Though Reform reporting him to the Met Police is rather taking the piss given they’re a bunch of grifting Putin apologist traitors .
I think that this could involve far more politicians than Mandelson, especially if he kept a secret diary and seeks revenge
Goodness only knows what is coming next, especially for labour politicians
You have absolutely no evidence for that. Can the Party sue?
Is it possible to defame a political party?
Genuine question. Opponents are not supposed to outright lie about a party, though they obviously do sometimes, and individual people in a party can obviously be defamed, but I'm curious if there are some difficulties for a party trying to sue.
Just noticed that Michael Forsyth has become Lord Speaker. Succeeds fellow Scot, Lord McFall. His predecessor was Norman Fowler.
I have to say that the Lords are a bit more select about their speakers than the Commons. Sir Lindsay's a lot better than his two predecessors but that really is not saying very much at all. Bercow and Michael Martin were terrible in their different ways.
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
It’s Danegeld for the 21st century. Once you pay, they keep coming back for more. Friends son is a JD of about 5 years post graduation. Has had some tough times, and lots of friends left the NHS. There are issues asking the service to do ever more without sorting the structural challenges. But paying more on its own isn’t the answer. Medics are not the only ones to have had pay deflation over the last fifteen years.
I'd like to see Emily Thornberry for PM. I'm sick of Labour's dishonesty and siding with bastards. For the first time I'd like to see Starmer go. Not just this but his judgement is really suspect. Give someone else the next 3 years
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
Internal party data is no more reliable than any other data, even though it gets treated as the secret truth sometimes for some reason.
But I could believe that, albeit on the lower end of expectations for Labour, as I don't think they are completely out yet.
I think doorstep data tends to produce optimistic numbers for the party asking, so the truth might be the Greens and Labour are closer than that. But the Greens have time (presuming they have the manpower) to squeeze that Labour vote.
Not sure if this has been mentioned as I’ve just jumped on, but did I hear Darren Jones earlier blame the Tories for the vetting system that allowed Starmer to personally pick Sweetpea as his US Ambassador?
Labour emphasising how much it wants to strip Mandleson of his peerage. Who cares? He’ll never be near the House of Lords again. Far more important is the mounting evidence that as a cabinet minister he passed market sensitive information to Epstein of huge value to the pedophile’s rich American friends (Steven Swinford of The Times has uncovered one damning example — there are many more — see Dan Neidle’s excellent work). Is this not misconduct in a public office? Surely Knacker of the Yard should be investigating.
What does Labour have to say about that?
I don't believe there is anyone Labour adjacent defending Mandelson. It would seem to me to be his most direct and personal deceit was to his cabinet colleagues.
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
Though Reform reporting him to the Met Police is rather taking the piss given they’re a bunch of grifting Putin apologist traitors .
I think that this could involve far more politicians than Mandelson, especially if he kept a secret diary and seeks revenge
Goodness only knows what is coming next, especially for labour politicians
You have absolutely no evidence for that. Can the Party sue?
Is it possible to defame a political party?
Genuine question. Opponents are not supposed to outright lie about a party, though they obviously do sometimes, and individual people in a party can obviously be defamed, but I'm curious if there are some difficulties for a party trying to sue.
Not sure if this has been mentioned as I’ve just jumped on, but did I hear Darren Jones earlier blame the Tories for the vetting system that allowed Starmer to personally pick Sweetpea as his US Ambassador?
Imagine if EVERY question made Wednesday SweetPeaMQs..
Apart from the Lab on Reform plant questions that will obviously still dominate
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
I thought that was already planned and part of a bill to be voted on soon?
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
It’s Danegeld for the 21st century. Once you pay, they keep coming back for more. Friends son is a JD of about 5 years post graduation. Has had some tough times, and lots of friends left the NHS. There are issues asking the service to do ever more without sorting the structural challenges. But paying more on its own isn’t the answer. Medics are not the only ones to have had pay deflation over the last fifteen years.
Looks at my current day rate which is less than I was on in numeric figures than 15 years ago...
Labour, tut. He's one of those very naughty Independents. They were causing trouble in the last Parliament too.
An independent MP has been arrested for a second time on suspicion of a string of sexual offences.
Former Labour MP Dan Norris, 66, remains under investigation over the alleged rape of a woman and has been further arrested on suspicion of raping a second woman, sexually assaulting a third woman, voyeurism, and upskirting women.
The former West of England Mayor was first arrested in April 2025 on suspicion of sexual offences against a girl, child abduction, and the rape of a woman. Police are no longer investigating the alleged child sexual offences or abduction.
