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The island of Ireland is home to hundreds of thousands of citizens who were not born in the United Kingdom or Ireland. This growing community of migrants - many of whom have naturalised as Irish or British - could potentially have a deciding vote in a future border poll; after all, it's their future too. Since 2011, over 175,000 people have naturalised as Irish citizens. In the Republic of Ireland one in five people were born outside the UK or Ireland, and the 2021 census in Northern Ireland recognised the highest number of migrant populations normally resident on record at 150,000. Whilst it remains unknown whether or not the right to vote in a border poll will be extended to long-term residents or commonwealth citizens, what is certain is that those who have made Ireland their home and have become dual Irish or British citizens will have a vote. So just what are their views? Martin Mendes Passarim moved to Ireland from Spain, gaining his Irish citizenship in 2019. For the 36-year-old, a united Ireland is a "decolonisation process" and he will be voting "yes" in any referendum to reunify the island of Ireland. "Ireland has a lottery ticket that hasn't been claimed … a border poll is a great opportunity, I see it as a way of creating a better, more just and progressive country. The partitioning of Ireland was a historic mistake that has only brought trouble and division to the island - I don't think Irish people got anything good out of partition Martin Mendes Passarim New York native Debra Savage - a retired former government staffer at the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) - said Brexit was "the tectonic plates drifting … being shackled to the rest of the UK is becoming less attractive the more we go on". Savage adds that if she was asked which way she would have voted in a border poll ten years ago, her response would have been "it depends". Now she is "minded" to say yes. Zimbabwean Human rights activist Sipho Sibanda contends that there are "a lot of positive things we can inherit from a united Ireland" but says that "When it comes to a united Ireland, migrants are not being asked that question, very few are being asked." At present the debate surrounding a united Ireland is largely relegated to unionist and nationalist aspirations. Pro-united Ireland campaign groups are strides ahead of their pro-union counterparts in organising large-scale conferences and events, however there is an over-egged emphasis on the participation of unionists while minority groups - some of whom number much larger demographically - have been left largely outside of the conversation. Savage says a border poll will be "won and lost in the middle". Traditional unionists will largely vote to remain in the UK whilst most nationalists are likely to vote for a united Ireland, the balance of power will rest with those who sit outside the traditional two communities of Northern Ireland, and migrant communities will form a considerable percentage of this cohort. Many of those who have made Ireland their new home hail from countries that have experienced some form of historical oppression - some regions may even still be suffering its effects. Passarim posits this will benefit the pro-unity campaign, suggesting that "people who have been historically oppressed normally have a tendency to relate to each other". Savage also believes that transitioning to a new "country" would not be as difficult for migrant communities; "we have already moved countries, what's the difference?" That doesn't mean that migrant communities don't have concerns. Sibanda suggests that there would be "worry and the fear of the unknown", citing inequalities in the Republic of Ireland and socioeconomic issues such as the housing crisis, "but people do want to embrace the fact that we will be part of the EU." Sibanda raises the threat posed by the far right and the topic of inclusion in a united Ireland, "Would it embrace us? Or will we always be the outcasts that get pulled out when ...

On 31 May, Keir Starmer announced Labour's net zero transition policy platform for the election, with the key plank being Great British Energy, a publicly owned company headquartered in Scotland that will invest in domestic clean energy generation through £8.3 billion in funding over the parliamentary term. While highlighting the jobs and lower prices resulting from renewables, Starmer suggested employment would be protected as Labour would not be "turning off the taps" of oil and gas, which instead would be "part of the mix for decades to come". He cited a wish to avoid the brutal transition away from coal undertaken in the 20th Century. These proposals are a start, and certainly more ambitious than anything that has been set out recently by the Government. But our programme of research shows that a return to the £28 billion per year investment commitment that Labour dropped in February is affordable, would produce a massive return on investment and is essential to meeting the goals of a just transition to net zero. Instead of setting out the more ambitious plans required, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak responded to Starmer's announcement by saying that "you don't deliver any energy security for our country with a logo" in reference to GB Energy. Alongside this barb, he cited a need to retain energy security through North Sea Oil and Gas and to "get to net zero in a more proportionate way that does not load up ordinary families with thousands of pounds worth of costs". Meanwhile, Kate Forbes, Deputy First Minister of Scotland and Deputy Leader of the SNP, claimed that some 100,000 jobs could be lost were Labour to implement their policies. Unfortunately, as Starmer's responses to interrogation suggest, even politicians notionally committed to a more rapid transition often fall into the trap of accepting the terms of the argument set out by their opponents. Let's challenge those arguments instead. The energy security and economic lines of attack are easy to deal with. The way we have chosen to structure North Sea Oil and Gas means that the output from the fields is owned by private companies and sold on the international market, at international prices. Indeed, former Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Alok Sharma opposed his government's bill underpinning the new licences on exactly this basis. The oil extracted is also primarily refined elsewhere and imported back into the UK. There couldn't be a less secure form of energy. We don't even need to imagine the security risks of such a system, having endured an energy-driven cost-of-living crisis following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Instead, we can have secure, domestically generated, stably priced and, indeed, cheaper renewable energy powering electric heating and transport. We must also reform rules that, insanely, lead to the electricity price primarily being set by the cost of expensive fossil-fuelled generation and the majority of 'green levies' being added to the more environmentally friendly electricity. Residents and businesses need never again be hit with massive spikes due to the actions of mad dictators and international commodities speculators. GB Energy can do this, but only if a Labour Government returns to the more ambitious £28 billion commitment that would enable the scale of investment in renewables generation and storage required. There needs, too, to be social control over local energy networks and generation with benefits returning to the nation and communities. Leveraging private investment, where appropriate, through tax incentives would lead to the kind of meaningful deployment of capital that governments have utterly failed to secure. Importantly, our programme of research has shown that infrastructure spending by government has productivity returns of almost three times the initial outlay, through economic multiplier impacts, based on analysis of the effects of infrastructure spending across Europe in the last decade. J...

