Reform lost by 11% in Caerphilly - because of a surge in turnout, because Reform looked set to win the seat. This illustrates Reform's vulnerability *because* they are leading the polls (in a 6 party system) while being an *unpopular* party. A much bigger problem under FPTP 2029 than PR 2026

That scene of the Welsh BBC correspondent being the only person interviewing Caerphilly's new Plaid AM while the rest of the media interviewed Reform's loser in the background was far too on the nose.

‘Labour polled 11% in a seat that the party has held for 100 years’ is the headline news this morning. Feels like a headline going to hear a lot in the next year. (Also result - Plaid win - does show that the fissuring of British politics isn’t all to the right)

UK recognises Palestine as an independent state Keir Starmer’s announcement comes seven decades after end of British mandate in Palestine and creation of state of Israel www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Important new report from Sunder on an immigration policy that might actually work and command public support.

This, from The Londoner yesterday, also features people on the march who claim not to be racists. Though the things they say prove otherwise

Sadiq Khan has said a record number of Americans have applied for British citizenship following the election of Trump. “It’s also our liberal values that make us stand out – celebrating our diversity in London as a strength, not as a threat to society.” www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Want to be clear that the predictable violence against the police wasn't the only problem with yesterday's march It's that 100,000 angry racists gathered in London for the biggest racist march in 50 years, and anyone not white had to steer clear The govt can't see that because they are inadequate.

How can voters believe government will stand up for them if it can’t even stand up for itself?

Labour peer Lord Alli evicted a family with young children from their home in north London in a move that would be outlawed from next year under his party's Renters' Rights Bill inews.co.uk/news/labour-...

Objective data show BBC & ITV bias. Reform featured in 49 bulletins between January-July 2025 whereas Lib Dems(with 72 MPs) were in 18% of bulletins, with 35. Reform referenced in nearly 1 in 5 ITV News At Ten bulletins, but 6% for Lib Dems www.theguardian.com/media/2025/s...

Entirely on form for Starmer but still absolutely mind boggling

Here’s the truth about Britain’s immigration hysteria: Starmer & co have whipped it up to get cheap votes He’s part of a political establishment that’s fuelling a crisis way beyond the point they can ever be seen to solve it. It’s a cynical, idiotic doom loop www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Anas al-Sharif, prominent Al Jazeera correspondent, among five journalists killed in Israeli airstrike on Gaza Israel admits deliberate attack on the journalist, known for frontline coverage, in a strike on a tent outside al-Shifa hospital www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

‘Gross abuse of state power’: defiance grows over UK ban on Palestine protest group More than 200 have been arrested for alleged support of Palestine Action – and hundreds more are expected to protest on Saturday www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

‘I will live here, and I will die here’: Palestinians defiant as Israel plans to seize control of Gaza Strip While some in Gaza City are preparing to evacuate to the south, others refuse to be displaced again www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

A wasteland of rubble, dust and graves: how Gaza looks from the sky The Guardian joins a Jordanian military airdrop for a rare chance to observe a landscape devastated by Israel’s offensive www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

Tory and Reform politicians endanger trials with immigration ‘hysteria’, say former ministers Former attorney general Dominic Grieve among those criticising politicians for risking contempt of court www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

‘Heartbreaking’: a London surgeon on the trials of operating in a Gaza hospital Dr Graeme Groom has visited Gaza 40 times and says he has never before witnessed such trauma, hunger and bravery from Palestinian colleagues www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

Police warn of mass arrests if Palestine Action protest goes ahead Hundreds could join weekend rally in support of proscribed group as 300 UK Jewish figures urge PM to lift ban www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

‘He has trouble completing a thought’: bizarre public appearances again cast doubt on Trump’s mental acuity www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Regret, resentment and Reform UK: jailed Rotherham rioters one year on Men sentenced to prison time for role in violent protests after the Southport murders describe their feelings of injustice www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...

Palestine Action ban coupled with Online Safety Act ‘a threat to public debate’ Rights bodies say new law and proscription of direct action group create risk of censorship of Gaza-related content www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

Israel closes 88% of cases of alleged war crimes or abuse without charges – report Conflict monitoring group Action on Armed Violence says Israel is seeking to create a ‘pattern of impunity’ www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

‘We are dying slowly, save us’: starvation takes hold in Gaza after a week of appalling milestones Parents watch children waste away as deliberate aid restrictions from Israel mean hunger is becoming a killer, as experts confirm famine is currently playing out www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

‘At 80, to be treated like a terrorist is shocking’: arrested on suspicion of supporting Palestine Action Retired priest and former magistrate among those held after Palestine Action was banned as a terror organisation www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

