Well this Green candidate has been on an interesting political journey... - 2026 – Green Party (Bexley, local election) [Previously, many parties inc...] - 2015 – Christian Party (Old Bexley & Sidcup, UKGE) - 2014 – Christian Peoples Alliance (London, MEP seat) - 2010 – English Democrats (UKGE)

Covid Bereaved Families for Justice have written to Reform following my story on the party's Covid-conspiracy theorist candidate and others

🔴 "Trojan Horse? Rupert Lowe’s Far-Right Restore Britain Is Standing 13 Candidates as ‘Independents’ in One Council Anti-racist campaigners accuse the ex-Reform MP of seeking to “disguise” the extreme views and affiliations of his candidates" bylinetimes.com/2026/04/17/t...

Enjoyed 'On the Ground' and particularly the 'Silver Linings' in this month's @bylinetimes.bsky.social thank you @josiahmortimer.bsky.social

Covid Bereaved Families on my story yday ICYMI

EXPOSED: How Viktor Orbán Bankrolled the Network Around Reform UK As Hungary’s Prime Minister suffers a historic electoral defeat, Byline Times maps out how his government’s funding arm channelled hundreds of thousands of pounds into organisations at the heart of Britain’s hard right.

Mark Andrew Ashdown, Reform UK candidate in the East Sussex local election: "I have also worked in the Solar Energy Industry, which already is the answer to most of our energy problems. I’m surprised at the lack of uptake in the UK." Telling renewable firms you are at "war" with them won't help...

New NHS stats for England, via the Health Foundation: ‘The waiting list for routine hospital treatment fell to 7.22 million in February, the lowest in over 3 years, with a further improvement in waiting times and the number of very long waits."

Democracy Club have just estimated the gender balance of candidates in England's local elections: % Women by Party 🌹 Labour Party: 41% 🍃 Green Party: 40% 🔶 Liberal Democrats: 32% 🔵 Conservative: 30% 🚩 TUSC: 29% ⚪ Independent: 28% ⚫ Minor parties: 28% 🟣 Reform UK: 21% (Overall: Est. 32% female)

No 10 yday ICYMI: "The Home Office has confirmed the closure of eleven asylum hotels, with multiple more set to close in the coming weeks, as the Govt ramps up action to end the use of hotels for illegal migrants. This latest round of closures alone will save the taxpayer nearly £65 million a year."

Via Dept for Education yday ICYMI: "Students, apprentices and young people will soon be able to study and work across Europe, as the UK and EU sign the legal text in Brussels today to formally bring the UK into Erasmus+ in 2027" "Over 100,000 people are expected to benefit in the first year alone."

Pretty terrible that heavily-indebted Sotheby's has donated to Reform UK. Via Private Eye

"In Guyang-ri, a farming village of 70 households about 90 minutes south-east of Seoul, people gather for communal free lunches six days a week. "The meals are funded by the village’s one-megawatt solar installation, which generates roughly 10m won ($6,800) in net profit each month." Love this.

Hmm. Via London Centric: "Bailey Nash-Gardener, founder of the widely-followed social media news aggregation account Politics UK, is standing for Reform UK in Havering."

I hear neither Reform nor donor Delo want this news getting round. Via Private Eye

The crime and policing bill now goes back to the Lords - they have a lot of leverage right now given that parliament dissolves in just a few weeks

If one of my party's recent prime ministers had redecorated the Number 10 flat in a way that ended up involving TWO separate inquiries and a Wikipedia page, I would simply not have put out a press release confirming that the current prime minister had spent less than the allowance he was given.

This is potentially very cool. Hope it becomes a thing. www.energylivenews.com/2026/04/15/s...

Britain's broken energy grid strikes again www.pv-magazine.com/2026/04/15/r...

"Increased solar energy production and lower gas futures prices helped reduce electricity prices in most major European markets last week." Solar records broken in several countries www.pv-magazine.com/2026/04/15/f....

"Revenue at the publisher of The Sun fell 8% last year blamed in part on the impact of changes at platforms like Google on traffic and advertising." pressgazette.co.uk/media_busine....

Thanks to @insidecroydon.bsky.social for picking up my latest @bylinetimes.bsky.social story on a conspiracy-theorist Reform candidate... "Reform Kenley candidate’s ‘dangerous’ Covid conspiracy views" insidecroydon.com/2026/04/15/r...

"The picture of Orwell with his Indian nanny is the most violent image of the absurdity of racism. In that colonial relationship, the woman you despise, you give your most trusted being – it doesn't make sense" Very insightful to speak to the acclaimed Raoul Peck about his new film, Orwell: 2+2=5 👇

Reform UK Candidate Claimed COVID Was ‘Pentagon-Led Plot’ in Conspiracy Theory Journal Exclusive: Reform candidate David Booth is listed as the author of a paper arguing the pandemic was "staged" by Western military and intelligence agencies

🔴 Reform UK Candidate Claimed COVID Was ‘Pentagon-Led Plot’ in Conspiracy Theory Journal Exclusive: Reform candidate David Booth is listed as the author of a paper arguing the pandemic was “staged” by Western military and intelligence agencies bylinetimes.com/2026/04/15/r...

