Set a thief to catch a thief….

Bottom line: the UK system is designed to shield the boss. Starmer was ‘secured from knowing’ while his minions applied maximum pressure to the civil service to ignore process. Yet when the servant did the biddjng of politicians they were the fall guy when the process failed. Surprise-an innocent pm

Sacking Robbins for doing his job is political expediency. He was sacked because Downing St needed a head and his was the only available alternative to the PMs.

It's Alice in Wonderland: sentence (outcome) first, trial (process) second. Key for No 10 was the outcome: the task was to 'get it done' without attending to difficulties. McSweeney went rightly-he directed this. But Robbins was doing what is expected of him and then told to fall on his sword.

After Robbin's evidence, I am doubling down on this.

Well Keir, did you know that Mandelson was compromised, and appointed him anyway....?

Holding the long view: the future of good governance for trusts and foundations - Carnegie UK I recently had the opportunity to attend the Anthropy 2026 event in Cornwall, a gathering that creates space for a different kind of conversation about the UK’s future. Less performative, more reflect...

NEW BLOG: Our Chair, David Emerson, reflects on #Anthropy26 and sets out what good governance looks like when change is long term and uncertain: carnegieuk.org/blog/holding...

Carney secures majority government with sweep of 3 byelections | CBC

Carney has emerged as the de facto leader of the not-Trump west. Largely on the principle of keeping calm and carrying on - similar to this Pope. Refusing to enter Trump’s world of permachaos and focussing on short, medium and long term practicality seems to drive DT mad.

www.cbc.ca/news/politic...

Between the defeat of Orban and the break with Meloni, US efforts to destroy the EU aren’t going too well this month.

Of course

By simply repeating that performative cruelty, racial hierarchy, self-aggrandisement and the worship of power and violence are incompatible with ‘love’, the Pope inevitably shines a light on the vacuum at the heart of Trumpism. No unseeing is possible once it has been seen. That is how truth works.

The ousting of Orban in Hungary is a critical milestone in Carney’s efforts to reshape a rules based bloc without the US.

An underappreciated dynamic of recent Hungarian politics is how several ex-intel officials and generals joined Magyar's team early on. Most professionally minded police, intel and army officers in Hungary just wanted to rejoin the big kids table in NATO and the EU

Orban closed down the media, contaminated the judicial system, gerrymandered elections, instituted a cult of personality and ruthlessly played the xenophobic and reactionary cards. Yet the sycophancy, grift and corruption still ended in defeat. Consolidated power does not always win

And Rory keeps the Masters too. Good evening all round.

Anyone heard from Elon?

A lot of Russian spies will be flying out of Europe in the next few days before their cover is blown. The local informants may find it harder

Association with Trump seems to have become electoral suicide outside the Republican Party🤞

Hard to exaggerate the importance of Orban’s defeat for the democratic survival of Europe Great moment.

The main point arising from the US-Iranian war is the final proof of the one we knew already: that the US people elected an extremely dangerous narcissist as President citing superficial self interest(egg inflation), racism disguised as Christianity and Democrat incompetence, enabled by Congress.

The civilisation which dies tonight is the civilisation that abandons all rules of war and violence making human life possible. America is running huge risks with its future.

That Fifa Peace prize is looking a bit less plausible tonight….😂

On trade the Trump administration is failing to either change the global order or bring back manufacturing to the US. As a defence power it is currently losing a war with Iran and wants to concede some of Ukraine to Russia. Truly a symbolic passing of US hegemony.

Everything, everywhere, all at once. Small differences with massive consequences under FPTP.

The UK post-World War Ii party political system collapsed in a new way in Gorton and Denton. The days of Labour-Tory-and a few Liberals is gone. It went years ago in Scotland. Caerphilly showed it has gone in Wales. Last night it was destroyed in Manchester. PR anyone-or a Reform-Green election.

Labour losing: but to the left. Caerphilly, now Gorton and Denton.

Once upon a time in America:

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.”

Wha’happen?

Post-Brexit sales of British farm products to EU fall by 37% NFU warn it could take years to restore Brexit losses despite efforts to smooth negotiations on farming and other elements of UK-EU reset

Every farmer who voted for Brexit needs to take a long hard look at themselves. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Mandelson’s attraction to Starmer was precisely what brought him down: his love of luxury and ostentatious wealth, and even his association with Epstein, seemed to make him the ideal person for today’s Washington. But then the details came out.

Starmer is going down for political stupidity: but Bannon, Trump, Farage and Musk are in the files. There is a difference.