Norris said in a statement that he "vigorously and entirely" denied all of the allegations made against him.
Norris, who is also being investigated over alleged misconduct in a public office, remains on condition bail.
All the offences are alleged to have occurred between the 2000s and 2020s.
In a statement, Norris said: "I vigorously and entirely deny the serious allegations made against me. They are untrue.
"I am challenging them through my legal representatives."
The Green Party have shared doorstep data with me from across Gorton and Denton.
They say it shows:
Reform - 39%
Greens - 34%
Labour - 21%
Their data shows Reform 5 points ahead and Labour in a poor third place.
That's amazing. Those numbers are exactly what the Greens would want the electorate of the constituency to think the state of the race is. And it turns out they are the actual real numbers! They must be delighted.
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
It’s Danegeld for the 21st century. Once you pay, they keep coming back for more. Friends son is a JD of about 5 years post graduation. Has had some tough times, and lots of friends left the NHS. There are issues asking the service to do ever more without sorting the structural challenges. But paying more on its own isn’t the answer. Medics are not the only ones to have had pay deflation over the last fifteen years.
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
Mandelson is a notably clever, gifted man. Able and cunning. Quite capable of making oodles of cash by himself
So, what was it, in his upbringing, that made him so desperately needy and puppyish in the company of super rich people. It’s truly odd
I know one or two billionaires. I feel no need to fawn
Blair had some of the same neediness, as well. Tho not as bad as Lord Petey
Haves and have-yachts.
You get more elite, you move into more elite circles, you still don't feel elite. There's no such thing as "enough".
It requires a certain kind of bloddy-mindedness to break that cycle. If you told me that you had a version of that bloddy-mindedness, I wouldn't disagree. But whilst that cycle is bad for personal happiness, and has horrible, Epstein-scandal-sized, downsides for society, the progress of civilization also depends on it.
Not sure if this has been mentioned as I’ve just jumped on, but did I hear Darren Jones earlier blame the Tories for the vetting system that allowed Starmer to personally pick Sweetpea as his US Ambassador?
Imagine if EVERY question made Wednesday SweetPeaMQs..
Apart from the Lab on Reform plant questions that will obviously still dominate
They're probably trawling through the Epstein dump for any mention of Farage.
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
Given your job entails loads of walking is it not a bit of a busman’s holiday 🤔
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
Given your job entails loads of walking is it not a bit of a busman’s holiday 🤔
As I always tell people, I do the job so that I can train for my holidays!
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”
Not applying enough polish to the turd.
It's possible that Labour are successfully delivering things - now I don't believe they are but if the excuse you are hearing is poor media communications you may want to give them a chance to fix that before sacking the manager.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
Given your job entails loads of walking is it not a bit of a busman’s holiday 🤔
His job requires a lot of short pauses and bending down putting things through letter boxes... I can see the advantage of a 10-15 mile walk to the next stop when the only interruption is when you want to take a break.
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
Holiday adventures have been central to our family for decades
Talking of which we have decided to have a two day rail trip
We are going from Colwyn Bay to Edinburgh next month and staying in the Premier Inn on Princess Street opposite the gardens where we got engaged 63 years ago then the next day, Edinburgh to Kings Cross via LNER and then home from Euston in the afternoon via WCML
We love train travel and look forward to watching the countryside slide by, especially as it doesn't affect my mobility
Fun fact Edinburgh to Kings Cross and back to Colwyn Bay takes 7.5 hours whereas Colwyn Bay to Cardiff and back is over 8 hours
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
I thought that was already planned and part of a bill to be voted on soon?
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
Would you apply it to local elections? We’d save on councillor expenses as we’d have a lot fewer councillors. Not a single Police and Crime Commissioner would’ve been elected in 2024. Sarah Pochin wouldn’t be an MP.
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
Given your job entails loads of walking is it not a bit of a busman’s holiday 🤔
His job requires a lot of short pauses and bending down putting things through letter boxes... I can see the advantage of a 10-15 mile walk to the next stop when the only interruption is when you want to take a break.
Yes, it was meant as a mildly comic comment not a literal one.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”
Not applying enough polish to the turd.
It's possible that Labour are successfully delivering things - now I don't believe they are but if the excuse you are hearing is poor media communications you may want to give them a chance to fix that before sacking the manager.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
Attacking McSweeney is just a way of attacking Starmer whilst endeavouring to appear loyal. These Labour MPs should grow some balls.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”
Not applying enough polish to the turd.
