So Khan is going to be London mayor and a member of the Lords at the same time?
Well, Nigel Farage holds down multiple jobs while being an MP, so why can’t Khan hold down two related jobs?
I thought it wasn’t unacceptable for Farage ?
Still he seems to live rent free in many people’s heads.
I don't have an issue with MPs have other jobs. I may have a view on what jobs they do and how much time they put towards those jobs as opposed to being an MP, but that is a personal judgement call for constituents - which is why it is fair for opponents to highlight it.
Speaking of matters housing, my estate agent friend in Derbyshire tells me within a 2-3 mile radius of central Belper, there are currently 300 properties for sale.
It's not as though Belper is full of new build 20-storey blocks of flats or 500-home developments. These are just houses for sale.
No one is buying - even with sellers forced to cut prices by £10-20k, no one is buying.
This reflects what I think is happening in East London - new build flats for rent are going while houses subdivided into 3-4 bedrooms, are sitting on the rental market. How far can and will landlords go to get tenants?
Just back from the polling station, having spoilt my ballot in the referendum on the Bingley local plan.
I am not expecting a high turnout.
I think 10-20% is pretty normal. They go out of date super fast despite taking years to produce, and can easily be given less weight if the housing land supply is below threshold and other reasons, so it is a very frustrating process even though it can be better than nothing at all.
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Yes, it was a ridiculous political stunt, but whilst I expect any 'punishment' to be utterly token, banning them from playing would be entirely disproportionate.
It's a tough one for FIFA. If it's a token punishment, then it's open season going forward. The nearest comparison for FIFA (Rodri and Morata were done by UEFA) is Xhaka and Shaqiri in 2018:
FIFA warned the three Swiss players, but ruled they hadn’t violated article 54 of the disciplinary code – “provoking the general public” – which would have called for a two-game suspension. Instead, they fined the players in accordance with article 57, finding them guilty of “offensive gestures or language.”
I'd suggest that what the Argentina players did last night was far worse than what Xhaka and Shaqiri did in 2018.
98% of the Globe would probably not be offended in the least
What they Gonna do when Spanish players unfurl the Free Palestine banners during their victory lap a cause most of the Globe supports, award the World Cup to the USA?
And how are you guys going to go about Freeing Palestine?
There will be a Free Palestine in your life time (not mine) Israel has fooked it with their Genocidal actions
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Yes, it was a ridiculous political stunt, but whilst I expect any 'punishment' to be utterly token, banning them from playing would be entirely disproportionate.
It's a tough one for FIFA. If it's a token punishment, then it's open season going forward. The nearest comparison for FIFA (Rodri and Morata were done by UEFA) is Xhaka and Shaqiri in 2018:
FIFA warned the three Swiss players, but ruled they hadn’t violated article 54 of the disciplinary code – “provoking the general public” – which would have called for a two-game suspension. Instead, they fined the players in accordance with article 57, finding them guilty of “offensive gestures or language.”
I'd suggest that what the Argentina players did last night was far worse than what Xhaka and Shaqiri did in 2018.
98% of the Globe would probably not be offended in the least
What they Gonna do when Spanish players unfurl the Free Palestine banners during their victory lap a cause most of the Globe supports, award the World Cup to the USA?
And how are you guys going to go about Freeing Palestine?
There will be a Free Palestine in your life time (not mine) Israel has fooked it with their Genocidal actions
Issue: Does obstructing access to, and exit from, a private site by blocking a private road leading up to it involve an interference with “rights that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large” for the purposes of the statutory offence of public nuisance?
Facts: The appellants (“the defendants”), members of the group “Animal Rebellion”, took part in a protest outside dairy works owned and operated by Müller UK. The dairy works were accessible only via an entrance on a private road called Pointon Way.
In the morning of 8 September 2022, the defendants obstructed the entrance to the Muller site by chaining themselves to temporary fencing in front of it or gluing themselves to the road surface on Pointon Way. The defendants remained there for four hours until they were arrested, during which time it was impossible for vehicles to enter or leave the site. As a result, employees finishing their night shift were unable to drive home.
The defendants were charged with an offence of intentionally/recklessly causing public nuisance contrary to section 78 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. At trial in the Crown Court, the defendants entered not guilty pleas. At the end of the prosecution case, the defendants entered submissions of “no case to answer”. A submission of “no case to answer” is when the defence submits that the case against the defendant(s), or at least one count/charge, should be stopped at that stage as there is insufficient evidence on which the court, properly directed, could convict. The defendants argued that there was no evidence before the jury that they had obstructed the exercise or enjoyment of “a right that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large”, as required by s78 of the 2022 Act. This was because they had obstructed a private road leading up to private premises.
The trial judge accepted this argument and ruled that there was no case to answer. The prosecution appealed to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division), who allowed the appeal and made an order for the Crown Court proceedings to be resumed. The defendants now appeal to the Supreme Court.
The Government has launched a consultation on fireworks to protect dogs and pets
- Limit loud fireworks to professional displays only
- Tougher safety rules for lower-risk fireworks
- Bans on the most dangerous fireworks
We don't need any more nanny state, thanks.
Well said, so are you going to oppose any nanny state restrictions on social media, mobile devices etc?
There’s another
“ From April 2027, it will be illegal to sell high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s, formalising restrictions already voluntarily enforced by supermarkets
Up to a third of UK children, especially boys, consume at least one energy drink a week”
The Government has launched a consultation on fireworks to protect dogs and pets
- Limit loud fireworks to professional displays only
- Tougher safety rules for lower-risk fireworks
- Bans on the most dangerous fireworks
We don't need any more nanny state, thanks.
Well said, so are you going to oppose any nanny state restrictions on social media, mobile devices etc?
