🔴 SCOOP: Wife of Starmer’s comms chief had direct knowledge of Labour Together’s investigation into journalists, documents seen by D4S show Revelation heaps more pressure on minister Josh Simons to explain why he paid a PR firm to dig dirt on reporters democracyforsale.substack.com/p/starmer-al...

London public transport is generally great but it’s very annoying that I’m at Stratford ‘international’ to get train to St Pancras to get the train to Amsterdam

This story keeps getting bigger.

🔴 SCOOP: Wife of Starmer’s comms chief had direct knowledge of Labour Together’s investigation into journalists, documents seen by D4S show Revelation heaps more pressure on minister Josh Simons to explain why he paid a PR firm to dig dirt on reporters democracyforsale.substack.com/p/starmer-al...

Not seen this lad’s byline in yonks but wasn’t he supposed to be the sane Telegraph columnist?

Really proud to be joining the editorial board at @humanists.uk Incredibly impressive people - plus means that will finally get that pint with @iandunt.bsky.social!

Wow! Palestine Action win judicial review - Guardian report. This is a *big* legal win. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

Oh wow our @38degrees.bsky.social petition to cap political donations in the UK has over 94k signatures!! 💥 There's still lots of time for amendments to Elections Bill. Would be so powerful to get it over 100k Can you help? Please sign and share! Thanks! 😀 you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/ta...

Oh wow our @38degrees.bsky.social petition to cap political donations in the UK has over 94k signatures!! 💥 There's still lots of time for amendments to Elections Bill. Would be so powerful to get it over 100k Can you help? Please sign and share! Thanks! 😀 you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/ta...

They haven’t heard you yet. Please add your voice you this call:

Oh god Frost has discovered Ayn Rand. A mediocrity explosion.

The Elections Bill is really very thin on political finance. Some loopholes closed, some warm words, but still unlimited political donations. That's why we're working with @38degrees.bsky.social to call for a cap on donations Please sign and share: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/ta...

On the podcast: @piercepenniless.bsky.social, @petergeoghegan.bsky.social and @ethanshone.bsky.social discuss Mandelson’s influence and explore how the lobbying and advisory industries are undermining democratic legitimacy. Listen wherever you get podcasts. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...

"In place of real politics, it has office politics." Really good piece by Aditya Chakrabortty (Includes link to Democracy for Sale's piece about Alan Milburn's massive private earnings and a name check for my @lrb.co.uk scribbling on Labour and the lobbyists.) www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Yesterday: we exposed the terrifying extent of corporate capture in British politics Three Labour select committee chairs came out calling for urgent action in response Today: Labour government's Elections Bill lands. Does almost *nothing* to tackle any of the issues we exposed. 🤦

‘We should say that there are fans are at Old Trafford who 💯 applaud what Radcliffe is saying’, BBC 5 Live presenter says after a semi critical comment from a guest. Why ‘should we say’ that some bigoted people agree with the bigoted rich man?

Corruption. Nothing less can describe the scale of this influence. I asked ministers this week if they would cap donations at the same time as asking about openness on lobbying meetings, and this was the part of the question they refused to answer.

Blooming heck I’m 4th on the ‘most users added’ on here list- for the world!?! Ahead of @weratedogs.com but behind the inimitable @pickardje.bsky.social

Rarely mentioned but about much of Ratcliffe’s business ‘success’ is based on draining public money (very common among these ‘self made tycoons’) Eg democracyforsale.substack.com/p/ineos-set-...

Really enjoyed this conversation about lobbying, influence and money in politics with James and Ethan on @lrb.co.uk podcast

The point about high-net worth individuals is telling and worth emphasising A whole bunch of Labour policies that didn't appear in the manifesto and that almost everybody hates seem oddly familiar from e.g. the Epstein files and other glimpses we have into that world

🔴 Exclusive: Corporate donations British parties tripled over last three elections But here's key thing: almost none is from FTSE500/listed companies It's almost all companies controlled by super-wealthy individuals, or small, opaque firms New on D4S: democracyforsale.substack.com/p/revealed-c...

🔴 Investigation opened into PR firm's work investigating journalists and sources for Labour Together PRCA has launched a probe into APCO Worldwide following Democracy for Sale's reporting Now will Cabinet minister Josh Simons explain himself? democracyforsale.substack.com/p/pr-firm-pr...