Umm...What is going on here? This is a search ad from Associated Newspapers - the owners of the i and Daily Mail

Thanks 2 those who picked up my findings + uncovered lots more twists + turns @bylinetimes.bsky.social @ollyhaynes.bsky.social @peterjukes.bsky.social @josiahmortimer.bsky.social @writesbright.bsky.social @petergeoghegan.bsky.social @desmog.com. Mainstream media, hbu? bylinetimes.com/2026/04/14/e...

The Electoral Commission has launched an "innovative pilot" to detect political deepfakes and counter the growing threat of AI misinformation. The pilot is now live ahead of the May elections in England, Scotland and Wales, the EC says.

He's not wrong. PR won't solve everything but it feels like a prerequisite to reversing the total lack of power people feel.

This is a great pledge but somewhat undermined by Plaid Cymru's policy of a "strong presumption" for undergrounding power lines. Undergrounding costs ~5-10 times more than overhead cables/pylons (in parts of Wales you'd be digging under mountains & valleys). No doubt making many projects unviable.

This is the "cumulative disruption" measure in the crime and policing bill. As I said last week, the police are primed to see all protest as disruptive. I mean, it's kind of the point of protest. This really should be a much bigger deal.

"Some 100 sites totalling 4GWp remain under construction across the [UK]. Over half of this capacity started construction before the end of Q2 2025 and is expected to become operational before the end of this year." www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/solar-projec...

I have seen a lot of NIMBY selfishness in my time, but "my convenience matters more than cancer care" is a new low. Quite seriously tempted to email them and tell them as much.

The Lib Dems are calling for a ban on MPs promoting or advertising specific financial products to the public, including crypto, stocks, and commodities like gold. Follows Farage appearing in a promo vid for a £2 million Bitcoin investment by the firm Stack BTC (and his role with a gold trading co.)

An international diamond dealer is running for Reform UK in Barnet "Inspired to enter public life after meeting Nigel Farage in Miami" Man of the people! Via WhoCanIVoteFor:

At least 6 Reform UK candidates work(ed) for the NHS: Tina Rose Beer (Exeter) - whole career in the NHS Oliver Freeston: (North East Lincs) - NHS worker Dan Bennett (Tameside) - NHS worker Liam Duff (Tameside) - nurse Nigel Swales (West Lancs) - paramedic Soham Bandyopadhyay (Southampton) - doctor

Reform candidate in Lambeth boasts of being a lobbyist for the oil & gas industry "[I] represented the energy industry in media, government and Parliaments. A key part of this was championing the role for gas in our energy mix." "As a result" he opposes net zero whocanivotefor.co.uk/person/10913...

This is an...interesting background for a Reform UK candidate Via WhoCanIVoteFor: "Marek Vojčík is a Slovak immigrant and NHS mental-health nurse for over 20 years."

I feel ‘serving kings’ is a rather charitable description of the activities of the best-known Thane of Cawdor.

Reform UK's Inverness and Nairn candidate Fred Campbell is an aristocrat, and the Earl of Cawdor’s brother Here's his election statement: "I am a son of the soil, my ancestors were the thanes of Cawdor, they served kings and queens, I hope to serve you" THANES! whocanivotefor.co.uk/person/12460...

We don't know how much Reform-run KCC sold this off for, but they flogged off about 100 works of council-owned art in March for just £32,000. Once they're gone from public hands, they're gone. £32,000 would barely cover an admin assistant for a year (when you inc. pension & emp taxes).

🔴Reform-Run Kent Council Sells Off Antony Gormley Sculpture After Raising Taxes Nigel Farage’s flagship council quietly sold Two Stones, one of the sculptor’s earliest commissions, as part of a wave of publicly owned art disposals that critics call “shameful” bylinetimes.com/2026/04/14/r...

🔴 Reform-Run Kent Council Sells Off Antony Gormley Sculpture Nigel Farage’s flagship council has quietly sold Two Stones, one of the sculptor’s earliest commissions, as part of a wave of publicly owned art disposals that critics call “shameful” bylinetimes.com/2026/04/14/r...

Support for Your Party has officially dropped to 0% (down 1 point) in YouGov's latest poll. Full results: Reform UK: 24% (no change from 6-7 April) Conservatives: 19% (=) Greens: 18% (+2) Labour: 17% (+1) Lib Dems: 13% (=) Restore Britain: 4% (=) SNP: 3% (=) Plaid Cymru: 1% (=) Your Party: 0% (-1)

The Chair of the Ethics and Integrity Commission (EIC), Doug Chalmers, is appearing in front of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee now (from 10am) The session will focus on the progress of the EIC since it was established last year.

YouGov: "Keir Starmer has rejected Donald Trump’s demands to send naval vessels to help enforce a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. New YouGov polling finds that the British public supports this decision. "56% of Britons say they are opposed to sending the navy...Only 23% are in favour."

Stinks.

Politico: "The Tories and Euroskeptic papers may kick off about the government’s EU reset, but More in Common polling...finds 66% of Brits want improved trading relations with the bloc, while 63% want tighter links on security & defense. Little wonder the government is so eager to have this fight."

Hard to overstate what a disaster this would be for public interest journalism