There’s another
“ From April 2027, it will be illegal to sell high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s, formalising restrictions already voluntarily enforced by supermarkets
Up to a third of UK children, especially boys, consume at least one energy drink a week”
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
This is not actually Starmer's resignation honours list, that is yet to come still, so did this list even cross Starmer's desk?
The assassination of Widdecome has been a handy, if unpleasant, aside for Farage.
I still haven't got over his cynical pressser last weekend.. ****!
If you take a week to not get over every cynical and immoral thing that Nigel Fromage does, you are going to spend a considerable amount of time in a very bad state.
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
I think I am right in remembering you need to earn £42k a year for a skilled worker visa. I never knew working in corner shop and pizza takeaways paid so well.....
Unless it's a shortage occupation. Labour cracked down on some of this, but the definition is still oddly wide.
The idea that raising wages might assuage the shortages is, apparently, anathema.
The whole concept of shortage occupations should be scrapped. If its a shortage occupation, then lift the wages so the shortage is filled - and if its lifted to the point that the minimum earnings threshold is reached then a visa can be applied for that way.
You don't seem to understand the different stakeholders involved. Wages are up to individual employers and businesses. The Government is looking out for the country as a whole.
If there are shortages that will damage the country's economy what should the govt do? Take control of businesses and make them raise wages? That would be crazy. But what the govt can do is temporarily increase the pool of prospective employees through varying the immigration rules.
The government could let the market raise the wages.
England doing what England do best and finding a way to lose from an unloseable position.
I thought Curran and Root were playing the situation pretty intelligently and then Curran goes and plays a totally unnecessary shot.
The future of the country is at stake and you're making minor nationalist football points? Thank god the future of our country is in the hands of the young and their... oh FFS!
The assassination of Widdecome has been a handy, if unpleasant, aside for Farage.
I still haven't got over his cynical pressser last weekend.. ****!
If you take a week to not get over every cynical and immoral thing that Nigel Fromage does, you are going to spend a considerable amount of time in a very bad state.
Seek help.
I found the choreographed Widdecome presser even more cynical than other cynical Farage pressers.
Issue: Does obstructing access to, and exit from, a private site by blocking a private road leading up to it involve an interference with “rights that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large” for the purposes of the statutory offence of public nuisance?
Facts: The appellants (“the defendants”), members of the group “Animal Rebellion”, took part in a protest outside dairy works owned and operated by Müller UK. The dairy works were accessible only via an entrance on a private road called Pointon Way.
In the morning of 8 September 2022, the defendants obstructed the entrance to the Muller site by chaining themselves to temporary fencing in front of it or gluing themselves to the road surface on Pointon Way. The defendants remained there for four hours until they were arrested, during which time it was impossible for vehicles to enter or leave the site. As a result, employees finishing their night shift were unable to drive home.
The defendants were charged with an offence of intentionally/recklessly causing public nuisance contrary to section 78 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. At trial in the Crown Court, the defendants entered not guilty pleas. At the end of the prosecution case, the defendants entered submissions of “no case to answer”. A submission of “no case to answer” is when the defence submits that the case against the defendant(s), or at least one count/charge, should be stopped at that stage as there is insufficient evidence on which the court, properly directed, could convict. The defendants argued that there was no evidence before the jury that they had obstructed the exercise or enjoyment of “a right that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large”, as required by s78 of the 2022 Act. This was because they had obstructed a private road leading up to private premises.
The trial judge accepted this argument and ruled that there was no case to answer. The prosecution appealed to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division), who allowed the appeal and made an order for the Crown Court proceedings to be resumed. The defendants now appeal to the Supreme Court.
England doing what England do best and finding a way to lose from an unloseable position.
I thought Curran and Root were playing the situation pretty intelligently and then Curran goes and plays a totally unnecessary shot.
The future of the country is at stake and you're making minor nationalist football points? Thank god the future of our country is in the hands of the young and their... oh FFS!
Issue: Does obstructing access to, and exit from, a private site by blocking a private road leading up to it involve an interference with “rights that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large” for the purposes of the statutory offence of public nuisance?
Facts: The appellants (“the defendants”), members of the group “Animal Rebellion”, took part in a protest outside dairy works owned and operated by Müller UK. The dairy works were accessible only via an entrance on a private road called Pointon Way.
In the morning of 8 September 2022, the defendants obstructed the entrance to the Muller site by chaining themselves to temporary fencing in front of it or gluing themselves to the road surface on Pointon Way. The defendants remained there for four hours until they were arrested, during which time it was impossible for vehicles to enter or leave the site. As a result, employees finishing their night shift were unable to drive home.
The defendants were charged with an offence of intentionally/recklessly causing public nuisance contrary to section 78 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. At trial in the Crown Court, the defendants entered not guilty pleas. At the end of the prosecution case, the defendants entered submissions of “no case to answer”. A submission of “no case to answer” is when the defence submits that the case against the defendant(s), or at least one count/charge, should be stopped at that stage as there is insufficient evidence on which the court, properly directed, could convict. The defendants argued that there was no evidence before the jury that they had obstructed the exercise or enjoyment of “a right that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large”, as required by s78 of the 2022 Act. This was because they had obstructed a private road leading up to private premises.
The trial judge accepted this argument and ruled that there was no case to answer. The prosecution appealed to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division), who allowed the appeal and made an order for the Crown Court proceedings to be resumed. The defendants now appeal to the Supreme Court.
England doing what England do best and finding a way to lose from an unloseable position.
I thought Curran and Root were playing the situation pretty intelligently and then Curran goes and plays a totally unnecessary shot.
The future of the country is at stake and you're making minor nationalist football points? Thank god the future of our country is in the hands of the young and their... oh FFS!
Football? I'm talking about sport, sir.
I know. My grand pun when someone picked me up on some of the mistakes of the post has now been retired.
