A journalist, without completing the checks, nor indeed any of the paperwork, was, to their astonishment, approved online for a job as an ICE agent anyway – intentionally demonstrating for their magazine that literally any unvetted person could be appointed. By implication also demonstrating any kind of racist, rapist, felon with a grudge or an […]
The Nazis relied on a set of post-hoc rationalisations after casual, sanctioned murders, that combined elements of legal manipulation, propaganda, and let’s call it, moral inversion. The aim wasn’t just to excuse violence, but to redefine it as lawful, necessary and virtuous. For the Night of the Long Knives, Nazi jurist Carl Schmitt argued that […]
On Tuesday Jan 6 2026, seven European leaders issued a joint statement on Greenland that reads like a masterclass in how democracies should respond to authoritarian overreach. Clear principles. Unified front. No hedging. But within hours, the White House responded by raising the prospect of military force to get their way. So much for bullies […]
It feels as though 2025 has been another tough, ugly year and worse than the last. Empowered by Trump, Musk and a large portion of the media, racism, misogyny, environmental destruction, fascism, cruelty and greed proudly strut the world stage, trampling the vulnerable and attempting to silence opposition. It is tempting to disngage from this […]
Here is part 2 of my “they’re cancelling Christmas” debunk. I will try and cover as many of the ludicrous rage bait claims as I can, so you have the facts to hand when your Facebook-indoctrinated relative brings up these myths over the festive period. In part 1, I debunked the claims that Tesco had renamed their plastic Christmas […]
A myth-busting explainer on Tesco trees, ‘renamed’ cakes, and the real purpose behind these manufactured panics. I vowed I wasn’t going to do a ‘they’re cancelling Christmas’ Substack after doing a quick Bluesky thread on it, and talking about it very briefly on James O’Brien’s LBC show. However, I’ve changed my mind for several reasons: So buckle up for your […]
Who is Christopher Harborne? Very little is publicly known about the reclusive, Thailand-based technology investor – except that he is now one of the biggest political donors in British history. His record £9m donation to Reform UK this September is only the latest in a long trail of donations to right-wing populists. Harborne previously poured more […]
The Armada Way tree-felling fiasco has certainly put Plymouth on the map. It was a disaster, not just for Plymouth’s canopy cover, but for our city’s reputation and the relationship between the public and the local authority, which wasn’t great to begin with. It was described as “environmental vandalism” by many, resulting in the then […]
A few weeks ago, a Guardian article with this title described how a Spanish town took a very significant decision over the treatment of its migrants. But first, some background. The UK is not the only target destination for migrants seeking a safer or a more prosperous life; in fact, Spain receives considerably more migrants […]
It was Carl von Clausewitz, the early nineteenth century Prussian general, who said: “War is nothing but the continuation of policy with other means”. In other words, if a country goes to war, it should do so with a clear political objective, and the war itself should be fought in such a manner as to […]
We interviewed organiser Simon Oldridge ahead of this crucial event on 27 November, and now we want to share Simon’s post giving us some more insights into the scale of the operation and the help he was given to pull it off. We’ve had to unlink the many names, but you can google them easily […]
Backbench rebels have made this a better budget than it would have been, but they have more to do to prevent the UK having the Biden experience Labour made several manifesto promises, none more important than tackling the cost-of-living crisis and rebuilding the NHS. And the Chancellor said last week, “Working families will be at the front […]
More than two hundred people packed the Civic Hall in Totnes to hear an outstanding line-up of panellists discuss the links between democratic systems and climate [and social] justice. George Monbiot, Klina Jordan, Anthea Simmons and Jonathon Porritt, all well-known for their work in different areas of political and environmental campaigning and journalism, started the […]
As some of you may know, I am one of the co-founders of the South Devon Primary, along with Simon Oldridge and Ben Long. Born out of frustration with an electoral system that threatened to see the Conservatives’ near hundred year rule in the Totnes/South Devon constituency because the opposition vote was split, the two […]
Activists in Exeter will be joining a national wave of protest against the banning of Palestine Action as a ‘terrorist organisation’ this Saturday, November 29. Around 25 protesters will defy the ban by sitting quietly outside Exeter Central Station from 1pm, holding placards stating “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action”. It’s part of what […]