It's possible that Labour are successfully delivering things - now I don't believe they are but if the excuse you are hearing is poor media communications you may want to give them a chance to fix that before sacking the manager.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
Angie, Angie When will those clouds all disappear? Angie, Angie Where will it lead us from here?
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
I thought that was already planned and part of a bill to be voted on soon?
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
Would you apply it to local elections? We’d save on councillor expenses as we’d have a lot fewer councillors. Not a single Police and Crime Commissioner would’ve been elected in 2024. Sarah Pochin wouldn’t be an MP.
First, I wouldn't have PCCs, and no i wouldn't, I don't see how seeking support for a specific industrial action and public apathy about who will be a political representative are really comparable.
In less disgraceful governance matters.. I’ve just booked my holiday!
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
Holiday adventures have been central to our family for decades
Talking of which we have decided to have a two day rail trip
We are going from Colwyn Bay to Edinburgh next month and staying in the Premier Inn on Princess Street opposite the gardens where we got engaged 63 years ago then the next day, Edinburgh to Kings Cross via LNER and then home from Euston in the afternoon via WCML
We love train travel and look forward to watching the countryside slide by, especially as it doesn't affect my mobility
Fun fact Edinburgh to Kings Cross and back to Colwyn Bay takes 7.5 hours whereas Colwyn Bay to Cardiff and back is over 8 hours
That’s the sort of thing you end up with if you insist on using Sunil as your travel agent.
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
I thought that was already planned and part of a bill to be voted on soon?
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
Would you apply it to local elections? We’d save on councillor expenses as we’d have a lot fewer councillors. Not a single Police and Crime Commissioner would’ve been elected in 2024. Sarah Pochin wouldn’t be an MP.
First, I wouldn't have PCCs, and no i wouldn't, I don't see how seeking support for a specific industrial action and public apathy about who will be a political representative are really comparable.
I'd have a more proportional voting system.
One where the proportion of crooks in parliament was brought down to being proportional to the number of crooks in the wider population would be a start?
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”
Not applying enough polish to the turd.
It's possible that Labour are successfully delivering things - now I don't believe they are but if the excuse you are hearing is poor media communications you may want to give them a chance to fix that before sacking the manager.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
Attacking McSweeney is just a way of attacking Starmer whilst endeavouring to appear loyal. These Labour MPs should grow some balls.
Maybe, or it is a way of resolving cognitive dissonance and staying loyal to the dear leader, like all those old Soviets convinced that Uncle Joe would see them right if only he knew how bad things were.
Though Reform reporting him to the Met Police is rather taking the piss given they’re a bunch of grifting Putin apologist traitors .
I think that this could involve far more politicians than Mandelson, especially if he kept a secret diary and seeks revenge
Goodness only knows what is coming next, especially for labour politicians
You have absolutely no evidence for that. Can the Party sue?
Is it possible to defame a political party?
Genuine question. Opponents are not supposed to outright lie about a party, though they obviously do sometimes, and individual people in a party can obviously be defamed, but I'm curious if there are some difficulties for a party trying to sue.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”
Not applying enough polish to the turd.
It's possible that Labour are successfully delivering things - now I don't believe they are but if the excuse you are hearing is poor media communications you may want to give them a chance to fix that before sacking the manager.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
Attacking McSweeney is just a way of attacking Starmer whilst endeavouring to appear loyal. These Labour MPs should grow some balls.
Maybe, or it is a way of resolving cognitive dissonance and staying loyal to the dear leader, like all those old Soviets convinced that Uncle Joe would see them right if only he knew how bad things were.
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
I thought that was already planned and part of a bill to be voted on soon?
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
Would you apply it to local elections? We’d save on councillor expenses as we’d have a lot fewer councillors. Not a single Police and Crime Commissioner would’ve been elected in 2024. Sarah Pochin wouldn’t be an MP.
First, I wouldn't have PCCs, and no i wouldn't, I don't see how seeking support for a specific industrial action and public apathy about who will be a political representative are really comparable.
I'd have a more proportional voting system.
One where the proportion of crooks in parliament was brought down to being proportional to the number of crooks in the wider population would be a start?
It probably is, which may speak poorly of we the general public.
Labour MP: “Consistent failures by Morgan McSweeney have damaged our media operation and left the public unaware of much of what we’ve achieved in government.
“The Mandelson saga has only made things worse, and if Keir doesn’t make changes soon, the PLP will.
