Cosmically unfair that the two countries least affected by closing the straits are the US and Iran

NESO dashboard reports fossil low of 420 MW and 1.2%

It appears Great Britain set a remarkable new record for clean power this afternoon: between 3pm and 3.30pm, just 420 MW of 33,640 MW electricity generation was coming from fossil fuels (all gas)

Gas was just 1.2% of all generation. The rest was wind, sun, nuclear, biomass (5.5%) and imports (6.9%)

Okay. For my own sanity I will now be adding Peter Mandelson to my muted words list!

No matter how much I read, I just cannot fathom the idea that civil servants should *not* tell ministers that their choice to be US Ambassador has red flags from Security Vetting.

That's *not* a defence of Starmer - and Robbins may have been applying the rules correctly. But the rule seems insane.

Well a lot of columnists on here have disappointed me with their coverage of Starmer. But I'm also aware you have to pay your rent.

Very much this. There's a lot of hypocrisy in being a "compassionate" left winger!

I blame a culture where anyone who isn't perfect should be condemned. Those who cry out most for understanding & the chance to make amends (when it comes to what they consider to be the most deserving. So anyone but the rich & politicians) are most guilty of this.

The error Labour made was telling voters they were superhuman (& so would never make mistakes) rather than just human, & so may not always get things right. The difference is; Johnson knew he was breaking the law & didn't care, Starmer cares that he's being accused of breaking the law.

And that's bc Labour have actually achieved more than I thought they would under Starmer's leadership. Sure there's been some terrible clangers, but not half as many as I thought they'd be! /end

I spend more time defending a PM, whom I was fairly disinterested in at the time of the GE, than I would have done had the media not had it out for Starmer from day one. /1

Do I think Starmer is the Messiah, no, do I think his Government is doing a good job and delivering its manifesto at warp speed, yes. Do I think he deserves more than 23 months to fix 14 years of Tory misule and mismanagement, yes. Do I think the media should report the many good policies, yes.

Two parties on this train from Devon/Somerset have struck up conversation about the London Marathon (one party running in it, the other come to watch a relative) and I’m stupidly realising oh, this thing is quite a big nice nation-unifying deal isn’t it.

Taps sign while Badenoch is speaking...

That's probably true. In his former role as DPP the PM may have had time to interrogate the data so to speak. Politics often doesn't allow for that (which isn't a good thing).

This reminds me so much of my former job working with offenders. In order to challenge belief systems that may lead to offending you have build trust, in order to understand why these belief systems exist. So much of it boils down to poverty, social isolation & access to the internet/social media

This is absolutely essential reading...

The media focus on Olly Robbins is on the PM's hold on power, but more significant long term likely to be a) dysfunctional government given the CS-Govt problems, & b) national security.

The latter in particular referenced in OR's evidence yesterday. 1/6
committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence...

Do you think Starmer was badly advised on this? It seems so strange to me that a PM who was hiding something would then agree to release docs that may (according to the press) suggest just that. On the other hand, it beggars belief that a lawyer such as Starmer would make such am ill-judged error

EU ambassadors back 20th package of Russia sanctions after Hungary, Slovakia drop veto EU ambassadors agreed on the 20th package of sanctions imposed against Moscow in response to its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on April 22, after Hungary and Slovakia lifted their veto over the measu...

⚡️EU ambassadors back 20th package of Russia sanctions after Hungary, Slovakia drop veto.

EU ambassadors agreed on the 20th package of sanctions imposed against Moscow in response to its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on April 22, after Hungary and Slovakia lifted their veto over the measures.

Government security vetting | Institute for Government How does the UK government's national security vetting system work?

A vetting primer you say? Here you go www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/go...

EU provisionally approves €90bn Ukraine loan as Hungary drops opposition after Druzhba pipeline reopens – Europe live European Union presidency confirms preliminary approval of loan with formal procedures expected to conclude on Thursday

EU provisionally approves €90bn Ukraine loan as Hungary drops opposition after Druzhba pipeline reopens – Europe live share.google/9RnkpwV9EXAj...

The European Union has approved a €90 billion loan to Ukraine, as well as the 20th round of sanctions against Russia. The package is to be split 60/30 for military aid and budget assistance respectively.

Farage’s foreign income Mapping his millions...

"Farage has clocked up nearly £2 million in income and gifts since he was elected as the member for Clacton in July 2024." open.substack.com/pub/writesbr...

Yeah. I'll probably listen to the episode once I'm less over stimulated about this issue!

And they took the story from GB News. So Trumpian levels of bullshit are now being normalised in the mainstream press.

Richard Tice Faces Ouestions Over £100.000 Unpaid Corporation Tax Linked to Reform UK Donations

A Sunday Times investigation found Tice's property firm Quidnet REIT Ltd distributed £517,694 to four dormant shell companies between 2020 and 2022.

That said, the further away from political life you drift, the less informed & more judgemental you can become. I think sometimes Rory can fall foul of this. But it doesn't mean overall it isn't an informed listen/End.

I do think it's quite balanced. Often I go in with an opinion thinking I know how politics works, & a discussion will ensue that makes me understand things more, & so come out less bias & more informed. /1

Impeachment, not the 25th. He is unfit for office, but his problems now are because he has surrounded himself with enablers and thinks he has no restrictions or consequences.