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
He said, in 2023, he wouldn’t have any.
What changed ?
Nothing
PM Starmer didn’t inform Starmer MP or even Starmer that he was making any exit appointments.
So legally he hasn’t told a fib about not making the exit appointments that he has made.
The Government has launched a consultation on fireworks to protect dogs and pets
- Limit loud fireworks to professional displays only
- Tougher safety rules for lower-risk fireworks
- Bans on the most dangerous fireworks
We don't need any more nanny state, thanks.
Well said, so are you going to oppose any nanny state restrictions on social media, mobile devices etc?
There’s another
“ From April 2027, it will be illegal to sell high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s, formalising restrictions already voluntarily enforced by supermarkets
Up to a third of UK children, especially boys, consume at least one energy drink a week”
I'm struggling to care tbh. The state wants to micromanage people's lives but can't solve the big picture items. Is this about sugar or caffeine? Will under-16s be barred from Starbucks next when the government realises both are in coffee?
The Government has launched a consultation on fireworks to protect dogs and pets
- Limit loud fireworks to professional displays only
- Tougher safety rules for lower-risk fireworks
- Bans on the most dangerous fireworks
We don't need any more nanny state, thanks.
Well said, so are you going to oppose any nanny state restrictions on social media, mobile devices etc?
There’s another
“ From April 2027, it will be illegal to sell high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s, formalising restrictions already voluntarily enforced by supermarkets
Up to a third of UK children, especially boys, consume at least one energy drink a week”
I'm struggling to care tbh. The state wants to micromanage people's lives but can't solve the big picture items. Is this about sugar or caffeine? Will under-16s be barred from Starbucks next when the government realises both are in coffee?
Well, surely that's one policy we could all get behind?
Issue: Does obstructing access to, and exit from, a private site by blocking a private road leading up to it involve an interference with “rights that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large” for the purposes of the statutory offence of public nuisance?
Facts: The appellants (“the defendants”), members of the group “Animal Rebellion”, took part in a protest outside dairy works owned and operated by Müller UK. The dairy works were accessible only via an entrance on a private road called Pointon Way.
In the morning of 8 September 2022, the defendants obstructed the entrance to the Muller site by chaining themselves to temporary fencing in front of it or gluing themselves to the road surface on Pointon Way. The defendants remained there for four hours until they were arrested, during which time it was impossible for vehicles to enter or leave the site. As a result, employees finishing their night shift were unable to drive home.
The defendants were charged with an offence of intentionally/recklessly causing public nuisance contrary to section 78 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. At trial in the Crown Court, the defendants entered not guilty pleas. At the end of the prosecution case, the defendants entered submissions of “no case to answer”. A submission of “no case to answer” is when the defence submits that the case against the defendant(s), or at least one count/charge, should be stopped at that stage as there is insufficient evidence on which the court, properly directed, could convict. The defendants argued that there was no evidence before the jury that they had obstructed the exercise or enjoyment of “a right that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large”, as required by s78 of the 2022 Act. This was because they had obstructed a private road leading up to private premises.
The trial judge accepted this argument and ruled that there was no case to answer. The prosecution appealed to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division), who allowed the appeal and made an order for the Crown Court proceedings to be resumed. The defendants now appeal to the Supreme Court.
At around 08:48 on 25 June 2026, the 07:51 Northern passenger service from Colne to Preston struck a car on Hoghton automatic half-barrier level crossing, which is situated between Preston and Blackburn. The driver of the car was fatally injured in the accident and a child who was a passenger in the car was also seriously injured. No injuries were caused to anyone on the train.
The evidence available to RAIB shows that the train had passed a green (proceed) signal as it approached the crossing. RAIB’s preliminary examination also found that the road traffic lights and audible alarm at the crossing had not been activated, and that the half-barriers were raised.
The Government has launched a consultation on fireworks to protect dogs and pets
- Limit loud fireworks to professional displays only
- Tougher safety rules for lower-risk fireworks
- Bans on the most dangerous fireworks
We don't need any more nanny state, thanks.
Well said, so are you going to oppose any nanny state restrictions on social media, mobile devices etc?
There’s another
“ From April 2027, it will be illegal to sell high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s, formalising restrictions already voluntarily enforced by supermarkets
Up to a third of UK children, especially boys, consume at least one energy drink a week”
I'm struggling to care tbh. The state wants to micromanage people's lives but can't solve the big picture items. Is this about sugar or caffeine? Will under-16s be barred from Starbucks next when the government realises both are in coffee?
Well, in fairness, there has to be something in a Starbucks coffee before you add you cinnamon and chocolate.
At around 08:48 on 25 June 2026, the 07:51 Northern passenger service from Colne to Preston struck a car on Hoghton automatic half-barrier level crossing, which is situated between Preston and Blackburn. The driver of the car was fatally injured in the accident and a child who was a passenger in the car was also seriously injured. No injuries were caused to anyone on the train.
The evidence available to RAIB shows that the train had passed a green (proceed) signal as it approached the crossing. RAIB’s preliminary examination also found that the road traffic lights and audible alarm at the crossing had not been activated, and that the half-barriers were raised.
The way its been done is fairly logical, I like the honesty of Wyre's leader that even though Blackpool absolutely is part of the Fylde coast so should be with them, the economics for them is not great.
Michael Vincent, leader of Wyre Council, said: "From a community perspective, for us it makes the most sense, it's the Fylde coast.
"The issue of course, is though the people of Wyre and Fylde alone will be responsible for subsidising Blackpool.
"Wyre and Fylde are debt-free councils, we're going to take on a share of two billion pounds of Lancashire County Council's debt, and we will acquire all of Blackpool's debt."
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
He said, in 2023, he wouldn’t have any.
What changed ?
They're not resignation honours, just the routine "top up your Lords contingents" nominations? Hence the Conservative and Lib Dem lists.