“We’ve had enough.”
Not applying enough polish to the turd.
It's possible that Labour are successfully delivering things - now I don't believe they are but if the excuse you are hearing is poor media communications you may want to give them a chance to fix that before sacking the manager.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
Attacking McSweeney is just a way of attacking Starmer whilst endeavouring to appear loyal. These Labour MPs should grow some balls.
Maybe, or it is a way of resolving cognitive dissonance and staying loyal to the dear leader, like all those old Soviets convinced that Uncle Joe would see them right if only he knew how bad things were.
Which is, in turn, an ancient way of expressing dissatisfaction with the way the country is run without attacking The King.
“If only the Noble King knew what the Evil Vizier did in his name!”
The smarter kings would reduce headcount among their senior ministers when such complaints got too much. See Henry VIII and Cromwell.
Though Reform reporting him to the Met Police is rather taking the piss given they’re a bunch of grifting Putin apologist traitors .
I think that this could involve far more politicians than Mandelson, especially if he kept a secret diary and seeks revenge
Goodness only knows what is coming next, especially for labour politicians
You have absolutely no evidence for that. Can the Party sue?
Is it possible to defame a political party?
Genuine question. Opponents are not supposed to outright lie about a party, though they obviously do sometimes, and individual people in a party can obviously be defamed, but I'm curious if there are some difficulties for a party trying to sue.
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
Interesting program following Steve Rosenberg doing his job as BBC Moscow correspondent. He's one of the best the BBC has and obviously has to walk a tightrope a lot of the time. But he's always clear and always appears decent. I don't know about making himself the story though. It seems a little narcissistic for someone with his quality
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
If Swindon Town wins.. The place is utterly devoid of culture. Imagine winning a trip to the UK City of Culture and ending up in Swindon Town centre. There's a railway museum and an edge of town shit shopping village. The centre of town is mostly closed down
You could visit the Oasis centre in West Swindon, which apparently gave Oasis their name. It's shit
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
Only thing he can fall back on is saying he was spectacularly incompetent at governance, which is meant to be one of the things he was great at and made his name.
Doesn't really distract from why he was so friendly with JE, but it's his only play at this point.
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
Given that we now know he was a Russian intelligence asset it seems highly likely that everything Mandelson shared with Epstein very quickly made it to the Kremlin.
Interesting program following Steve Rosenberg doing his job as BBC Moscow correspondent. He's one of the best the BBC has and obviously has to walk a tightrope a lot of the time. But he's always clear and always appears decent. I don't know about making himself the story though. It seems a little narcissistic for someone with his quality
They were talking about the programme this morning on Today. It was Panorama who approached him and the Moscow BBC team and he initially didn’t want to do it as they are so busy and a small team but Panorama really wanted to see his perspective as a British journo in Moscow who has such a long connection and so can engage with the country well. So the point of the story was intended to be as much about him as Russia by design of Panorama.
So the applications from Lincoln, York, Edinburgh, Winchester, Arundel, Windsor, Stratford-upon-Avon, St Ives, Portmeirion, even Glasgow, just got lost in the post? That pesky Royal Mail.
Interesting program following Steve Rosenberg doing his job as BBC Moscow correspondent. He's one of the best the BBC has and obviously has to walk a tightrope a lot of the time. But he's always clear and always appears decent. I don't know about making himself the story though. It seems a little narcissistic for someone with his quality
They were talking about the programme this morning on Today. It was Panorama who approached him and the Moscow BBC team and he initially didn’t want to do it as they are so busy and a small team but Panorama really wanted to see his perspective as a British journo in Moscow who has such a long connection and so can engage with the country well. So the point of the story was intended to be as much about him as Russia by design of Panorama.
And he learnt Russian at the country's finest university.
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
Given that we now know he was a Russian intelligence asset it seems highly likely that everything Mandelson shared with Epstein very quickly made it to the Kremlin.
The police should be making sure that Mandelson hands his passport over. He's a major flight risk given the years in jail he should be facing.
Interesting program following Steve Rosenberg doing his job as BBC Moscow correspondent. He's one of the best the BBC has and obviously has to walk a tightrope a lot of the time. But he's always clear and always appears decent. I don't know about making himself the story though. It seems a little narcissistic for someone with his quality
They were talking about the programme this morning on Today. It was Panorama who approached him and the Moscow BBC team and he initially didn’t want to do it as they are so busy and a small team but Panorama really wanted to see his perspective as a British journo in Moscow who has such a long connection and so can engage with the country well. So the point of the story was intended to be as much about him as Russia by design of Panorama.
