I now see what happened with the Mandelson vetting. Ollie Robbins treated it as a normal ambassadorial appointment, where he had sole discretion on vetting. In fact, he should have treated it as the equivalent of a Ministerial appointment, where the PM would expect to be told of any issues. 1/
New from @gaigedavila.bsky.social: “It’s not targeting criminals, it’s not targeting dangerous people, it’s targeting individuals who are members of our community, who have a lot to offer and continue to offer a lot of positive things for our entire country and our society.”
"It’s not what you’re saying; it’s the very fact that you’re speaking. They want our silence."
#ijf26
NEW: Porsha Ngumezi and Nevaeh Crain died during miscarriages in Texas after doctors delayed treatment.
The state’s medical board has ruled that substandard care led to the deaths, but the doctors were given minimal punishment.
By Kavitha Surana and Lizzie Presser
Turquoise Hellwigia opalina plant.
Group of people in a mountainous setting on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia.
🌿 NEW SPECIES TO SCIENCE: This rare turquoise “jade ginger” has been officially named Hellwigia opalina.
The story began 26 years ago on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi (pictured in 2000), where the unusual plant was spotted.
Read more: rbge.cc/jade-ginger
@axelginger.bsky.social
Rejoin is coming: Talk of the customs union and single market is a distraction. Only full membership offers a compelling vision of Britain's future
iandunt.substack.com/p/rejoin-is-...
Alice is my neighbor. I know the beautiful garden where she played croquet with hedgehogs and flamingos. I know where the treacle well was, and still is, and the tree with the door in it, by which she finally found that garden. I recognize the strange melancholy of late afternoon and early evening in which the stories seem to take place. I even know the mysterious checkered moorland which once looked so much like a chessboard from the low hills to the north-east, an area now invaded by T.V. towers
Stumbled across an old Peter Hitchens piece about Lewis Carroll & Alice in Wonderland and now I rather wish all he wrote about was old children's literature and nothing remotely current or political.
If you're going to do a spinoff story aimed at the American market, just do Dalek Empire. Earth has fallen, Daleks run the planet, humans are in work camps, we're following the resistance. It writes itself.
The National has, in my opinion, done more than most media to lead the narrative rather than follow it, writes Richard Murphy ✍️
Our one year for £20 offer ends soon!
“Even the president claiming that the pope was ‘weak on crime’ really calls into question whether or not Trump understands what the pope even does. Can you clarify this for him?”
I laughed at the bluntness of this question.
OPINION | The president and his most senior officials are struggling to out-crazy each other, writes @djrothkopf.bsky.social.
Blue graphic with green text reads: "Millions of people depend on voting by mail including: People with disabilities People juggling multiple jobs Seniors People without access to transportation Service members and their families People in rural areas And more President Trump shouldn't be making it
Restricting mail-in voting would disenfranchise communities that already face too many barriers to voting.
We won't allow President Trump to remove checks on presidential power by making it harder for voters to hold leaders accountable at the ballot box.
President Trump votes by mail
“We just defeated [Speaker Mike] Johnson’s efforts to sneak through a 5-year FISA authorization tonight,” Democratic Representative Ro Khanna said. “Now, they will have to fight in daylight.” trib.al/Ugw87Rt
BBC today correct Nigel Farage's false claim to Nick Robinson on Political Thinking (13th February 2026) that net migration was only down due to an "exodus" of people leaving the UK since 90% of net migration fall was a fall in immigration. After my 3rd complaint!
www.bbc.co.uk/helpandfeedb...
"I would rather w**k with a razor".
Pretty clear response from bloke in Wales when asked if he would consider voting Reform...
The man from Reform (who took it in good spirits tbf) is Zak Weaver, a former Tory staffer who defected in February.
Worth noting that the NHS app in England that “Scottish” Labour say they would bring to Scotland is Palantir software
We don’t have or want that scum in Scotland thanks to the SNP government
#VoteSNP
NJ progressive wins special election US House seat in a landslide.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
A former Navy service member was charged with a string of attacks in the Atlanta area this week that killed two women, including a Department of Homeland Security employee, and left a homeless man critically injured.
So long since a realistic case for EU membership was made. Thanks to @bestforbritain.org for making it today. Big obstacles but the halfway houses are undesirable.
While communities elsewhere in the U.S. have been shielded from the costs of ICE facilities, Broadview was stuck with bills for nearly $400,000. The costs continue as the unassuming western suburb preps its new budget.
The same Sir Adrian Fulford currently charing the Southport Inquiry? Retired makes it sound like he has more time on his hands for this than I imagine he actually does...