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
He said, in 2023, he wouldn’t have any.
What changed ?
They're not resignation honours, just the routine "top up your Lords contingents" nominations? Hence the Conservative and Lib Dem lists.
Reform were moaning about not being included . I thought they were anti-establishment!
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Yes, it was a ridiculous political stunt, but whilst I expect any 'punishment' to be utterly token, banning them from playing would be entirely disproportionate.
It's a tough one for FIFA. If it's a token punishment, then it's open season going forward. The nearest comparison for FIFA (Rodri and Morata were done by UEFA) is Xhaka and Shaqiri in 2018:
FIFA warned the three Swiss players, but ruled they hadn’t violated article 54 of the disciplinary code – “provoking the general public” – which would have called for a two-game suspension. Instead, they fined the players in accordance with article 57, finding them guilty of “offensive gestures or language.”
I'd suggest that what the Argentina players did last night was far worse than what Xhaka and Shaqiri did in 2018.
There is another, much closer precedent.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c935pgr4dklo ..There is precedent for Fifa banning a player who has held up a banner with a similar political message. After the 2012 Olympic Games bronze medal match, South Korea midfielder Park Jong-woo held a sign in Korean which read "Dokdo is our territory". More commonly known as Liancourt Rocks, Dokdo is a group of inlets administered by South Korea to which Japan holds a claim. Park was charged by Fifa and a few months later handed a two-match suspension, meaning he sat out two World Cup qualifiers...
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
Well with his exit appointments Starmer has really shown what he's about.
What I want to know is - did Starmer formally inform Starmer about his exit appointments. or was it just an informal informing? So that Starmer didn't have formal information as to Starmer's exit appointments?
He said, in 2023, he wouldn’t have any.
What changed ?
They're not resignation honours, just the routine "top up your Lords contingents" nominations? Hence the Conservative and Lib Dem lists.
Reform were moaning about not being included . I thought they were anti-establishment!
You think it acceptable they and the Greens were excluded ?
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Yes, it was a ridiculous political stunt, but whilst I expect any 'punishment' to be utterly token, banning them from playing would be entirely disproportionate.
It's a tough one for FIFA. If it's a token punishment, then it's open season going forward. The nearest comparison for FIFA (Rodri and Morata were done by UEFA) is Xhaka and Shaqiri in 2018:
FIFA warned the three Swiss players, but ruled they hadn’t violated article 54 of the disciplinary code – “provoking the general public” – which would have called for a two-game suspension. Instead, they fined the players in accordance with article 57, finding them guilty of “offensive gestures or language.”
I'd suggest that what the Argentina players did last night was far worse than what Xhaka and Shaqiri did in 2018.
There is another, much closer precedent.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c935pgr4dklo ..There is precedent for Fifa banning a player who has held up a banner with a similar political message. After the 2012 Olympic Games bronze medal match, South Korea midfielder Park Jong-woo held a sign in Korean which read "Dokdo is our territory". More commonly known as Liancourt Rocks, Dokdo is a group of inlets administered by South Korea to which Japan holds a claim. Park was charged by Fifa and a few months later handed a two-match suspension, meaning he sat out two World Cup qualifiers...
Arguably the Argentine offence is more blatant.
Absolutely, precedence and the rules say the players should be suspended.
They won't be though.
The rules don't apply when FIFA don't want them to, and they won't want them to here.
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
Top Dalek with all those obvious handicaps? I think the BBC should be paying us all lots of money in that people without disabilities didn't get a look in.
Observation: at least some of these reorganisations are admitting the previously-unspoken point- to give strangled cities access to empty land where they can give planning permission.
England doing what England do best and finding a way to lose from an unloseable position.
I thought Curran and Root were playing the situation pretty intelligently and then Curran goes and plays a totally unnecessary shot.
The future of the country is at stake and you're making minor nationalist football points? Thank god the future of our country is in the hands of the young and their... oh FFS!
So Khan is going to be London mayor and a member of the Lords at the same time?
Well, Nigel Farage holds down multiple jobs while being an MP, so why can’t Khan hold down two related jobs?
LOL, you count turning up at HOL for your attendance money , cheap lunch and bevvy as a job. Just the usual establishment back handers with public's money.
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
It was true that Dr Who's fans had something of a Strange love for him though.
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Yes, it was a ridiculous political stunt, but whilst I expect any 'punishment' to be utterly token, banning them from playing would be entirely disproportionate.
It's a tough one for FIFA. If it's a token punishment, then it's open season going forward. The nearest comparison for FIFA (Rodri and Morata were done by UEFA) is Xhaka and Shaqiri in 2018:
FIFA warned the three Swiss players, but ruled they hadn’t violated article 54 of the disciplinary code – “provoking the general public” – which would have called for a two-game suspension. Instead, they fined the players in accordance with article 57, finding them guilty of “offensive gestures or language.”
I'd suggest that what the Argentina players did last night was far worse than what Xhaka and Shaqiri did in 2018.
There is another, much closer precedent.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c935pgr4dklo ..There is precedent for Fifa banning a player who has held up a banner with a similar political message. After the 2012 Olympic Games bronze medal match, South Korea midfielder Park Jong-woo held a sign in Korean which read "Dokdo is our territory". More commonly known as Liancourt Rocks, Dokdo is a group of inlets administered by South Korea to which Japan holds a claim. Park was charged by Fifa and a few months later handed a two-match suspension, meaning he sat out two World Cup qualifiers...
Arguably the Argentine offence is more blatant.
Chances are bans are dished out for 2030 qualifiers (so doesn't affect some as they won't be around).
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
My belief was that Davros was incredibly old and being kept alive by the bottom half of a dalek. Never had him down as disabled. And even if he was, why cannot disabled people be evil? Equal opportunity casting and all.