And he learnt Russian at the country's finest university.
Interesting program following Steve Rosenberg doing his job as BBC Moscow correspondent. He's one of the best the BBC has and obviously has to walk a tightrope a lot of the time. But he's always clear and always appears decent. I don't know about making himself the story though. It seems a little narcissistic for someone with his quality
They were talking about the programme this morning on Today. It was Panorama who approached him and the Moscow BBC team and he initially didn’t want to do it as they are so busy and a small team but Panorama really wanted to see his perspective as a British journo in Moscow who has such a long connection and so can engage with the country well. So the point of the story was intended to be as much about him as Russia by design of Panorama.
And he learnt Russian at the country's finest university.
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
Given that we now know he was a Russian intelligence asset it seems highly likely that everything Mandelson shared with Epstein very quickly made it to the Kremlin.
Epstein wouldn't even have to be aware of or aligned with the Russians. The mere fact he had such powerful friends would have made him a very obvious target for communications interception by a whole host of countries, with perhaps the US being alone in not listening in as he was a US citizen (although there are loop holes).
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
Given that we now know he was a Russian intelligence asset it seems highly likely that everything Mandelson shared with Epstein very quickly made it to the Kremlin.
The police should be making sure that Mandelson hands his passport over. He's a major flight risk given the years in jail he should be facing.
Isn't one of the email about buying a flat in Brasil?
If Swindon Town wins.. The place is utterly devoid of culture. Imagine winning a trip to the UK City of Culture and ending up in Swindon Town centre. There's a railway museum and an edge of town shit shopping village. The centre of town is mostly closed down
You could visit the Oasis centre in West Swindon, which apparently gave Oasis their name. It's shit
So the applications from Lincoln, York, Edinburgh, Winchester, Arundel, Windsor, Stratford-upon-Avon, St Ives, Portmeirion, even Glasgow, just got lost in the post? That pesky Royal Mail.
No-body needs to tell any of those places they’re better than Blackpool. They know.
If Swindon Town wins.. The place is utterly devoid of culture. Imagine winning a trip to the UK City of Culture and ending up in Swindon Town centre. There's a railway museum and an edge of town shit shopping village. The centre of town is mostly closed down
You could visit the Oasis centre in West Swindon, which apparently gave Oasis their name. It's shit
Isn't it the setting for The Office?
That's culture.
That's Slough I think you'll find, which does at least have the old Horlicks factory.
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
He sounds like he thinks he can still come back. How deluded!
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
I see Resident Doctors have decided they want to become even more unpopular and have voted to strike again .
They almost didn't meet the turnout threshold this time so they might not get any more chances. I wonder if the unions will put pressure on Labour to get rid of the minimum turnout threshold for strikes in the coming year.
I thought that was already planned and part of a bill to be voted on soon?
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
Would you apply it to local elections? We’d save on councillor expenses as we’d have a lot fewer councillors. Not a single Police and Crime Commissioner would’ve been elected in 2024. Sarah Pochin wouldn’t be an MP.
First, I wouldn't have PCCs, and no i wouldn't, I don't see how seeking support for a specific industrial action and public apathy about who will be a political representative are really comparable.
I'd have a more proportional voting system.
The choice of your MP seems more impactful than a specific industrial action, so why require a certain turnout for the less important one?
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
Lord Mandelson interview with @katyballs , who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
Comments
Genuine question. Opponents are not supposed to outright lie about a party, though they obviously do sometimes, and individual people in a party can obviously be defamed, but I'm curious if there are some difficulties for a party trying to sue.
I have to say that the Lords are a bit more select about their speakers than the Commons. Sir Lindsay's a lot better than his two predecessors but that really is not saying very much at all. Bercow and Michael Martin were terrible in their different ways.
Friends son is a JD of about 5 years post graduation. Has had some tough times, and lots of friends left the NHS. There are issues asking the service to do ever more without sorting the structural challenges. But paying more on its own isn’t the answer. Medics are not the only ones to have had pay deflation over the last fifteen years.
"It would be wrong for me to comment on an on-going investigation."
Apart from the Lab on Reform plant questions that will obviously still dominate
I have to admit I think turnout threshold is a perfectly reasonable requirement.
Former Labour MP Dan Norris, 66, remains under investigation over the alleged rape of a woman and has been further arrested on suspicion of raping a second woman, sexually assaulting a third woman, voyeurism, and upskirting women.
