📊 It’s easy to lose sight of what all the numbers actually cost. But behind every figure is a nurse working double shifts, a ward left understaffed, a patient waiting longer for care. These aren’t statistics — they’re people. NHS staff and patients deserve better. 💙

🎄 The festive season won't stop us speaking up for staff & patients. Today is the perfect time to give back and join a movement that’s bigger than any one of us. 💙 Sign our Charter, share with friends and family, and stand up for the NHS we all deserve 👉 bit.ly/SignEDNHSCha...

PFI — you’ve probably heard the term, but what does it really mean for the NHS? 💷 PFIs were sold as a smart way to fund hospitals. In reality, they ended up costing the public billions more than they should have. With PFI-style schemes back on the table, it’s time to understand what’s at stake.👇

Record levels of people in hospital with ‘flu. #NHS facing ‘tidal wave’ of illness. But apparently we should protect Kemi Badenoch from being ‘traumatised’ rather than protect people’s health by wearing a mask. Also: please get vaccinated. @cbffjuk.bsky.social @longcovidadvoc.com

The medical experts are saying you should wear a mask in public if you’re ill to combat the rising cases of flu, but Kemi Badenoch, Nigel Farage & Jacob Rees-Mogg are against it, so I really don’t know who to listen to. As a country, we learnt absolutely nothing from Covid.

These bastards want to rule the country FFS. They can't cope with anything. We're wearing masks again at work in lots of cases. It's not "traumatic". Some of what our patients have/ are/ might go through is. Like losing a loved one to influenza A.

Kemi Badenoch has rejected mask-wearing to curb flu, saying she is “still traumatised” by “all the mask-wearing” during Covid. You know what's more traumatising than wearing a mask? Having your family members die because politicians played culture wars with their lives. 1/2

Special mention to Kemi Badenoch for being “still slightly traumatised” from wearing a mask during lockdown. I’ll give her the insight that post-viral illness - or fighting for breath in hospital - is a tad more traumatising than a piece of cloth on her face. Bloody snowflakes!

Kick out all the scum private companies and put the money into public service… www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

People should note that Voloshyn tried to disguise Gill’s bribes as ‘media payments’ Do we know how much Farage received for his regular appearance on RT/Russia Today around the time of Brexit?

👇👇👇 I’m not surprised

‘Poverty is a human rights violation. We cannot realise our own human rights until we address tax’ I talk to Scotland’s human rights chief who says poverty is trashing citizens rights to food, warmth, education and healthcare. ‘It robs people of dignity’. My Big Read @heraldscotland.bsky.social

Three more British MEPs in Nigel Farage’s bloc now alleged to have “followed the script” given to Nathan Gill by an alleged Russian asset, according to prosecutors. At least eight UKIP and Brexit Party MPs were focus of efforts by Nathan Gill www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Meanwhile, Trump calls the affordability crisis a “scam” and a Democrat-crafted “con-job”... Not the way to fix the problem, Donald. https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/new-poll-americans-call-cost-of-living-worse-than-ever_uk_693290e2e4b0d581e0920efe

Tonight's your last chance to grab a warm, witty, big-hearted romantic comedy set in Glasgow and London in 1995 for just 99p on Kindle. Romance, mystery, big characters and maybe even a tiny sprinkle of magic ... it's all here. Don't miss it! www.amazon.co.uk/How-Soon-Now... #BookSky #KindleDeals

"Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is more reliant on super-rich backers than any major party in modern British political history." 👀 https://democracyforsale.substack.com/p/75-of-reform-uks-donations-have-come

If you're eligible and have not had your flu vaccine yet, there's still time to book an appointment. For more information on appointments or to find out more about drop-in clinics, visit nhsinform.scot/flu #FluHitsHarder

FFS.

Farage has now boycotted the BBC - THREE times - in a little over a year... Including his latest today. Why, therefore, is Zia Yusuf on ##bbcqt tonight?

The super-rich rightwing are pouring money into Reform. Do ordinary voters really think their aim is to even out social inequality and make their lives better? Do they think they’re doing it so Farage invests in infrastructure and public services? Ffs. Democracy being beaten to death in plain sight.

