries after a 9 yr old girl was shot in a racially aggravated attack. There was shock & disgust but also the community rallying round the family of the poor girl. Read more here: www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol...

"27, Plymouth Argyle" "Will play" "13, Crewe Alexandra" "That concludes the draw for the third round of the Sherpa Van Trophy. Ties will be played on the 17th and 18th of October"

NEW - Is BRICS the next climate leader? BRICS is in the news due to Trump and tariffs, but the group also has an interesting dynamic when it comes to climate 🇨🇳🇧🇷🇮🇳 have pushed fossil fuels to <50% of power + BRICS are shaping COP outcomes Read more in my new @carbonbrief.org piece (link below)

The fact that Your Party is developing organised factions before it even has a name or formal membership reminds me of the old joke about two Trot parties walk into a unity meeting and four walk out

Fascinating: Britain is about 13% of EU population. It used to take ~3% of all asylum applications. Now it takes ~10%.

They should call the two factions His Party and Her Party.

If this is what it took for you to be pushed into fascism you were probably already there

I've checked with the electoral commission and Sexist Boys' Club is available to register as a party name.

🚨 | Jeremy Corbyn has confirmed that the YourParty membership sign up link posted this morning by Zarah Sultana was unauthorised. Over 20,000 people had already signed up, with the standard rate being £55 per annum. These are set to be cancelled.

NEW: Britain’s fiercest libel firm, Carter-Ruck, acted for the $4bn OneCoin fraud and threatened its critics. Now they’re being prosecuted at the SDT. Their response? An anonymity order to cover it up. But Carter-Ruck just lost that order - and it's all coming out. Thread

Council spending in England on emergency housing for homeless families up 25% in past year, figures show, Patrick Butler reports - www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...

It helps to understand modern politics if you understand that parts of the new right are as dedicated to overthrowing modern democratic societies as much as the communist left of old. They believe society has become corrupted. What is different is their media and business support.

Bayern Munich and Bundesliga titles, except it's freeze peach centrists and Fell For It Again Awards

Right-wing attacks on free speech are nothing new. I wrote this five years ago. Yes, the left sometimes over-reached, but it's wrong to claim that the right's attacks are solely in response to that. www.ft.com/content/c966...

think if you're broadly a centrist and were suuuuuper concerned about attacks on free speech from the left and so you decided to give the right a hearing then you need to realise you were taken for QUITE the ride (and don't really have anyone to blame but yourself)

Private Eye

please ENJOY this clip of Mark Zuckerberg *just trying to answer a video call* with the new 'neural band' Meta is shilling and failing miserably during a live demo You get a prize if you can withstand all 1:42 of this youtu.be/D97ILdUbYww?...

If you think the worst possible thing you can ever be is "boring" you end up in some sinister places.