On Tuesday, activists from ‘Raise the Colours’ erected flags along Abingdon Road in broad daylight. We ask who is behind it – and why the campaign is so controversial. oxfordclarion.uk/raise-the-co...

Just for avoidance of doubt, this would be a war crime. It could arguably be multiple war crimes as it would violate multiple international laws which specifically prohibit the destruction of objects indispensable to civilian survival, which "obliterating Iran's power plants" would definitely be.

Aside from all the many other ways this is self defeating stupidity, I don’t think it is going to do wonders for our effort to reboot relations with the EU when our government is stranding teenagers with dual British-EU nationality abroad.

This should be put to a House of Commons vote.

Tricky one this. Reopening the Straits is something that any reasonable person would regard as a priority. I'm less nervous about this than the US using our bases for things they claim are "defensive" ops which turn out not to be.

Neuste Entwicklung im Fall autoritäre Umgestaltung des Kulturbetriebs: Die BKM-Jurys sollen wohl so besetzt werden, dass ein Problem wie mit dem Buchhandlungspreis gar nicht mehr auftritt. Wird langsam zum größten Angriff auf die Kunstfreiheit seit Gründung der BRD. www.spiegel.de/kultur/wolfr...

This is very much worth reading and sharing. 80% of Labour's support came from people who said they would vote to rejoin the EU - only a little below the equivalent figure of 86% in 2019. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Of all Osborne/Cameron's cynical and divisive policies, this act of pointless cruelty was probably the worst. The Government's decision to abolish it should be welcomed by everybody who cares about children in this country. www.gov.uk/government/n...

Spot on that the battle for the right is not Tories vs Reform but liberalism vs grim authoritarianism.

Blue Labour in a panicked retreat. Let’s keep the pressure up until this iniquitous policy is buried five miles underground.

Good for Rayner. Glad to see someone in the party stand up against what I agree is ‘un-British’ - changing the rules arbitrarily on people who made big life commitments. It’s about keeping your word.

Badenoch today criticises Trump's attacks on Starmer's Iran stance as childish but yesterday attacked that stance on the grotesque grounds of appeasing 'sectarianism'. Why? Transparently because she calculates that both lines appeal to her voter base. Deeply unserious politics at such a serious time

Ireland's Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, showing admirable clarity and some courage in gently correcting Trump here about Starmer. Thankyou and Happy St. Patrick's Day.

The U.K. Government is opting for the EU over Trump. They won't shout this from the rooftops, but this is the implicit political message from Rachel Reeves' Mais lecture today: “No partnership is more important than that between the UK and our European neighbours.”

If true, Trumps war games seem even more raving mad than they do anyway. If that’s even possible.

Emily Thornberty is right. Sending Charles to Trump now could not only damage the UK, but also the monarchy itself. It's a lose-lose for Britain.

A flight taken by the FT over the estate (owned by Viktor Orban’s father) revealed what the roadside hides: carefully manicured gardens; pools cut into the sprawling grounds; a palm house and a chapel; and a grand main building with gleaming wings www.ft.com/content/1e44...

Now with ENGLISH subtitles: ZDF MAGAZIN ROYALE about the War for Iran youtu.be/Vjcx3pAKxP8?...

Trouble brewing in German European politics - research from @dpa.com released over the weekend shows that cooperation between the EPP and the far-right including the ESN/AfD on migration policy is far more extensive than argued by Manfred Weber:

His whole life, Trump has always had someone else around to bail him out of the messes he creates: his father, Allen Weisselberg, the "adults in the room" in his first term. Now all those protectors are gone and he is openly begging for someone to save him from his own folly.

I don't think these classification battles are helpful, because there are various interests represented in MAGA. Trump is a corrupt would-be autocrat. Stephen Miller is openly fascist. Rubio is a standard-issue Republican hawk. Tech allies are oligarchic.

A really important piece that sets the record straight re Springer. Hardly a solid pro-European centre right company as some in the U.K. mistakenly described it. 👇👇

Not even the Nazis expressly announced they were committing war crimes. Indeed, at Nuremberg war crimes were denied. But here, openly, the US Secretary for Defense is explicitly admitting to committing war crimes.

Brexit always meant the UK inevitably becoming a rule taker instead of one of the rule makers, this was obvious to anyone who gave it half a thought…🤦‍♂️

"Palantir CEO Alex Karp thinks his AI technology will lessen the power of 'highly educated, often female voters, who vote mostly Democrat' while increasing the power of working-class men." Remind me again why Labour is shoving vast public contracts down its throat?

Yes. This is transparently the plan. It is a destructive and unconstitutional plan. And it can be stopped. It can even be turned into an electoral issue that hurts Trump. But only if we face this now.

Another brilliant piece by Nick Cohen well worth your time. 👇

It should be a clear warning that it is particularly Serbia pushing for the idea of EU accession without veto, hoping it can enter into the single market without fulfilling the rule of law or democracy criteria.

Violence is fun. That’s the new quality really with Trump 2.0.

The finest take down of the institution of monarchy and "class" and the grasping, greedy, venal, entitled, and very stupid people it enables that you will read today or any day. www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Was für ein Flurschaden für eine Branche, die ohnehin unter Druck steht. Statt sich - wie großspurig von ihm angekündigt - um die Regulierung von Monopol-Akteuren wie Google zu kümmern, beschädigt Weimar massiv das Ansehen der so wichtigen, kleinen Buchläden im Land. Ein Bärendienst für die Kultur.

So finally in the 21st century after a debate of more than 25 years we decided to abolish feudalism. Or at least the most visible part of it. 👇

On the absurdity of setting UK interests by a Trump doctrine when not even the US national interest is served by the president www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Satire was dead long ago. Now he did the same to standup comedy. Flabbergasting.

A dusty awkward attempt of spring. But it’s coming…

Cancel the April state visit to the US. A state visit from our King should not be given to someone who repeatedly insults our country.

Trump's decision to bomb Iran is now the greatest windfall to the Russian war effort on record. If it continues, it might save the Russian war economy.

Now that Trump has anointed himself the new Supreme Leader of Iran, my (not very optimistic) thoughts on where his crusade to bring peace and stability to the Middle East via “death and destruction from the sky” may be heading…

Tony Blair might do better to keep schtum on this particular subject.

Rather than concentrate on the wildfire war he's just started, Trump is spending his time on the phone with British journalists slagging off Keir Starmer. Their dictation skills turn out to be excellent www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/politics/lab...

Can't be a good sign (for him) when Trump is even losing his temper with the Fox News reporters...

Not quite sure what it will take for MAGA to see Putin as an enemy.

Three cheers for @robertshrimsley.bsky.social. Am reading and listening to too many self-styled fans of liberal democracy saying, in effect, 'let's park international law for the moment and talk about....'

A timely warning from @davidallengreen.bsky.social www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

Sri Lanka Airport. While the world is on fire, these guys have a well deserved break.

Am sticking with my bet that the right is reading this wrong and that the majority of voters are not at all unhappy Starmer has upset Trump by holding back from a war whose purpose and end game no-one seems able to define.

Remember when Trump promised that India would stop buying Russian oil? Well it turns out that Trump's decision to bomb Iran has had the exact opposite effect, leading to a surge of Russian oil being sent to India. www.indiatoday.in/india/story/...

“Hanging on to President Trump’s latest words is not the special relationship” …a useful message there from Starmer for the BBC’s hyperbolic political reporting as well as for Badenoch.

Die Grünen in UK zeigen vor allem auch, dass die extreme Rechte nicht die populärste Partei bei jungen Wähler_innen sein muss. Sie sind das Antidot zu Reform.