An excerpt from the book Digital Gangsters by Ian Lucas, the former Labour MP who sat on the historic DCMS select committee investigating Russian interference in UK elections You can read the whole thing here. 'Breaking Point' - Nigel Farage's face projected next to those words in front of a stream of fleeing refugees struck a chord with my voters. That the poster was untrue, showing refugees from Syria, not at all linked to the EU, was irrelevant. It was a compelling message which chimed with the experience of people in Wrexham, who had seen rapid, unmanaged change in their own home. That was why some of my voters liked Farage. They did not think that the EU was working for them. Farage was not just on television. Social media messaging honed the slogans, targeted their delivery at towns especially affected by migration and built groups where the message was circulated and reinforced by local people. Farage led the "unofficial" Leave campaign, Leave.EU. Brittany Kaiser of Cambridge Analytica had told the DCMS committee that she had pitched their digital campaigning techniques to Leave.EU. When Arron Banks of Leave.EU, who worked closely with Farage at the head of that organisation, gave evidence in June 2018, he explained how such techniques had been central to Leave. EU's approach: "How did the message get out to all these people?" "It must have been data. My experience of social media is it is a firestorm that, just like a brush fire, it blows over the thing. Our skill was creating bush fires and then putting a big fan on and making the fan blow. We were prepared to and if you could criticise us for anything - and I am sure you would - we picked subjects and topics that we knew would fly. When we sat back and said, 'We are going to create this campaign, how do we make it fly?' what was absolutely clear was you had to figure out what the pressure points were that made things fly and that is what we did." Sitting in the Committee Room in the House of Commons, hearing these words, I was chilled by their cynicism. Banks had made money selling insurance and was using his experience of online sales, and his staff, to drive the Brexit campaign. His words help explain why their campaign was so effective. It played on the experience of millions of people in the UK, exaggerated those experiences, often with false embellishment, and cut through. In the session I was angry, though I worked hard not to show it. I felt Banks had no interest in the day-to-day problems that were frustrating people in my constituency of Wrexham and which they raised in my office every day. His scapegoating of the EU as the cause of all their problems was a sleight of hand but was frustratingly successful. My efforts to point out the positive impact that the EU had had in rebuilding Wrexham's economy and creating jobs was, on the other hand, falling on stony ground. Banks's arrogance before the Committee was not unexpected. He pandered to his image of holding MPs in absolute contempt. Banks was accompanied by his colleague Andy Wigmore. Both tried to treat the session as a joke. I made an early decision that I would let these characters hang themselves. Broadly, the session conveyed more heat than light. Nonetheless, information was disclosed which became useful later, concerning the detailed structure of Banks' companies and about meetings that Banks and Wigmore had had with the Russian Ambassador. I extracted a significant admission from Banks on his meeting with the Russian Ambassador: "I do think Ian is correct in the sense that, if we had not been involved in Brexit, we would obviously not have been invited for lunch." He appeared to think this was of no consequence. There were two main areas of concern for me with these two. First, I was concerned about illegal, overseas funding of the Referendum campaign, a theme which had worried me from the outset of the Inquiry. The aggressive responses to me from both Banks and Wigmore whenever I raised these q...