The system working as intended. The Gaza refugee judgement is exactly what the political classes want.
“ EXCL: Andy Burnham’s new head of political strategy is a trustee of a charity that campaigns to repatriate Isis brides and abolish citizenship stripping, The Spectator can reveal.
Matthew McGregor joined the board of the charity Reprieve in April 2022. The organisation lobbies the UK government to abolish citizenship stripping, which it describes as ‘brutal and harmful’ and 'fundamentally racist'.
The passion for abolishing citizenship stripping appears somewhat at odds with Burnham’s declaration that ‘all possible options’ should be on the table to deport the notorious grooming-gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed to Pakistan.”
Observation: at least some of these reorganisations are admitting the previously-unspoken point- to give strangled cities access to empty land where they can give planning permission.
At around 08:48 on 25 June 2026, the 07:51 Northern passenger service from Colne to Preston struck a car on Hoghton automatic half-barrier level crossing, which is situated between Preston and Blackburn. The driver of the car was fatally injured in the accident and a child who was a passenger in the car was also seriously injured. No injuries were caused to anyone on the train.
The evidence available to RAIB shows that the train had passed a green (proceed) signal as it approached the crossing. RAIB’s preliminary examination also found that the road traffic lights and audible alarm at the crossing had not been activated, and that the half-barriers were raised.
It's quite concerning level crossing safety signals can actually fail in such way. I would have expected the system to keep the lights at red unless it had an indication the barrier and alarms had been triggered.
At around 08:48 on 25 June 2026, the 07:51 Northern passenger service from Colne to Preston struck a car on Hoghton automatic half-barrier level crossing, which is situated between Preston and Blackburn. The driver of the car was fatally injured in the accident and a child who was a passenger in the car was also seriously injured. No injuries were caused to anyone on the train.
The evidence available to RAIB shows that the train had passed a green (proceed) signal as it approached the crossing. RAIB’s preliminary examination also found that the road traffic lights and audible alarm at the crossing had not been activated, and that the half-barriers were raised.
It's quite concerning level crossing safety signals can actually fail in such way. I would have expected the system to keep the lights at red unless it had an indication the barrier and alarms had been triggered.
I assumed it was a physical interlock, or at least as close as an electric or electronic mechanism can come to one.
That is bad news for the Forest and Stroud, possibly Gloucester itself, as the county council will be dominated by rich Fukkers from Tewkesbury and the Cotswolds who will be totally unscrupulous about redirecting all the money to where it will benefit their voters rather than where it's actually needed.
Immigration is one of the areas where a PBer has changed my mind on something. I forget who it was.
Ultimately significant skilled immigration signals abject failure. It means that we are failing to educate our own young people to become doctors, accountants, engineers, lawyers and so forth. The large majority of skilled immigrants move to a small number of cities, so an ever growing proportion of the nation's income accrues to those areas of the country. From a demographics perspective, we are papering over the fact we have not built a country in which people want to raise their own children. The TFR in Scotland is approaching 1.
There should only really be very limited immigration - short-term visas for hospitality and agricultural work available to young people from countries with a similar or higher HDI, and a very small number of visas available to those who bring unusual skills that we in the UK are unable to teach (and those gaps should be closed as quickly as possible via further and higher education).
We should also have a generous refugee scheme for children, accompanied by one adult only (or none at all), with an emergency function for temporary haven (e.g. Ukraine).
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Send all their match fees to a British military charity
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
My belief was that Davros was incredibly old and being kept alive by the bottom half of a dalek. Never had him down as disabled. And even if he was, why cannot disabled people be evil? Equal opportunity casting and all.
At around 08:48 on 25 June 2026, the 07:51 Northern passenger service from Colne to Preston struck a car on Hoghton automatic half-barrier level crossing, which is situated between Preston and Blackburn. The driver of the car was fatally injured in the accident and a child who was a passenger in the car was also seriously injured. No injuries were caused to anyone on the train.
The evidence available to RAIB shows that the train had passed a green (proceed) signal as it approached the crossing. RAIB’s preliminary examination also found that the road traffic lights and audible alarm at the crossing had not been activated, and that the half-barriers were raised.
It's quite concerning level crossing safety signals can actually fail in such way. I would have expected the system to keep the lights at red unless it had an indication the barrier and alarms had been triggered.
And that is what normally happens (as anyone who has been stuck at a broken level crossing can tell you). Wrong-side failures are rare, but they do happen.
That is bad news for the Forest and Stroud, possibly Gloucester itself, as the county council will be dominated by rich Fukkers from Tewkesbury and the Cotswolds who will be totally unscrupulous about redirecting all the money to where it will benefit their voters rather than where it's actually needed.
No need to worry about that.
Unless and until social care is fixed, there will be no spare money to redirect.
Farage may hope he wins by a big enough majority in Clacton to avoid a recall by election
That's what he set out to do. I can't see Labour and the Tories blindsided by that one.
It's an open question what the other parties would prefer to do with Farage, assuming he is re-elected at his stunt election.
First hurdle: he needs a finding against him from the commissioner. Next issue: the committee needs to decide what if any penalty to impose; ie whether to impose enough to make possible a recall. Next issue: if they do impose such a penalty, it's then a matter for the initiative of the Clacton electors.
Political question: would the parties feel that the best course is to allow all the bad publicity of a finding by the commissioner, but not encourage 10% of the voters to sign a recall petition. A second by election, which Farage may well win, would give Reform chance to convince gullible voters that Farage is being put in double jeopardy (he isn't of course) and that the establishment is out to get him.
Sir Sadiq Khan has been made a peer by Sir Keir Starmer.
Outrageous! I mean, what has Khan done compared to say Charlotte Owen whom Johnson gave a peerage to?
He screwed all of London?
