#AlbumOfTheDay Featuring, and produced by, Sly & Robbie and witnessed by me at Glastonbury '84 & '86... Solidarity youtu.be/r9OjPQMnY7c?...

I can't see how McSweeney continues and I'm starting to think Starmer could be challenged after May's elections. If McSweeney is still there then, he definitely will be.

There was a "process", there was "due diligence", and yet somehow Peter Mandelson slipped through the net. As it turns out, the notoriously unreliable man simply couldn't be trusted! My SKETCH. thecritic.co.uk/mand...

#AlbumOfTheDay The Rock youtu.be/QB9Feedxkjk?...

Indeed. I canvassed a gentleman on Saturday who was solidly voting for us (LibDem) in the upcoming locals but would be voting Reform in the next GE "to get rid of this lot..."

Nothing like enjoying your slightly cheaper pint while imagining the toddler crying from hunger that paid for it.

#AlbumOfTheDay Breakout youtu.be/JYISZBad5GU?...

You have to admire Peter Mandelson's capacity to deliver surprises. thecritic.co.uk/pete...

Fantastic piece by @gabyhinsliff.bsky.social:

#AlbumOfTheDay Liquid youtu.be/ba5bGRidKfY?...

#AlbumOfTheDay Nightingales youtu.be/d3D-tJf9u7M?...

Interesting take: the Tory/Reform battle is really about the big donors not the voters writesbright.substack.com/p/why-badeno...

Interesting thought.

The "coincidence" of Epstein's cash payments to Peter Mandelson's partner/husband in 2009/10 and the then industry secretary's lobbying within cabinet for a softer post-crash policy towards bankers looks on the face of it like outright corruption. Certainly demands police investigation.

Thoughts in the FT on why I don't like the idea of an automatic by election if an MP changes party - but understand why some people do, along with a possible compromise... How to deal with defecting MPs - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT

#AlbumOfTheDay Praying For Time youtu.be/goroyZbVdlo?...

Add this one to Costello at the Albert Hall and I am well set for the summer!

Reassuringly positive doorstep session in my old ward this morning. Folk making distinction between national and local was interesting but solidly for #LibDem for locals. "You're the only ones who engage with us".

It's seemed clear to me since Trump's first term that his relationship with Putin is not based on kompromat, but on Trump's admiration of Putin's control of Russia, & his wish to impose a similar personalist system on the US. The depressing thing is how little pushback he faces from US institutions.

#AlbumOfTheDay Tapestry youtu.be/aR5TO2YdjeY?...

#AlbumOfTheDay "Psychadelic boogie". Django youtu.be/78CBFPKsiw0?...

#AlbumOfTheDay XTC undercover and a joy from start to finish. This was my ringtone for a while... Vanishing Girl youtu.be/0bbqezgfqD8?...

Put simply: if you tell voters you don't want them or are unwilling to represent them, they will vote for someone else.

This is a betrayal of traditional and one-nation Conservatives as the Tory leader chases the title of the nasty party at their expense. Most people are moderate & want to see a society where people are not left behind & public services actually work.

Badenoch: “My Conservative party has moved to the right every day since I became leader.” This is a genuine trailed quote from her speech. Cue another distant cheer from Lib Dem HQ.

Hate to say I told you so.* *Oh, who am I kidding? I love to tell you I told you so!

A quite glorious Conservative bar chart from Camden.

I guess this guy being unavailable must have reduced Reform's choices for the Gorton by-election.

don't think it'll put hardened Reform voters off but might motivate Lab/Lib/Greens 1. to vote in a byelection, and 2. to think hard about who is the Not Reform candidate. It'll be an acid test of how quickly & effectively anti-Reform coalitions can form in seats where there's no real history of that

I'm not an electoral strategist but if I were Reform trying to win a key by-election in Labour's heartlandI'm not sure I'd put up one of the most divisive talking heads of the rightwing bubble who lives in Kent. Like, I'd have gone for a Manchester dad who coached the local 5-aside on Saturdays

So Reform has no problem with a candidate who doesn't think Rishi Sunak is English, and effectively endorsed the neo-Nazis of the AfD in the last German election.

The Telegraph’s political editor is saying, more subtly, what others are saying brutally.

#AlbumOfTheDay Karen Carpenter's voice ❤️ Superstar youtu.be/SJmmaIGiGBg?...

Nigel Farage appears to have changed his mind

#AlbumOfTheDay Hometown Glory youtu.be/BW9Fzwuf43c?...

#AlbumOfTheDay 1984. The last time I bought a U2 album. The Unforgettable Fire youtu.be/KTzmzrruHwc?...

On reflection, European countries demanding that FIFA move the World Cup to Mexico and Canada or they'll withdraw is probably a more effective measure than simply withdrawing.

Worth remembering when looking at the horrific scenes in the US right now that both Reform and the Tories have pledged to bring in ICE-style organisations to the UK if they win power

The task for political leadership now is not just to tell the truth, but to make people care about what is true and what is not.

I'm proud to be part of an administration delivering social housing projects for the first time in decades. An example: Groundbreaking ceremony marks the start of construction phase of Brookfield Close regeneration | Brentwood Council share.google/egNm7WMpTG3N... John's right, it takes years.

An accurate summary Of three key points.

Someone should ask Kemi Badenoch (or whichever Tory is up for Sunday shows) if the Tories’ proposed “removals force” with “sweeping new powers” will be modelled on ICE www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

They know what they say is untrue, they do not care it is untrue. The media know that what they repeat is untrue, they do not care it is untrue. Their supporters know what they are told is untrue, they do not care it is untrue. Telling the truth is not enough, unless people care about the truth.

#AlbumOfTheDay It's Got To Be Real youtu.be/Wbc5iSXb0nU?...