How is work to restore democracy and rule of law in Hungary progressing? What can the UK learn from Orban's defeat? Join our online discussion with Márta Pardavi of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee today, Monday 18 May at 7pm (UK). Register us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

Now that Brexit has entered from stage left into the discourse to general delight / loathing / scepticism [tick as appropriate] I wonder if there is a more pathological subject of political discussion in the UK (and with the EU).* * Yes, the pandemic, probably.

“[The Trump admin] don't like the European Union ... but we need to understand why they don't like the EU; why China doesn't like the EU, why Russia doesn't. It is because if we stick together, if we operate together, then we are equal powers, we are strong.” www.politico.eu/article/us-c...

How can it be betrayal to reverse a policy that actively damages the UK economy? How can it be betrayal at reverse a policy that serves the political interests of Putin's Russia? How can it be betrayal to reverse a policy that makes the UK more vulnerable to oligarchs? Brexit is the betrayal.

One fact Leave supporters never address is that Brexit has hit the “left behind” towns that depend most on manufacturing hardest.

Immigration make Britain brilliant

A Russian diplomat working as an undercover SVR officer who spent years infiltrating the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) and other think-tanks tied to the Orbán government was quietly expelled from Budapest. Szabolcs Panyi

Today on #IDAHOT, I want to send a strong message of support to the LGBTIQ+ community. The EU stands with you. For every person’s right to live and love openly. And to be true to its authentic self. Your journey and safety matter. I will always be your ally.

The media empire built by former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government is swiftly unravelling following an election last month ​that abruptly ended his rule... Senior figures at some of the most prominent pro-Orban ‌outlets have been pushed out. www.reuters.com/business/med...

In the months before the Hungarian election, the Danube Institute, a government-funded think-tank, distributed hundreds of thousands of dollars in an attempt to build an international echo chamber and amplify Orban. @atlatszo.hu has some of the contracts english.atlatszo.hu/2026/05/14/j...

“[The Trump admin] don't like the European Union ... but we need to understand why they don't like the EU; why China doesn't like the EU, why Russia doesn't. It is because if we stick together, if we operate together, then we are equal powers, we are strong.” www.politico.eu/article/us-c...

Deterrence works if it is credible. Showing weakness only invites aggression. That’s why we need to close defence capability gaps through faster arms production, cheaper arms, and more rapid delivery. Extract from my press remarks following today’s Foreign Affairs Council on Defence ↓

The only thing that's odd is Labour MPs like Nandy who insist on sticking with Brexit when a marge majority can see it was a mistake, and a majority support rejoining the EU. Time for courage and vision, not surrender to the right and their oligarch funders.

Lisa Nandy says she doesn't understand why the is so much focus on rejoining the EU from Wes Streeting and Andy Burnham If Lisa Nandy can't understand that an 8% hit to our GDP is a bad thing and that the sooner we fix it the better, then...

Prospective Labour leadership candidates absolutely should speak about rejoining the EU. A large majority of UK voters say Brexit has been a failure. A majority - 55% vs 33% - now back rejoining the EU. The question of rejoining the EU cannot be ducked. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... 🧵(1/3)

The government isn't forcing churches and community centres and town halls across the country to fly the Ukrainian flag. People are doing it themselves because we see a battle and we know which side we are on. There are lots of ways in which Reform is wildly out of touch with Britain.

Crikey, this is significant. All about Orban's regime showering money on populism abroad including the UK. David Frost mentioned as an alleged recipient, plus Unherd and The Spectator. So much for pushing back against foreign interference. H/t @guystall.bsky.social

Join the National Rejoin March on Saturday 20th June. It's time to return to the heart of decision making for our shared European future.

Maybe not an entirely surprising move from the party of Nathan Gill, the convicted Russian agent. BBC News - Reform removes Ukraine flag from Essex County Council offices - BBC News #r4today www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

⚖️ 🇷🇺 🇺🇦 Thirty-four Council of Europe member states, along with Australia, Costa Rica and the EU as an institution, have said they would join a future special tribunal for Ukraine tasked with prosecuting Russia over its invasion of the country.

"Europeans may imagine that the EU is a mere bureaucratic inconvenience. But the Russians have never believed that. On the contrary, the Russian president has long understood that when unified, Europe can resist Russian influence and Russian corruption." 👏👏👏 www.erstestiftung.org/en/a-speech-...

"You cannot celebrate European civilization while simultaneously attacking the legal and political order invented here, or while openly seeking to undermine the institutions that protect pluralism and dissent" An answer to Vance and Rubio: www.erstestiftung.org/en/a-speech-...

🇬🇪🇺🇦Georgian Dream wants one gift from the West: recognition. GD does not want the gift Kyiv just offered: friendship. The Yerevan handshake between Zelensky and Georgian PM Kobakhidze was not normalization. It was a strategic trap. Here's why GD secretly hates this opening. 1/15

Day 534 of #GeorgiaProtests People keep pressing for the unconditional release of political prisoners and new, free & fair elections. As of now, the biggest achievement of these protests is that the dictatorship in Georgia cannot truly stabilize itself. 📷 Goga Khachidze

👏 "I don't know how anybody can vote for Reform considering how much of a disaster Brexit has been." "And Farage is the architect of Brexit, that's been a disaster and if he was to be in the government it would be a disaster as well."

