Does politics have to be like this? 1. A very bad thing happens. 2. People blame the bad thing on whatever their go-to theory is (say 2-tier policing, or an invasion of migrants). 3. Evidence is produced showing that the go-to theory is false. 4. That makes no difference at all.

Been a grim, grim fucking week man iandunt.substack.com/p/an-abysmal...

Keir Starmer: "In Britain, we are reasonable, tolerant people. When we have a terrible case like Henry's case, Henry Nowak, we react calmly, as his family have done." Why say things like this? Is it to suggest that the riot in Southampton didn't happen? Or, to claim that Britain is special?

I'd say the problem runs deeper than 'a failure to respond'. The immigration-'debate' is suffering from a disease that has also infected quite a few other debates as well. There is no (desire to reach an) agreement about the reality in which the debate should be conducted and improvements realised.

Am seeing a lot of outrage at the way Reform are politicising the murder of Henry Nowak. But, think about it. Reform are *obviously* going to politicise the murder and the reaction of police and ensure that the story gets maximum coverage. Thread. 🧵 1/10

Off the subject of politics, but I very much liked this - on Gen Z and the chilling effect of ‘cringe’. www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

I am the son of two police officers so I admit I am hardly unbiased here but I feel like the fact British policing has been hollowed out by massive budget cuts over a decade ought to be a larger part of the discussion than "DEI"

The Right talk about 'two-tier policing' in the context of police training which considers in greater depth the rights of black/ethnic minorities. One might say, 'Well yes....and?' This has been the case for decades for good reason: black people have faced huge discrimination from the start.

If Farage were a cynical political operator, he’d ramp up the ‘two-tier’ ‘broken Britain’ rhetoric in the lead-up to the Makerfield by-election (where Restore are a threat to him), and then likely take one or two tentative steps towards the mainstream.

Henry Nowak's father: "This is not a case about Sikhism. This is not a case about racism. This is a case about murder." Farage: "Nah, it's about racism. Have at it, boys!"

The release of thousands of messages which people thought would remain private (together with the non-release of thousands more)… a) does not provide an accurate picture; and b) would be hugely uncomfortable for any large organisation (eg a university department). 1/2

When Trump says that a deal is imminent, that Iran is begging for the deal, and that the deal will be the best deal ever for the US… for the 20th time… why do ‘the markets’ give credence to what he says?

My highlight, for both substance and punctuation, is ‘… we can no longer defend Washington, D.C., with rifles and pistols, alone.’

AI, minimally viable BS, and frail professionalism Pinsent Masons case. Summary for those who have not read it thoughts for those of you who have and can bear yet more commentary.

Say what you like about Tony Blair - but he can still unite and galvanise the Labour Party. I’ve lost count of the number of responses his essay has elicited… and everyone in the Labour Party agrees that he’s wrong (albeit for different reasons - it is still Labour…).

Blair putting on full display what is in many ways his special ability - to lay out a political argument grounded in his own view of global trends (globalisation in the 2000s, tech in the 2020s). But… institute.global/insights/pol...

This is a great, nuanced take on Burnham from someone who has been covering him up close for years (@joshih.bsky.social) manchestermill.co.uk/stop-looking...

You get the feeling that, if 'progressive' politics doesn't start to prioritise and create real change, any change that does end up happening in this country will be quite beyond the progressive... 😳

Message to a certain Labour leadership hopeful… You can’t deliver ‘radical change’ unless you’re prepared to make changes to existing policy.

Everything you ever wanted to know about Makerfield. A fascinating read. 👇

Those - eg in Reform - who were calling for the migration numbers to be brought under control, will no doubt be celebrating. Just as they have been celebrating the UK's departure from the EU.

New post Ismailov v Foreign Secretary: Constitutional revisionism and the principle of legality publiclawforeveryone.com/2026/05/19/i...

Everyone wants change. Everyone wants to respond to the issues facing ordinary people. Everyone wants action, urgency and commitment. So let’s not focus on those things, and let’s focus instead on what leaders’ policy priorities would be.

In a lot of ways the Brexit conundrum facing Andy Burnham is the same as it was for Keir Starmer in the lead up to the general election. If you say that you think Brexit was a mistake and that you’d like to reverse it, you think you’ll lose the (by)election. 1/2

In a lot of ways the Brexit conundrum facing Andy Burnham is the same as it was for Keir Starmer in the lead up to the general election. If you say that you think Brexit was a mistake and that you’d like to reverse it, you think you’ll lose the (by)election. 1/2

Feeling unusually optimistic about uk politics today. While there is a lot which can (and will) go wrong in the Lab leadership contest, we will also get the candidates trying to put together a set of policies to appeal to restive Lab MPs and members. 1/3

This is a time for idle speculation... and I have enjoyed a number of Ed Miliband threads. One thing which I have not seen much comment about is who the contenders will be. If Burnham wins Makerfield, do people think Streeting will stand against him? Or Starmer? Or AN other?