The mathematics of starvation: how Israel caused a famine in Gaza Israel controls the flow of food into Gaza. It has calculated how many calories Palestinians need to stay alive. Its data shows only a fraction has been allowed in www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

‘A joyous day’: India celebrates return of ancient gems linked to the Buddha

Palestine Action co-founder wins permission to challenge ban Judge says ban on direct action group could have ‘chilling effect’ on legitimate political speech www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Starvation in Gaza is destroying communities – and will leave generational scars. Health and societal ramifications of extreme hunger will reverberate long after the war is over www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

‘We faced hunger before, but never like this’: skeletal children fill hospital wards as starvation grips Gaza For months Israel kept food shipments to Gaza far below starvation rations. Now the death toll is rising rapidly www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

‘I have to forgive’: 20 years after Jean Charles de Menezes was shot by police in Stockwell his cousin looks back Patricia da Silva Armani shared a London flat with the Brazilian electrician who was mistaken for a terrorist in the aftermath of the 7/7 bombings www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Eleven minute race for food: how aid points in Gaza became ‘death traps’ – a visual story Hundreds of Palestinians have died while seeking food since delivery was taken over by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in May www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

I used to believe in the American dream. Then the police killed my son Twenty-five-year-old Bijan Ghaisar was unarmed when he was shot in his car by two officers. Charges against the men were dismissed. 7 years on his mother Kelly is still fighting for her boy www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

‘All those posh apartments. It’s a playground for the rich’: is Manchester turning into London? £6 a pint, £199 a month for gym membership, £1,200 to rent a studio flat? Is the city changing for the better – or worse www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

A steakhouse heir, Israeli spies and a cross-border abduction: the custody battle gripping Germany Christina Block is standing trial in Hamburg accused of kidnapping of her own children from her ex-husband www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

It’s not the most incompetent thing by a long stretch but the government let stories run for hours (one they knew was coming) with suggestions the emergency Afghan relocation would cost £7bn and mean 100,000 people. Which is completely wrong and they only got on top of that late yesterday.

Please do touch: sculpture exhibition curated by blind people to feature tactile works Henry Moore Institute in Leeds, hosting Beyond the Visual, hopes to challenge ‘ocularcentric bias’ in galleries www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...

‘Humanitarian city’ would be concentration camp for Palestinians, says former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert says forcing people into camp would be ethnic cleansing, and anger at Israel over Gaza war is not all down to antisemitism www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

‘I had a home, apartment, career’ … the Guardian’s Gaza diarist on the life he lost – and his journey into exile The anonymous writer has seen horror after horror since he was driven from his home in Gaza City. How has he kept going? Does he have any hope left? www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

Signs of new life: is the British left making a comeback? Talk of a new party led by Jeremy Corbyn is just the latest example of a growing clamour for leftwing alliances www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...

Nearly 60 Labour MPs call for UK to immediately recognise Palestinian state Exclusive: MPs say in letter Gaza is being ethnically cleansed as Israeli defence minister plans ‘forcible transfer’ www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

“The accusation of a covert and accelerating campaign appears to be aimed at publicly appointed trustees, whereas in reality it is the structure, funding and identity of Great British Pac that is opaque and concerning” full @theguardian.com article here >> www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...

Campaigners call for end to ‘covert’ deal to return Parthenon marbles to Greece Liz Truss among signatories of letter asking for sculptures to remain at the British Museum or risk legal challenges www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...

‘We’re told we won’t amount to anything’: is it possible to change the fortunes of young people living in England’s coastal towns? Young people living by the sea are often in some of the most deprived areas of the country, but say they want the chance to thrive. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

‘I was naive in being hopeful’: Labour voters feel let down after first year Party’s supporters tell of dissatisfaction, but many feel the Starmer government’s good points have been overlooked www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Iraq war ‘made extremists of people’: ex-police terrorism chief looks back at 7/7 Exclusive: Former Met officer Neil Basu says there is link between UK foreign policy and radicalisation, and atrocity did lasting damage to race relations www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

‘Our days are full of hardship’: people in Gaza barely dare to hope for success in ceasefire talks Mood is tense and subdued after nearly 21 months of Israeli offensives that have displaced almost the entire population www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

The destruction of Palestine is breaking the world The rules of the institutions that define our lives bend like reeds when it comes to Israel – so much that the whole global order is on the verge of collapse www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...

Our long read on what next - Starmer & strategists crafting a new story on “fairness” akin to Blair’s “modernise” - Both Reform and Green voters angered by imbalance in the economy - fairness allows big political arguments about how to right those wrongs www.theguardian.com/politics/202...