Actually Khan's great sin in my view is that he has entirely failed to quell the fragmentation. In fact he's championed the opposite. If you're a Londoner you hate him, If you're a London claimant you love him.
Trump buys his way to power, Khan has been there much before him.
Sky News @SkyNews Liberal Democrats leader Ed Davey has called on FIFA to ban the six Argentine players who celebrated with the "Falklands are Argentine" banner from playing in Sunday's final.
Ed Davey has told Sky News he has written to the president Gianni Infantino.
A ridiculous overreaction.
Yes, it was a ridiculous political stunt, but whilst I expect any 'punishment' to be utterly token, banning them from playing would be entirely disproportionate.
It's a tough one for FIFA. If it's a token punishment, then it's open season going forward. The nearest comparison for FIFA (Rodri and Morata were done by UEFA) is Xhaka and Shaqiri in 2018:
FIFA warned the three Swiss players, but ruled they hadn’t violated article 54 of the disciplinary code – “provoking the general public” – which would have called for a two-game suspension. Instead, they fined the players in accordance with article 57, finding them guilty of “offensive gestures or language.”
I'd suggest that what the Argentina players did last night was far worse than what Xhaka and Shaqiri did in 2018.
98% of the Globe would probably not be offended in the least
What they Gonna do when Spanish players unfurl the Free Palestine banners during their victory lap a cause most of the Globe supports, award the World Cup to the USA?
And how are you guys going to go about Freeing Palestine?
There will be a Free Palestine in your life time (not mine) Israel has fooked it with their Genocidal actions
There already is one. It's called 'Jordan'.
At the risk of upsetting JK Rowling may be we add the west bank and call it TransJordan?
(Although the hashemites would hate that and they are good friends and allies)
OT a friend has become so impressed with AI (ChatGPT probably) that he has signed up for the £20 a month version. Nothing to do with work.
I pay for Claude - got various personal projects on and it's brilliant.
A family member has done the same. Gets boring stuff - coding, the sorts of documents no-one reads but you have to have - done well and quickly. Their profession is arts/music. The same person wouldn't give house room to AI having any involvement in creative arts or performance.
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
My belief was that Davros was incredibly old and being kept alive by the bottom half of a dalek. Never had him down as disabled. And even if he was, why cannot disabled people be evil? Equal opportunity casting and all.
I agree but the comments from RTD are just the usual witless nonsense from him that saw the show crash and burn, Disney walk away and plans for a “Whoniverse’ of multiple spin offs died after the mediocre Sea-Devil story.
My preferred method of dealing with local Councils remains to virtually abolish them, not shuffle the deckchairs.
All the money is taken in Care and SEND anyway, both under rules dictated by Central Government not local choices, so Central Government should fund it.
That leaves planning, waste, housing and highways as the big issues.
Highways again should be centrally funded, we pay fuel duty to central government not local ones and any replacement taxes are centrally-directed too.
Waste plenty of private firms can and do deal with, just put it out to tender, no need for elected busybodies to deal with it.
Planning should be abolished, liberalise so whatever people want to do with their own land they can, within the law. All that is not forbidden is permitted.
Housing would not be such a big deal if the above were done.
If local services are of a concern then funding them locally makes sense, but that should be for decisions made locally and not nationally made decisions like SEND and Care which dwarf the entire budget and renders local councils utterly moot.
June Sarpong in the Lords. (no observation was available at the time of posting)
Can Simon Anstell be far behind?
I was wondering about Davros.
Davros is problematic according to the team behind the recent failed reboot of Dr Who.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
It was true that Dr Who's fans had something of a Strange love for him though.
Sir Sadiq Khan has been made a peer by Sir Keir Starmer.
Outrageous! I mean, what has Khan done compared to say Charlotte Owen whom Johnson gave a peerage to?
He screwed all of London?
Actually Khan's great sin in my view is that he has entirely failed to quell the fragmentation. In fact he's championed the opposite. If you're a Londoner you hate him, If you're a London claimant you love him.
Trump buys his way to power, Khan has been there much before him.
Eh? Khan had large leads over Hall by social grade and income.
It's funny how people can't get their heads round the fact income and education now correlate positively with Labour vote share. Reform's best cohort is council house tenants etc etc.
Sir Sadiq Khan has been made a peer by Sir Keir Starmer.
Outrageous! I mean, what has Khan done compared to say Charlotte Owen whom Johnson gave a peerage to?
He screwed all of London?
Actually Khan's great sin in my view is that he has entirely failed to quell the fragmentation. In fact he's championed the opposite. If you're a Londoner you hate him, If you're a London claimant you love him.
Trump buys his way to power, Khan has been there much before him.
Eh? Khan had large leads over Hall by social grade and income.
It's funny how people can't get their heads round the fact income and education now correlate positively with Labour vote share. Reform's best cohort is council house tenants etc etc.
Sir Sadiq Khan has been made a peer by Sir Keir Starmer.
Outrageous! I mean, what has Khan done compared to say Charlotte Owen whom Johnson gave a peerage to?
He screwed all of London?
Actually Khan's great sin in my view is that he has entirely failed to quell the fragmentation. In fact he's championed the opposite. If you're a Londoner you hate him, If you're a London claimant you love him.
Trump buys his way to power, Khan has been there much before him.
Eh? Khan had large leads over Hall by social grade and income.
It's funny how people can't get their heads round the fact income and education now correlate positively with Labour vote share. Reform's best cohort is council house tenants etc etc.
And now?
Much the same, I'd expect. Khan's polling looked similar to Labour at the time and that correlation is still present now.
Both Labour and the Conservatives are suffering from a cognitive dissonance in regard to income. The only person who really gets is Farage as he tip toes around welfare scapegoating.