The former West of England Mayor was first arrested in April 2025 on suspicion of sexual offences against a girl, child abduction, and the rape of a woman. Police are no longer investigating the alleged child sexual offences or abduction.
Norris said in a statement that he "vigorously and entirely" denied all of the allegations made against him.
Norris, who is also being investigated over alleged misconduct in a public office, remains on condition bail.
All the offences are alleged to have occurred between the 2000s and 2020s.
In a statement, Norris said: "I vigorously and entirely deny the serious allegations made against me. They are untrue.
"I am challenging them through my legal representatives."
BBC News - Mandelson revelations raise further questions about Starmer's judgement
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce9yekr4d9ro
Train to Paris on 17 April, whence I’ll get another train to Vannes. Hotel for a night in Vannes, then a return flight from Bordeaux (can’t get a sensible flight back from Biarritz) on 11 May
That should give me plenty of time to walk the circa 400 miles from Vannes to Biarritz. Everything else will be booked on the day
I love an adventure!
I used to be a bit of the fan, particularly in light of his most recent successor, but now I know better.
You get more elite, you move into more elite circles, you still don't feel elite. There's no such thing as "enough".
It requires a certain kind of bloddy-mindedness to break that cycle. If you told me that you had a version of that bloddy-mindedness, I wouldn't disagree. But whilst that cycle is bad for personal happiness, and has horrible, Epstein-scandal-sized, downsides for society, the progress of civilization also depends on it.
But all is vanity, as the Preacher said.
Like it’s a tribute.
Personally Starmer and Reeves arrived without a plan and that's utterly unacceptable...
"Nationalise the voting."
https://x.com/factpostnews/status/2018379209027031367
Trump calls in to the Dan Bongino Show:
"The Republicans should say, 'We want to take over. We should take over the voting.'"
Talking of which we have decided to have a two day rail trip
We are going from Colwyn Bay to Edinburgh next month and staying in the Premier Inn on Princess Street opposite the gardens where we got engaged 63 years ago then the next day, Edinburgh to Kings Cross via LNER and then home from Euston in the afternoon via WCML
We love train travel and look forward to watching the countryside slide by, especially as it doesn't affect my mobility
Fun fact Edinburgh to Kings Cross and back to Colwyn Bay takes 7.5 hours whereas Colwyn Bay to Cardiff and back is over 8 hours
There is no way a future administration that's democratically elected ignores this.
When will those clouds all disappear?
Angie, Angie
Where will it lead us from here?
I'd have a more proportional voting system.
IN FULL: The cities currently bidding to be the UK's 2029 City of Culture
- Blackpool
- Bristol
- Exeter
- Ipswich
- Peterborough
- Plymouth
- Portsmouth
- Swindon
- Wrexham
In fairness city status is now arbitrary, so that's fair enough.
https://www.cartercenter.org/news/guinea-worm-announcement/
“If only the Noble King knew what the Evil Vizier did in his name!”
The smarter kings would reduce headcount among their senior ministers when such complaints got too much. See Henry VIII and Cromwell.
There's more.
On 31 March 2010, Lord Mandelson's principal private secretary sent him a note of a meeting between the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Larry Summers, US Treasury Secretary.
Lord Mandelson forwarded it to Jeffrey Epstein five minutes later.
https://bsky.app/profile/danneidle.bsky.social/post/3mdvot3ezsl24
Hopefully after this final nail in his political coffin the only interviews he'll be doing are under caution.
You could visit the Oasis centre in West Swindon, which apparently gave Oasis their name. It's shit
Doesn't really distract from why he was so friendly with JE, but it's his only play at this point.
The Government's refusal to bring forward a bespoke bill to strip Mandelson of his peerage will not hold.
MPs are currently looking at bringing in a presentation bill within the next day or two.
The Government will then be faced with the choice of backing it or not.
That's culture.
@Steven_Swinford
EXCLUSIVE
Lord Mandelson interview with
@katyballs
, who spoke to him both before and after the release of thousands of new Epstein emails
* On resigning from Labour. 'The decision wasn’t easy but I feel better for it as I need to reset. I am a New Labour person and always will be wherever the current party situates itself. But I think I want a sea change. I want to be more an outsider looking in than the other way round. I want to contribute ideas that enable Britain to strengthen and to work for all, in every part of the country'
https://x.com/Steven_Swinford/status/2018419906241282318
@steverichards14
The biggest British political scandal in modern times
https://x.com/steverichards14/status/2018384504767811869
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