interesting reflections from Lou Haigh on Twitter's damage to the very art of politics

A Reform UK source has admitted to PolHome that the council tax predicament is a "learning curve" for Farage's party At the same time, a senior Reform councillor in Durham tells colleague @matildamartin.bsky.social that the party is dealing with "huge headwinds" in local government finances

Exclusive: Labour's support has collapsed among school & college staff, according to a poll carried out for UK's biggest education union NEU NEU general sec @danielkebedeneu.bsky.social tells me conditions have worsened for teachers since Labour took power

EXC: Labour MP Karl Turner will vote for a Tory motion tomorrow against govt plans to abolish jury trials for some offences “The PM should intervene and stop this disastrous policy proposal before marching Labour MPs up hills only to U-turn when the penny drops that we will not put up with this."

Solidarity with the Alliance of Canterbury Residents Associations — to replace charming Victorian lampposts with these soulless steel things is very poor

Keir Starmer has this morning urged Cabinet to keep its nerve amid grim opinion polling (today’s YouGov put Labour in third place behind Reform & Tories) “Governments do not lose because polls go down. They lose when they lose belief or nerve. We will do neither,” he said

I'm afraid there *is* an obvious answer: it can't.

A fascinating corrective by Scarlett Maguire, full of striking stats “Recent data… shows that 1 in 3 young women now say they will vote for the Green Party. Meanwhile, young men, far from being more right wing than the population as a whole, are as likely to vote Green as they are Reform (20%)”

A cross-party group of MPs is organising to tackle the threat of deepfake AI content to British democracy in 2026 The Speaker of the House of Commons has also taken a close personal interest in the issue @zoecrowther.bsky.social reports

As MPs return to Westminster today, one of the biggest outstanding questions is what the govt's SEND reforms will look like One Labour MP predicted it would be the first "spat" for Starmer and his cabinet to deal with in 2026 @politicshome.bsky.social www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Grim nights in Wales and Scotland are already baked into Labour thinking about the May locals Less discussed, however, @matildamartin.bsky.social & @noahvickers.bsky.social report, is things getting ugly in London, where Polanski eyes gains "The whole of the Olympic Park belongs to the Greens"

🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 What does 2026 have in store? 🔮 LBC political editor @natashaclark.bsky.social joins @alaintolhurst.bsky.social and @adampayne26.bsky.social to discuss their predictions for this year's big political storylines 🎧 Listen now: pod.fo/e/371119

Senior doorkeeper Paul Kehoe helps keep the magic of Parliament running behind the scenes 🎅✨ Paul has worked in the House of Commons since he was 19 years old, for more than 46 years It was an absolute joy to interview him about his lifetime of service

NEW: Ministers expected to tour the country early next year as part of govt's consultation on digital ID @politicshome.bsky.social understands -Govt keen to demonstrate efforts go beyond normal consultation -Process viewed by insiders as opp to reset messaging www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Labour MP and Children’s Online Safety APPG chair @joanireid.com tells me: 🇦🇺🇬🇧 UK should copy Australia’s under-16 social media ban if it works 💪 “Ofcom needs to be bolder" 🚫 "If X is not complying with our laws, then they shouldn't be allowed to operate" Full @politicshome.bsky.social interview 👇

Starmer joins TikTok (where there's already a No10 account) after posting on Substack for the first time last week. In April, gov joined Reddit, revealed @zoecrowther.bsky.social. Plus growing work with influencers. All part of the effort to reach where people increasingly get info. t.co/Yk6nIjEu7o

So many people in politics whose brains should be studied in a lab.

A Your Party insider tells PolHome: "The entire thing makes an excellent case for left Labourism and highlights the positive side of the constraints imposed by a) the whip, b) the ability to face outwards always, rather than fight to the death with your ostensible comrades."

don't think this is necessarily guaranteed to be the maddest headline to emerge from Merseyside this weekend tbh

Inside Polanski's comms operation: - Coached in Judie Dench-inspired acting methods - Growing dialogue with Zohran Mamdani's people - An expanding press team, including a former senior Corbyn adviser and ex-Bundesliga employee - Social media “critical” + more from @sophiealichurch.bsky.social

Great to see @politicshome.bsky.social exc lead a key segment of @bbcnewsnight.bsky.social with Culture Secretary answering qs on a note sent by Bridget Phillipson to Labour MPs over "misleading" OBR claims about SEND @sophiealichurch.bsky.social + picked up by @theguardian.com @thetimes.com today

Where does the Budget leave Starmer and Reeves? Two important audiences — the markets and the PLP — were pretty pleased But Labour MPs know how the third — the electorate — reacts could be a different story w/ colleagues @zoecrowther.bsky.social, @matildamartin.bsky.social & Harriet Symonds

The Budget on Wednesday was relatively well received by two audiences: the markets and the Parliamentary Labour Party. But now Labour MPs nervously await for verdict of a third audience: the voters writes PolHome Editor @adampayne26.bsky.social

Under a proposal to be voted on at Your Party conference in Liverpool this weekend, MPs could be blocked from leading the party and ordinary members put in charge, PolHome can reveal YP members will also be given control of how MPs are whipped, reports colleague @siennarodgers.bsky.social