Angela Rayner cleared by HMRC today. I wonder when the next tranche of the Mandelson files be released and which of the possible contenders will feature?

On the Labour crisis, there are 2 bad arguments, made by MOs supportive of Starmer, for not changing leader now which have started to grate. 1. This is not the time - there’s too much global turmoil. 2. It will spook the markets. 1/

There's at least space for debate if led by someone who acknowledges that conflict within the polity exists, whose political leadership starts with the conscious articulation of a coherent philosophy that has admitted antagonists. KS seems angry that leadership involves conflict or argument at all.

‘You should always be very vigilant about situations where people are willing to take action but do not agree on a process and do not share incentives about the decision-making structure.’ Wise words in an excellent piece. I can’t see how chaos can be averted.

Amid all the drama, it is worth remembering that there is a country to run, and big policy decisions that need to be taken. I guess the focus on personality is normal, but the lack of focus on policy is bizarre. 🧵 1/6

"For too long, the university has ignored the wisdom of the donor class and hired based on academic excellence. Regrettably, this has led to the underrepresentation of discredited viewpoints in elite higher education." www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/wer...

To those Labour MPs calling for ‘an orderly transition’. Good luck with that…

There is something that I think multiple successive prime ministers over the last decade or so have failed to grasp and to respond to: that the way backbench MPs see their role has shifted.

What was Catherine West doing? She said on Sunday that she would wait til after the big speech, she assessed it as inadequate (‘too little too late’), and then backed down. I guess she’ll forever have a place in pub quizzes as the lone wolf who cried wolf.

The quid pro quo of a Starmer leadership was that - fine - we weren't getting a storyteller or a charisma powerhouse, but we'd at least get serious, competent leadership committed to delivery. In fact we got neither.

In advance of Starmer's big speech this morning... it was worth remembering that the big threat to his position, this week, comes from within the Labour Party. So... he will say something that appeals to the Labour Party. Like he did when he was positioning himself to lead to the party. 1/

One reason in favour of a change of PM is that any ‘reset’ from PM Starmer is vulnerable to a critique that goes: ‘Why (the expletive deleted) didn’t you do any of this until now?’ A new PM has more political space to make - necessary - change.

No fan of the Tory Party, but letters to the 1922 Committee, and Graham Brady’s bulging postbag, were much more fun than… this.

‘Things aren’t getting better fast enough’ appears to be the Labour line today. They (echoing the likes of Liz Truss) can bring themselves to question the pace, but never the direction of travel.

My question: If the protest marches are stopped (which seems likely), under what circumstances would they ever be allowed again? Protests may need to be stopped in some cases, PM suggests www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

That's the west coast mainline for you

🚨🚨I had the pleasure of being interviewed by @elisabraun.bsky.social for this great @euractiv.com piece on incoming PM #Magyar's struggle to unlock the billions in EU funds frozen during the #ruleoflaw breaches era. Key insights. 🧵 www.euractiv.com/news/hungary...

It’s marking season. Students up and down the country are hoping for examiners to look upon their work in the manner of the UK media reacting to the King’s speech to Congress.

@sabineweyand.bsky.social is a superstar and history will remember her as such. And she is very obviously correct on this matter. And the issues at stake are really important. www.ft.com/content/a714...

One of the remarkable things I have heard when talking with professors who decide to incorporate AI intentionally into classroom instruction is that the students do not then limit their use of the tool to the agreed upon tasks, but still "cheat" to use it for other things as well.

Suspending funds is the EU’s strongest tool to safeguard rule of law. In Hungary, release of frozen EU funds was a key factor in Péter Magyar’s campaign. The Commission wants to enshrine RoL conditionality in the next MFF. In a new paper, I take a closer look: www.delorscentre.eu/en/publicati...

🇪🇺🏳️‍🌈⚖️🇭🇺 A legal earthquake - CJEU finds Hungary to have violated EU law on multiple counts with its anti-LGBT+ legislation (as expected) but also for the first time in history, in an EU law-reshaping precedent, finds Hungary to violate Art 2 TEU in a self-standing manner.

Talked to the BBC about today’s historic @eucourtofjustice.bsky.social ruling Today’s ruling is for everyone who love who they love But it is particularly for those who fought for that statement-of-the-obvious to become the EU’s highest law (@reclaim-eu.bsky.social) www.bbc.com/news/article...