What the hell

Oxford Clarion@oxfordclarion.bsky.social · yesterday

Leaders of flag-raising group Raise the Colours Oxfordshire placed trackers on highway workers’ cars to find out their home addresses, the High Court has heard. RTC then attempted to intimidate the highway staff into no longer removing flags by repeating their addresses to them.

Me for The Lead this week. How much difference will the reforms make when the vast majority of planning decisions are already delegated to officers?

The Lead@theleaduk.bsky.social · 6d ago

Long awaited planning reforms will delegate nearly all decisions to planning officers. Reform UK politicians locally have immediately moved to suggest the changes will result in local councils being unable to block HMOs. Is it true? national.thelead.uk/p/the-lead-u...

If this had been policy in the 70s (as it partly was), towns would have produced lots of mining engineers & metallurgists just before pits & steelworks closed. As the yanks say, you should skate to where the puck's going, not to where it is. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Burnham to tell schools in England to adapt teaching to local business needs

PM wants curriculums for students aged 14 and above to be more responsive to local jobs market

theguardian.com

We gave the Americans a gajillion pounds so we could use these wonky fuck-up robots. What are we going to do, *not* use them for cruelty to foreigners? Insane

The Guardian@theguardian.com · last wk.

Home Office used ‘AI hallucinated’ information to refuse asylum claim, judge suggests

This is very troubling. Protesters not prosecuted as terrorists as prosecutors feared they would not have been convicted. So charged with criminal damage. Guilty. And now CPS wants them sentenced as terrorists. bit.ly/4x5xiRf What is happening to our sense of justice?

I looked at why @zackpolanski.bsky.social, @neweconomics.bsky.social and others support rent controls in a piece for @theleaduk.bsky.social earlier this month - national.thelead.uk/p/the-lead-u...

The Lead Untangles: Rent controls

With Andy Burnham almost certain to become the next Prime Minister, campaigners are demanding rent controls

national.thelead.uk

Zack Polanski@zackpolanski.bsky.social · 2w ago

Wealth taxes. Rent controls. Action on climate. And a pretty huge crowd ready for hope with a plan for real change. Join.greenparty.org.uk

Me for The Lead this week. Thanks to all who spoke to me.

The Lead@theleaduk.bsky.social · 3w ago

This summer is ten years since the EU referendum, 5.8million people have settled status in the UK. How have they found living here since Brexit? @kevingopal.bsky.social reports ✍️ national.thelead.uk/p/brexit-eu-...

You really can never give these people enough. Been talking to EU migrants who've paid to upgrade from settled status tocitizenship precisely for fear settled status might be removed from then. Now Spectator would remove that.

David Higham@oldtrotter.bsky.social · 3w ago

The Spectator going full on ethnonationalist

Baby Can Already Tell Crib He’s In Going To Be Recalled https://theonion.com/baby-can-already-tell-crib-he-s-in-going-to-be-recalled-1819575320/

Who lines up alongside with the Greens in support of rent controls – and who is against? Me for @theleaduk.bsky.social this week – national.thelead.uk/p/the-lead-u...

The Lead Untangles: Rent controls

With Andy Burnham almost certain to become the next Prime Minister, campaigners are demanding rent controls

national.thelead.uk

The Green Party of England & Wales@greenparty.org.uk · 4w ago

Rent controls would save households up to £2,400 a year and the Government £2 billion a year. It's a no-brainer. But only the Green Party has a policy to introduce them.

Told his dressing room "reasons can wait". If there are "reasons'" ECB in trouble. You'd think he had another year in him on form and fitness, even if his batting had declined

Kevin Gopal@kevingopal.bsky.social · last mo.

Told his dressing room "reasons can wait".

Told his dressing room "reasons can wait".

Kevin Mitchell@kevinmitchell50.bsky.social · last mo.

BREAKING: Stokes retiring from international cricket - announced while he’s still bowling! Weird.

BREAKING: Stokes retiring from international cricket - announced while he’s still bowling! Weird.

The Mill tests the journalist exemption in GDPR and it works - manchestermill.co.uk/a-dish-best-se… @manchestermill.bsky.social

It really is noticeable that there are a lot fewer England flags up everywhere than there were in the last World Cup, presumably because nobody wants to be mistaken for those clowns who were putting them up everywhere for no good reason last year.

Burnham: It is 'important that this process is conducted in an orderly and responsible way. I will put myself forward as part of this process'.

Should be in the Highway Code

Mandelson and Robbins both urging the deleting of things.

Kevin Gopal@kevingopal.bsky.social · 2mo ago

13-03-25. From Ailsa Terry to Mandelson and McSweeney. “Thank you Peter. On the back of the email you mention, Olly has been clear about the need to delete all traffic on this.”

Mandelson will not be familiar with the Nolan Principles, believes Corin Robertson. 😂

Kevin Gopal@kevingopal.bsky.social · 2mo ago

13-03-25. From Ailsa Terry to Mandelson and McSweeney. “Thank you Peter. On the back of the email you mention, Olly has been clear about the need to delete all traffic on this.”

Mandelson to McSweeney. “I’ve just had this exchange with*** by whatsapp. I don’t know why Karen decided to email everyone last night… Please ignore – and if you can do it discreetly, delete!”

Kevin Gopal@kevingopal.bsky.social · 2mo ago

13-03-25. From Ailsa Terry to Mandelson and McSweeney. “Thank you Peter. On the back of the email you mention, Olly has been clear about the need to delete all traffic on this.”

13-03-25. From Ailsa Terry to Mandelson and McSweeney. “Thank you Peter. On the back of the email you mention, Olly has been clear about the need to delete all traffic on this.”

References to Palantir have been redacted from the Mandelson files on the grounds that they would be "prejudicial to UK national security or international relations"

'But I got away with "hand of history". They'll love "less as a rupture than a reckoning". Put it in.'

Stephen Bush@stephenkb.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Tony Blair on what the Trump White House actually means: absolutely wrong, I think: institute.global/insights/pol...

Pronunciations heard in last 24 hours: 'Mackerfield', 'Mekkerfield', 'Makefield'.

Resulting from an IRL conversation with @crumpsalljamie.bsky.social earlier today

Shabana Mahmood’s special advisor threatened us with an injunction and two different lawsuits last night in an attempt to block this story linking her to a notorious vote rigging case. I think it’s strongly in the public interest. So here it is. www.birminghamdispatch.co.uk/exclusive-sh...

Exclusive: Shabana Mahmood’s postal ballot was investigated in a 2004 vote-rigging scandal in Birmingham

The future home secretary submitted two postal ballot documents with very different signatures

birminghamdispatch.co.uk

Sad news that Beverley Martyn has died - johnmartyn.com/news/beverley/

Beverley - John Martyn

It is with profund sadness, that we announce that Beverley...

johnmartyn.com

If I was Starmer it would be getting me through the day. In tough meetings I would be thinking "at least I've got the Mandelson compromat file to read this weekend". What kind of person has that kind of document and doesn't read it? No friend of mine for sure.

Hall of fame FT correction

Be good if he agreed to eat his book again but this time no one watched.

Sunder Katwala (sundersays)@sundersays.bsky.social · 4mo ago

"If there are misattributed quotes, they will be corrected within 48 hours", Goodwin said today. That seems to be a tacit acknowledgement that the quotes challenged 6 days ago aren't real quotes bsky.app/profile/nick...