That is bad news for the Forest and Stroud, possibly Gloucester itself, as the county council will be dominated by rich Fukkers from Tewkesbury and the Cotswolds who will be totally unscrupulous about redirecting all the money to where it will benefit their voters rather than where it's actually needed.
No need to worry about that.
Unless and until social care is fixed, there will be no spare money to redirect.
It's a good job then that the Fukkers are people of iron integrity and great common sense who would never, ever take money from elderly care home residents and disabled children to advance their own agenda.
Sir Sadiq Khan has been made a peer by Sir Keir Starmer.
Outrageous! I mean, what has Khan done compared to say Charlotte Owen whom Johnson gave a peerage to?
He screwed all of London?
Actually Khan's great sin in my view is that he has entirely failed to quell the fragmentation. In fact he's championed the opposite. If you're a Londoner you hate him, If you're a London claimant you love him.
Trump buys his way to power, Khan has been there much before him.
Eh? Khan had large leads over Hall by social grade and income.
It's funny how people can't get their heads round the fact income and education now correlate positively with Labour vote share. Reform's best cohort is council house tenants etc etc.
Comments
https://www.cityam.com/engineering-group-picked-off-london-stock-exchange-in-4-1bn-deal/
Still he seems to live rent free in many people’s heads.
I am not expecting a high turnout.
It's not as though Belper is full of new build 20-storey blocks of flats or 500-home developments. These are just houses for sale.
No one is buying - even with sellers forced to cut prices by £10-20k, no one is buying.
This reflects what I think is happening in East London - new build flats for rent are going while houses subdivided into 3-4 bedrooms, are sitting on the rental market. How far can and will landlords go to get tenants?
There already is one. It's called 'Jordan'.
https://freedomhouse.org/country/jordan
I thought they were now totally anti-woke????
The Supreme Court has a YouTube channel.
Issue:
Does obstructing access to, and exit from, a private site by blocking a private road leading up to it involve an interference with “rights that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large” for the purposes of the statutory offence of public nuisance?
Facts:
The appellants (“the defendants”), members of the group “Animal Rebellion”, took part in a protest outside dairy works owned and operated by Müller UK. The dairy works were accessible only via an entrance on a private road called Pointon Way.
In the morning of 8 September 2022, the defendants obstructed the entrance to the Muller site by chaining themselves to temporary fencing in front of it or gluing themselves to the road surface on Pointon Way. The defendants remained there for four hours until they were arrested, during which time it was impossible for vehicles to enter or leave the site. As a result, employees finishing their night shift were unable to drive home.
The defendants were charged with an offence of intentionally/recklessly causing public nuisance contrary to section 78 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. At trial in the Crown Court, the defendants entered not guilty pleas. At the end of the prosecution case, the defendants entered submissions of “no case to answer”. A submission of “no case to answer” is when the defence submits that the case against the defendant(s), or at least one count/charge, should be stopped at that stage as there is insufficient evidence on which the court, properly directed, could convict. The defendants argued that there was no evidence before the jury that they had obstructed the exercise or enjoyment of “a right that may be exercised or enjoyed by the public at large”, as required by s78 of the 2022 Act. This was because they had obstructed a private road leading up to private premises.
The trial judge accepted this argument and ruled that there was no case to answer. The prosecution appealed to the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division), who allowed the appeal and made an order for the Crown Court proceedings to be resumed. The defendants now appeal to the Supreme Court.
Judgment:
The Supreme Court unanimously allows the appeal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRD3oSpIpd8
“ From April 2027, it will be illegal to sell high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s, formalising restrictions already voluntarily enforced by supermarkets
Up to a third of UK children, especially boys, consume at least one energy drink a week”
https://x.com/politlcsuk/status/2077799479990722684?s=61
I still haven't got over his cynical presser last weekend.. ****!
Seek help.
I thought Curran and Root were playing the situation pretty intelligently and then Curran goes and plays a totally unnecessary shot.
What changed ?
Staffordshire only had bad options. I will say they haven't gone for the worst ones, but boy are Newcastle under Lyme still pissed.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg0ql722r7o
PM Starmer didn’t inform Starmer MP or even Starmer that he was making any exit appointments.
So legally he hasn’t told a fib about not making the exit appointments that he has made.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/collision-between-a-train-and-a-car-at-hoghton-level-crossing
At around 08:48 on 25 June 2026, the 07:51 Northern passenger service from Colne to Preston struck a car on Hoghton automatic half-barrier level crossing, which is situated between Preston and Blackburn. The driver of the car was fatally injured in the accident and a child who was a passenger in the car was also seriously injured. No injuries were caused to anyone on the train.
The evidence available to RAIB shows that the train had passed a green (proceed) signal as it approached the crossing. RAIB’s preliminary examination also found that the road traffic lights and audible alarm at the crossing had not been activated, and that the half-barriers were raised.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c75gn4p4r45o
The way its been done is fairly logical, I like the honesty of Wyre's leader that even though Blackpool absolutely is part of the Fylde coast so should be with them, the economics for them is not great.
Michael Vincent, leader of Wyre Council, said: "From a community perspective, for us it makes the most sense, it's the Fylde coast.
"The issue of course, is though the people of Wyre and Fylde alone will be responsible for subsidising Blackpool.
"Wyre and Fylde are debt-free councils, we're going to take on a share of two billion pounds of Lancashire County Council's debt, and we will acquire all of Blackpool's debt."
Oh goodness, what happened there?
India must be favourites now.
Run singles, block the good ball, put away the bad one.
It's not hard. Any county pro would have worked this out 15 overs ago.
But they just cannot bloody do it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c935pgr4dklo
..There is precedent for Fifa banning a player who has held up a banner with a similar political message.
After the 2012 Olympic Games bronze medal match, South Korea midfielder Park Jong-woo held a sign in Korean which read "Dokdo is our territory".