We talked to organiser Simon Oldridge (SO) about what those involved hope will be a watershed event on November 27 in Central Hall, Westminster. WCV: This looks very timely, coming after yet another COP and as we read that richer nations are quietly (or noisily) abandoning or watering down their net zero targets. What do […]
Plaudits from Robinson should be a flashing red light on any government’s dashboard. So, it’s finally happened. Tiny Tommy Robinson – or Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, as his Irish immigrant mum christened him – has publicly endorsed the Labour government’s new immigration policy. “The Overton window has been obliterated,” he cheered. “Well done patriots!” For those of […]
The BBC may well need structural reform. It is too big and too unwieldy for one man like Tim Davie to control. But that has nothing to do with the current faked-up crisis over Panorama’s reporting of a speech by Donald Trump. Editing has a purpose. And all editing changes an original. It reduces the […]
On November 10, Nigel Farage told the press about his phone call with President Trump. “Is this how you treat your best ally?” Trump asked him, furious about BBC coverage. And what did Trump do the second he put the phone down? He wrote to the BBC to threaten legal action. Think about that for […]
Do we truly have the kind of democracy in our country which is fit for the challenges of the 21st Century? Does our government fairly represent the views and aspirations of voters? How can we best tackle and mitigate the effects of climate change? All these questions, and more, will be up for debate in […]
It’s a simple but effective trick, coined by former Conservative strategist Lynton Crosby, and used to devastating effect by Nigel Farage every day. Here’s how it works. When you’re losing a debate on the issues that matter – say the economy, the NHS, the cost of living – you throw something so shocking onto the […]
Rachel Reeves gave a speech yesterday that once again brought the cost of living to the fore in the national debate. Virtually all of the media commentary on the speech focused on the economic factors Reeves might be considering in the run-up to her Autumn Budget statement on 26 November. But the real – fundamental […]
Last weekend, an elected member of parliament (Reform UK’s Sarah Pochin) went on Talk TV and said, “It drives me mad when I see adverts full of black people, full of Asian people, full of people who are basically anything other than white people.” Let that sink in. We have reached a point in the political discourse […]
Nigel Farage and now the Conservatives want to take Britain out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) – a treaty Winston Churchill helped create in the ashes of the Second World War. This isn’t just a point of principle. This is about retaining the fundamental rights we have to protect ourselves against abuses […]
The campaign organisation HOPE not hate‘s Weekend of HOPE will see hundreds and thousands of leaflets delivered to houses in the UK and thousands of people will take to the streets with a simple message: communities are stronger together. We live in an era in which certain politicians and oligarchs are hellbent on dividing us […]
Something extraordinary happened in Russia this week, though much of the world may have missed it. In the centre of St Petersburg, eighteen-year-old singer Diana Loginova stood before a crowd of young people and began to sing. Her song mocked Vladimir Putin, describing an old man clinging to power, fearful of the world he created. […]
The 92-year-old Tory grandee’s comparison of Reform UK to 1930s fascists isn’t hyperbole – it’s a warning from someone who knows what happens when democracies ignore the danger until it’s too late. There are few figures more influential in the modern Conservative Party than Lord Michael Heseltine. Serving in governments under three Prime Ministers, Heseltine […]
What decades of research (and millions of children in Sweden and Japan) really tell us about acetaminophen and pregnancy. It’s been a couple of weeks since Trump and RFK Junior told the world that acetaminophen (aka Tylenol or paracetamol) use in pregnancy causes Autism. Thankfully, there was considerable pushback from doctors and scientists worldwide. I want to bring […]
The flags were out in London for Donald Trump’s second state visit last month. Most of them telling him to f*** off home. Some placards at the protest on September 17 expressed the idea more creatively: ‘Feed him to the corgis’ ‘In England, Trump means ‘fart’ ‘We don’t want this old fossil polluting our air’ […]
Across Britain, the rise of anti-immigration protests, the surge in far-right rhetoric online, and growing public support for exclusionary policies point to an alarming shift in perspective. Anti-immigration protests have grown louder, fuelled by far-right rhetoric both in public and online. In September 2025; over 100,000 people joined an anti-migrant protest in London while there […]