I think it’s something to do with the endless rain in London but am on a *massive* Magnetic Fields kick (Missed them a few months ago live as had Covid. Grrr) www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqrQ...

I think it’s something to do with the endless rain in London but am on a *massive* Magnetic Fields kick (Missed them a few months ago live as had Covid. Grrr) www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqrQ...

Labour's @johnmcdonnellmp.bsky.social written to General Sec Hollie Ridley for 3rd time calling for independent inquiry into Labour Together "Keir Starmer yesterday promised a change of culture in the party. This will be an early test of that promise” democracyforsale.substack.com/p/pr-firm-pr...

🔴 Investigation opened into PR firm's work investigating journalists and sources for Labour Together PRCA has launched a probe into APCO Worldwide following Democracy for Sale's reporting Now will Cabinet minister Josh Simons explain himself? democracyforsale.substack.com/p/pr-firm-pr...

This is pretty menacing. Sarah Pochin wrote to Bangor's university student run debating society requesting that she attend to "answer questions from students." When they said "no" Reform rolled all it's tanks onto the lawns and said they'll cut funding to the entire university if they win.

This is a must read thread 🧵

Important thread ... 👇

I know it’s a very busy day but this story *really* matters Josh Simons says he hired ‘a PR company’ to investigate a ‘suspected illegal hack’ But if you’re worried about a hack, why pay £30k to a PR firm? A lot about this story isn’t right. And a cabinet office minister is at the centre of it

A video! With me! About Democracy for Sale's latest revelations about Labour Together, which lead all the way to Starmer's Downing Street.

"This is why Simons’ comments are so significant. If he was so worried about a “suspected illegal hack” why commission a PR firm? Why produce dossiers on journalists and talk about having “leverage” over them? And why brief a story making reporters look like unwitting agents of foreign hackers?"

This is a huge story and must be treated as such. We allow too much side-stepping of accountability, with journalists often expected to bear the brunt of forcing the issue. Journalists and their sources must be protected - if they are not, the situation is pretty dire

Listen out for the silences & where they're coming from surrounding this story. It is highly telling which big platform commentators & opinion havers in & around Labour who are usually very vocal on most things haven't uttered a squeak about this huge story

Suspect this story could blow up in a big way

There are a lot of Labour crises going on right now, but this is an important thread on the honesty of a key Starmer minister’s response to allegations of paying a PR firm to investigate journalists.

When he ran Labour Together, Cabinet Office minister Josh Simons hired a PR firm to investigate journalists After our revelations, and a flurry of news stories, Simons finally gave his side of the story But it doesn't seem to tally with the facts... 🧵 democracyforsale.substack.com/p/mcsweeney-...

Well, this quote has aged interestingly.

Morgan McSweeney has resigned Lots of reasons for it but among them is our revelation on Thursday evening that McSweeney’s think tank paid a PR firm to investigate journalists. McSweeney was across that decision. Still so many questions to answer about it

Brought youngest to Arsenal women’s today. Was terrific!

Labour Together paid a PR firm £30k+ to investigate journalists that were digging into how its undeclared funding bankrolled Starmer’s successful Labour leadership campaign Watch the video on Democracy for Sale's YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_V5...

In competence and venality of the old political elite is ushering in a class of oligarchic politicians that are backed by unprecedented levels of private wealth and driven by some batshit crazy ideas (that just happen to be good for their wealth…) Thiel is a prime mover in this

Oligarchic media gonna oligarchic media

Rarely have I been to anything that captured the spirit of a person like last night’s remembrance of Conor Gearty at LSE. Like Conor, it was by turns hilarious, thought provoking and filled with a deep sense of empathy Possibly the finest Longford man I’ll ever know. He’s still so much missed

🤪😡😤The photo for the profile is actually taken in the home Salisbury that was raided by police yesterday

Hahahaha

I had to check the date on this three times ‘At home with Peter Mandelson’ in Times magazine *today* This is how we cover corruption in Britain? Seriously??

That @petergeoghegan.bsky.social is onto something here and he's not letting go of it open.substack.com/pub/democrac...

Cabinet Office minister Josh Simons commissioned PR firm to investigate journalists and their sources Why? Because they were digging into the dark money behind Labour Together, and Keir Starmer's rise Me on D4S, on why our revelations matter so much: democracyforsale.substack.com/p/labour-tog...