More commonly known as Liancourt Rocks, Dokdo is a group of inlets administered by South Korea to which Japan holds a claim.
Park was charged by Fifa and a few months later handed a two-match suspension, meaning he sat out two World Cup qualifiers...
Arguably the Argentine offence is more blatant.
Problematic as portrays a disabled character as a villain.
This is what RTD said
‘ Davies explained: ‘We had long conversations about bringing Davros back, because he’s a fantastic character. Time and society and culture and taste have moved on, and there’s a problem with the old Davros: he’s a wheelchair user who is evil. I had problems with that. A lot of us on the production team did too, associating disability with evil. Trust me, there’s a very long tradition of this.’
I thought Davros was evil as he was a Nazi, the wheelchair (?) was irrelevant to that. The Daleks are the Nazi’s. The Cybermen are the communists
They won't be though.
The rules don't apply when FIFA don't want them to, and they won't want them to here.
Observation: at least some of these reorganisations are admitting the previously-unspoken point- to give strangled cities access to empty land where they can give planning permission.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/14-more-areas-to-benefit-from-streamlined-local-services
Question: what's so difficult about Cambridgeshire? That was due in this batch.
The system working as intended. The Gaza refugee judgement is exactly what the political classes want.
“ EXCL: Andy Burnham’s new head of political strategy is a trustee of a charity that campaigns to repatriate Isis brides and abolish citizenship stripping, The Spectator can reveal.
Matthew McGregor joined the board of the charity Reprieve in April 2022. The organisation lobbies the UK government to abolish citizenship stripping, which it describes as ‘brutal and harmful’ and 'fundamentally racist'.
The passion for abolishing citizenship stripping appears somewhat at odds with Burnham’s declaration that ‘all possible options’ should be on the table to deport the notorious grooming-gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed to Pakistan.”
https://x.com/hoffman_noa/status/2077809930858279108?s=61
The last thing that Fylde and Wyre will either need or want for instance is to be more like Blackpool.
That is bad news for the Forest and Stroud, possibly Gloucester itself, as the county council will be dominated by rich Fukkers from Tewkesbury and the Cotswolds who will be totally unscrupulous about redirecting all the money to where it will benefit their voters rather than where it's actually needed.
Ultimately significant skilled immigration signals abject failure. It means that we are failing to educate our own young people to become doctors, accountants, engineers, lawyers and so forth. The large majority of skilled immigrants move to a small number of cities, so an ever growing proportion of the nation's income accrues to those areas of the country. From a demographics perspective, we are papering over the fact we have not built a country in which people want to raise their own children. The TFR in Scotland is approaching 1.
There should only really be very limited immigration - short-term visas for hospitality and agricultural work available to young people from countries with a similar or higher HDI, and a very small number of visas available to those who bring unusual skills that we in the UK are unable to teach (and those gaps should be closed as quickly as possible via further and higher education).
We should also have a generous refugee scheme for children, accompanied by one adult only (or none at all), with an emergency function for temporary haven (e.g. Ukraine).
Unless and until social care is fixed, there will be no spare money to redirect.
First hurdle: he needs a finding against him from the commissioner.
Next issue: the committee needs to decide what if any penalty to impose; ie whether to impose enough to make possible a recall.
Next issue: if they do impose such a penalty, it's then a matter for the initiative of the Clacton electors.
Political question: would the parties feel that the best course is to allow all the bad publicity of a finding by the commissioner, but not encourage 10% of the voters to sign a recall petition. A second by election, which Farage may well win, would give Reform chance to convince gullible voters that Farage is being put in double jeopardy (he isn't of course) and that the establishment is out to get him.
Trump buys his way to power, Khan has been there much before him.
(Although the hashemites would hate that and they are good friends and allies)
All the money is taken in Care and SEND anyway, both under rules dictated by Central Government not local choices, so Central Government should fund it.
That leaves planning, waste, housing and highways as the big issues.
Highways again should be centrally funded, we pay fuel duty to central government not local ones and any replacement taxes are centrally-directed too.
Waste plenty of private firms can and do deal with, just put it out to tender, no need for elected busybodies to deal with it.
Planning should be abolished, liberalise so whatever people want to do with their own land they can, within the law. All that is not forbidden is permitted.
Housing would not be such a big deal if the above were done.
If local services are of a concern then funding them locally makes sense, but that should be for decisions made locally and not nationally made decisions like SEND and Care which dwarf the entire budget and renders local councils utterly moot.
This is just bizarre.
Vance muses on Joe Biden eating ice cream:
"His staff would get him to eat ice cream in just the most suggestive way possible..."
https://x.com/factpostnews/status/2077463262858244361
As a comparator, Liz Truss appointed 32 in 49 days.
And ~150 will go if a "retire at 80" rule is introduced.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIrm0dHbCDU
It's funny how people can't get their heads round the fact income and education now correlate positively with Labour vote share. Reform's best cohort is council house tenants etc etc.
“ 🚨BREAKING
President Donald Trump will sell Wall Street faster access to his Truth Social posts”
https://x.com/insiderwave_/status/2077831824844157417?s=61
Both Labour and the Conservatives are suffering from a cognitive dissonance in regard to income. The only person who really gets is Farage as he tip toes around welfare scapegoating.
Everyone has a different theory.
Personally, I think he's just a coward.
BBC News - Lancashire council leaders react to local government shake-up - BBC News
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c75gn4p4r45o?app-referrer=search
https://savanta.com/knowledge-centre/press-and-polls/polling-london-wave-5-queen-mary-university-mile-end-institute-10-july-2026/
ABC1:
Con19%
Lab 36%
LD 9%
Ref 14%
Grn 15%
C2DE:
Con 17%
Lab 30%
LD 8%
Ref 23%
Grn 19%