The government need to drop their outdated red lines, and focus on how we can repair our relationship with Europe. Agree? Donate to our crowdfunder - link below.

New polling conducted for Queen’s University Belfast by LucidTalk also found that 60% of Leave voters agree that Brexit has been more of a failure than a success. Public support for closer UK-EU ties is growing, but we cannot repair our relationship if we are still bound to outdated red lines.

While the UN tries to avoid to point at the obvious culprit of the strike against their convoy in Kherson, Ukraine, Russians released FPV footage of that particular strike, making absolutely clear this wasn’t some kind of accident,…

Britain’s post-Brexit ungovernability. New post on my Brexit & Brexitism Blog discussing last week’s elections, the Labour leadership crisis which has followed, and what both tell us about post-Brexit politics: chrisgreybrexitblog.blogspot.com/2026/05/brit...

Russia's murderous attacks on Ukrainian cities yesterday left at least 24 civilians dead, but can't mask the Putin regime's military and economic failures. The EU's £90 billion loan is a commitment that with Europe's support, Ukraine will outlast Russia. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Why on earth is this shyster and architect of Brexit given any platform? He is a consummate liar.

10,000 People Sign Official Petition Demanding Government End ‘Capture of UK Democracy by Media Billionaires’ Ministers will be forced to respond to the proposals for a new 'Media Sovereignty Act' after campaigners passed a key threshold

Easier to reinterpret failure than to confront misjudgement #Brexit becomes unfinished, economic decline someone else’s fault, institutional chaos sabotage by enemies. Failed promise merely requires one final election victory to finally succeed this time. nordicledger.substack.com/p/the-accoun...

True. But we are also at quite unique risk of authoritarian takeover. We have no singular written constitution, no entrenched separation of powers, no higher law. Populists only need to win once.

While Russia openly mocks diplomatic efforts, we continue to strengthen Ukraine. We are finalising a €6 billion drone support package. And we keep the pressure on Russia’s war economy with ever tougher sanction

Last night, Russia launched one of its longest and most relentless drone attacks against Ukraine. Another night of death and destruction. And the indiscriminate targeting of civilians.

'Reward' for what? For ruining our trade ties? For stripping us of our freedoms? For damaging our economy?

It was obviously a very threatening apartment building. #RussiaIsATerroristState

Reform UK said the “purchase of this property commenced before the gift.” And according to Farage himself, the £5m gift was “the only way I can look after myself and protect myself for the rest of my life.” Well, we expect the new house to be fitted with a state-of-the-art security system, then…

Even old Lexiteer Larry Elliott is starting to realise that rejoining the EU is the UK's best option. He saw Brexit as an opportunity "to experiment with different ways of doing things", but 90% of Brexit advocates wanted a very different experiment to his! www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Here’s @anneapplebaum.bsky.social‘s great speech about and for Europe. She urges Europeans to take their (our!) future into our own hands and defend all our values and achievements, protecting them against those who want to destroy, divide and conquer. m.youtube.com/watch?v=WEnU...

This webinar with Márta Pardavi is a joint event of CambridgeforEurope, @oxford4europe.bsky.social, and @grassrootsforeurope.mas.to.ap.brid.gy, and is hosted by @europeanmovement.co.uk www.cambridgeforeurope.org.uk/events/hunga... (2/2)

The new Hungarian government of Peter Magyar has been sworn in, but how is work to restore democracy and rule of law progressing? Join our online discussion with @martapardavi.bsky.social of the @hungarianhelsinki.bsky.social on Mon 18 May, 7pm. Register us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi... (1/2)

NEW: Ofcom is launching an investigation into the second airing of GB News's interview with Donald Trump. Trump made unchallenged claims about climate change, London, sharia law. GB News "surprised and concerned". A new twist in TV impartiality debate: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/m...

Our Europe Day rally was a celebration of the unity achieved in Europe. With autocracy rising, we cannot allow the light of freedom to go out. Emma Knaggs @europeanmovement.co.uk called for the UK to return to Europe, the Brexit red lines must go! www.cambridgeforeurope.org.uk/uncategorize...

Angela Rayner was dragged through every front page for weeks... HMRC's verdict: NOT deliberate. NOT even careless. Farage pockets £5 million and chooses not to declare it So where's the wall-to-wall coverage? Tell me this isn't a rigged game.

🔥 Just launched now… New European Movement campaign …to break Starmer’s 3 red lines of Single Market, Customs Union, Free Movement If Starmer wants “Britain at the heart of Europe” then this is what he must do. Now is the time to pile on the pressure. See —> www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/qr/wWq5QejW

It's good to see that the new Hungarian government is taking a much more robust line against Russia's aggression, a change for the better after Orban's cozying up to the Russian dictatorship.

🚨 Naomi Smith: “This Bill will be filed under ‘necessary but insufficient’: it's essential to hasten alignment with our largest market that will enable more frictionless trade, but won’t go nearly far enough to generate the transformative economic growth or voter support this government needs."

Badenoch again threatens to leave the ECHR, which would rip up the Good Friday Agreement, not to mention the Brexit deal (meaning immediate no deal with our largest market) and leave us all extremely vulnerable to authoritarian abuse of our rights. She and Farage want to make us poorer & less safe