What?

5️⃣ EU diplomats explicitly say UK is disqualifying itself from closer alignment “If UK chooses U.S.-style pharmaceutical rules, it is clearly not aligning with the European model.” “This will make regulatory cooperation much harder.” “You cannot build a single market relationship on US standards.”

Someone I know got an adult diagnosis of autism. It partly explains why they have found it so hard to work (not through lack of trying). They would love to work but need help to manage it. This will not happen🤷‍♀️ www.thetimes.com/uk/healthcar...

Is he worried about the offspring of French bankers, French speaking nurseries and schools in London

Wes Streeting insists that NHS health records are not for sale. But handing them to a company like Palantir shatters any chance of public trust, warns our data lead Duncan McCann: https://goodlaw.social/i1o0

“A collapse into government control under a special administration regime (SAR) – a form of temporary nationalisation – ‘could occur in the very near term’” It should’ve happened at the start! https://bit.ly/3MfTFBp

Scotland needs more carers, but Westminster is driving them away. Labour’s hostile immigration plans and their tax on jobs are hammering Scotland’s social care sector. With the fresh start of independence, we can build a migration system suited to our needs and interests.

It's decided. Europe is closing the tap on Russian fossil fuels once and for all. Energy independence starts now. → link.europa.eu/tykVJf

This is how Chris Mason, like a child filled with wonder, described "the choreography and theatre that surrounds a Budget" in Feb 2024, when a male Tory Chancellor was in post. "Plans, or even just options, can be floated... Reaction to them can be tested. Opponents can be teased or wrongfooted." 👀

Wes Streeting letter 27th Nov to GPs Wes Streeting has accused the BMA of being “impossible” & issuing “misleading” information in an escalation of tensions Also ‘laggards’ ‘refuseniks’ & ‘stuck in 20th century’ - Sign the Petition! c.org/ppBPJjrMQC via @UKChange

A must read. via @drrachelclarke.com #Covid19Inquiry

It was an absolute pleasure to be a guest on @assocanaes.bsky.social's podcast to discuss the power of storytelling with anaesthetist Joe Pick. We talked about the essential humanity of healthcare & the need to ensure that humanity isn't stripped away by tech & spreadsheets 💙 Links below 👇

What’s the point of Keir Starmer employing an economics advisor if he ignores her on the biggest economic issue of the day?

I know I am late to the party, but really enjoying this book by @drrachelclarke.com. I will definitely be sharing it with the medical students I help teach.

Nigel Farage made 90 times more Cameo videos than speeches in Parliament, records show

Wanted: a prime minister who can stand up to the far right bylines.scot/politics/wan...

We need a "rapid & deep" improvement to UK/EU trade links. Rejoining the EU would do it! www.bestforbritain.org/the_brexit_b...

Looks like Michelle Mone is going to have to sell that yacht (from Feb 23)

Farage: epic grifter

Rule of law hearing in CJEU today - Polish judges' associations challenging the EU General Court ruling that they lacked standing to sue in respect of disputed EU funding for Poland linked to judicial independence issues

🔴Andrew Is Entitled to £500,000 Compensation for Losing Royal Lodge, Say Crown Estate The disgraced former Prince is unlikely to receive any payment due to the deterioration of the property, @davidhencke.bsky.social reports bylinetimes.com/2025/12/02/a...

Senile old prick

The Senate agreed. The House agreed. The President signed it. And now? SILENCE.

Just published (free access) in European Journal of Sociology: "The Return of War in Europe: Contemporary Sociology and Organised Violence": www.cambridge.org/core/service...

This would make a great Christmas pressie. Really enjoyed this book. Loving the new cover.

Robert Jenrick addressed parliament sounding like a man who feared Magna Carta had died in vain. thecritic.co.uk/how-...

Oh dear Chris. And BBC. Think we’ll all go with the OBR official, rather than you and your unprofessional biased nonsense. Feel free to issue an apology and have a bit of a think. Maybe about the years of barely scrutinised *Tory* policies that got us into this mess. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...