What is Reform-curious voters' biggest hesitation? The party's lack of governing experience That's according to new @thinksinsight.bsky.social research shared exclusively with PolHome this weekend Reform as a "risk" to the country, and a single-issue party (immigration), are also concerns

Reform's lack of experience is the biggest concern for people curious about voting for them The party being a "risk" for the UK, and it having no policies barring immigration, are also worries, according to new @thinksinsight.bsky.social research shared w/ PolHome @adampayne26.bsky.social reports

What is Reform-curious voters' biggest hesitation? The party's lack of governing experience That's according to new @thinksinsight.bsky.social research shared exclusively with PolHome this weekend Reform as a "risk" to the country, and a single-issue party (immigration), are also concerns

Labour MP and former minister @jimmcmahon.co.uk responds to my story about Labour MPs calling for a minister-led review of the government’s use of X

Tomorrow we're dropping interesting research on Reform curious voters — what attracts them, & what puts them off I discuss on this week's pod w/ @thinksinsight.bsky.social, @psurridge.bsky.social, @alaintolhurst.bsky.social & unplanned guest: Alain's chicken, Judy! podfollow.com/politicshome...

A cross-party group of MPs and peers has written to Ofcom demanding stronger action against rising antisemitism on Elon Musk's X The parliamentarians believe the social media platform may have already breached the Online Safety Act @zoecrowther.bsky.social exclusively reports

🚨 Labour MPs are calling for a minister-led review of the government’s use of X, warning it poses growing risks to democracy and public safety @politicshome.bsky.social understands a review is currently being carried out by officials, but without ministerial oversight

We've lost a legend, and far too soon. Thank you for the music, Mani

As all eyes are fixed on the House of Commons as the government sets out its immigration reforms, @politicshome.bsky.social can reveal that the government has delayed consulting with the public on the development of digital ID plans until the new year www.politicshome.com/news/article...

The government is set to publish the Men's Health Strategy on Wednesday @politicshome.bsky.social understands it is expected to include new measures to tackle gambling-related harms, as pressure grows for ministers to treat gambling addiction as a major public health threat

EXC: Kensington and Chelsea Council is investigating whether Lord Peter Mandelson committed an offence when he publicly urinated in the street last week

“I’m not a member of Your Party, and won’t be joining,” Jamie Driscoll reveals to us “You’ve really got to ask why their political leadership is allowing this [infighting] to happen” That + so much more in @siennarodgers.bsky.social latest look inside YP, and its shambolic ride to Merseyside

🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 Why won't anyone reform council tax? 🏘️ Labour MPs @jonathanbrashmp.bsky.social & @catherinewestmp.bsky.social, Tory MP Harriett Baldwin & tax lawyer @danneidle.bsky.social join @alaintolhurst.bsky.social to discuss why council tax seems politically untouchable 🎧 Listen: pod.fo/e/3529c3

This would be a great reform. They should do it. I remember encountering the ‘write-round’ process when I first worked in government and thinking then it was a crazy way to run a modern administration.

Cummings would approve! I remember his blog back from pre-2019 days where he called it a Potemkin process.

Exclusive: As part of the Whitehall delivery drive, the Labour government is looking at overhauling the 'write-round' process that has been used by Cabinet for years Frustrated insiders say it creates needless delays and are pushing for a shake-up It'll be major reform if they go for it

🚨Exclusive: Half of voters who backed Labour at the last general election have deserted the party, according to internal polling shared with Labour MPs www.politicshome.com/news/article...

Labour MPs say Wes Streeting's stock has risen within the party after extraordinary No 10 briefings against him on Tuesday night "They've managed to create a situation where Wes is the victim/the adult in the room" report @siennarodgers.bsky.social and @adampayne26.bsky.social

if there is anyone who has woken up this morning in a worse position than they were in last night, it isn't Wes Streeting

EXC: The Conservatives have introduced an optional streamlined selection process for local election candidates, as they struggle to find people to stand for election

Some more awkwardness from Reform at local level: Six months ago, Farage described doubling council tax on second homes as “madness” North Northamptonshire, won by Reform in May, is now planning to do just that, say plans seen by @cjayanetti.bsky.social for PolHome

A Reform-led council is planning to double council tax on second homes six months after party leader Nigel Farage denounced the idea as “madness” and “extortion” North Northamptonshire is expected to approve the measure on Tuesday, in plans seen by PolHome @cjayanetti.bsky.social reports

Quick thread on the BBC and the political and societal significance of recent developments: One of the main reasons the UK has historically been so much less polarised than the US, is that Britain has a shared source of information, consumed and trusted by most people regardless of their politics.

More top @matildamartin.bsky.social data work, this time showing why there are growing calls for council tax to be overhauled Highest rates (% of house price) are in some of the country's poorest areas @jonathanbrashmp.bsky.social, chair of council tax reform APPG, says the figures are "insane"

NEW: Reported plans to double tax rates on the top two council tax bands would cause huge distortions and unequal treatment between owners of expensive homes across England One area where homes cost £500k would barely be touched By me, for Politics Home www.politicshome.com/news/article...

What an absolute hero Samir Zitouni is - doubtless he saved lives that day www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...