"If Labour wins this time, they'll change the rules so they're in power for a very long time", Rishi Sunak said this morning, as he published the Conservative party's election manifesto. His justification for this dramatic claim was that the Labour leader Keir Starmer has announced that he plans to extend the right to vote to all 16-year-olds, therefore making it, in Sunak's words "harder to remove him from power". Now, aside from what this says about the Conservative party's view of young people, and their right to be heard, this is a quite extraordinarily hypocritical comment from the Prime Minister. In reality, Sunak's own Government has itself made a whole series of "rule-changes" to our electoral system, all of which appear designed to keep his party in power for longer. Here are just some of the changes brought in over recent years. Changed Electoral systems One of the biggest rule-changes brought in by this Government, has been its changes to the electoral systems used in mayoral and PCC elections. At last month's local elections, a whole series of contests around the country were held for the first time under the First Past the Post electoral system, whereas they had previously been held under a more proportional system. When the changes were first announced in 2021 experts predicted that it would make it easier for Conservative candidates to win, due to the greater fragmentation of the left-wing vote. Voters also complained about the "undemocratic" nature of the plans. Despite the changes, the Conservative party went on to lose all but one of the mayoral seats they held across the county. Introduced Voter ID The most controversial rule change brought in by the Conservative Party has been the requirement that all voters should show photographic ID in order to vote. The law was brought in despite there being no evidence of significant amounts of in-person voter fraud anywhere in the UK, and despite evidence that it would lead to thousands of people losing their ability to vote. Suspicions about the real purpose of the law were first raised when the list of acceptable IDs was published and it excluded many forms of ID used by younger voters, while including many more forms of ID used by older voters. The changes had some unexpected side-effects, including the exclusion of certain groups of voters not anticipated to be affected. A recently-leaked memo by the Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer revealed that he had repeatedly lobbied Downing Street for veterans to also be able to use their veteran ID cards in order to vote. However, his requests were denied by those around Rishi Sunak due to fears that it would "open the floodgates" to students also being allowed to use their ID cards to vote. Some Conservatives fear the change may actually have backfired on the party, however, with the former Brexit Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg saying last year that the plan was a deliberate attempt to "gerrymander" elections on the behalf of the Conservative Party, which had backfired due to many Conservative voters being excluded. In last month's local elections those barred from voting due to not having the correct ID included a Conservative MP and the former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who introduced the new requirements in the first place. Interfering with the Elections Watchdog Democracy campaigners raised concerns earlier this year about new measures, which appeared designed to erode the freedom of the official elections watchdog. They warned that the changes meant that the Electoral Commission, which regulates UK elections and donations, would be under great threat from ministerial interference. Under the changes, ministers were able to alter the watchdog's strategy and priorities, to give it a new focus on voter fraud, while failing to focus on issues such as electoral malpractice and interference. Raised Election Spending Limits As Byline Times revealed earlier this year, with just weeks to go until the general electio...

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spent over £1.4 million of taxpayers' money on foreign air travel using private planes between taking office on 25 October 2022 and 31 December 2023, according to the Government's most recent figures. That total of £1,409,961 spent on official trips to places like Rome, Dubai and Washington includes over £1,284,000 on a UK Government-funded Airbus A321 aircraft and over £125,000 for RAF transport. The Government has declined to release official costs of any of the Prime Minister's UK flights on private taxpayer-funded aircraft, citing reasons of national security. But figures are available for some of Sunak's UK air travel paid for by Conservative donors. They reveal that in the eight months from April to November 2023 Conservative benefactors gave over £101,000 to provide private plane and helicopter trips within the UK, often when Sunak was on party business. Sunak appears to be the real frequent-flyer amongst recent Conservative Prime Ministers. Figures are only available for his first six months (187 days) in office between October 2022 and April 2023, and they show that he took a total of 23 domestic flights on aircraft provided by the RAF at public expense, an average of one every eight days. That compares with Liz Truss, who took an average of one flight every 12 days in her short time as Prime Minister, Boris Johnson who took one flight every 20 days, although his travel was restricted by Covid, and Theresa May who took one flight for every 13 days of her Premiership. The Cabinet Office declined to update those figures for Sunak's private air journeys since April 2023, citing national security. The number and frequency of publicly-funded air journeys since Sunak became Prime Minister in October 2022 has raised questions about the amount of money spent, the environmental impact, and his apparent reluctance to consider alternative public transport options. The numerous donor-funded trips have raised additional questions, especially since it has emerged that some of the benefactors have been awarded significant Government contracts, while others have been the subject of public controversy. Flights of Fancy and Concern One of Sunak's taxpayer-funded domestic flights was to his home town of Southampton on 8 May 2023, where he visited a local pharmacy to launch a new scheme to free up GP appointments by allowing pharmacists to write prescriptions for common illnesses. His decision to take a helicopter meant a cost to the public purse of thousands of pounds for a journey that could have taken less than 90 minutes on the train and cost around £120 return, even for a first-class ticket. Jetting around the country on taxpayers' money like an A-list celeb Labour on Sunak's frequent flying Government records describe the official subject of the visit as "health," but there was slightly more to it than that. Sunak was widely reported to have told receptionists at the pharmacy that he was going to visit his family in Southampton later. The government's own records tend to support this, since they show that he made further health-related constituency visits in the Southampton area the following day. At the time, Labour accused the Prime Minister of "jetting around the country on taxpayers' money like an A-list celeb … No politician should be above using public transport to get around the country - especially for a journey that would take little more than an hour." Downing St officials responded that, "obviously, there's a lot of pressure on his time … so sometimes being able to get to and from places quickly is the best use of his time." Other private flights have caused even more concern. On 19 January 2023, Sunak used an official RAF plane to visit three different constituencies in one day. In the first, Bexleyheath and Crayford in Kent, the subject was listed in official records as "police". Then there was a quick stop-over in Morecambe to celebrate the awarding of £50 million in levelling-up funding ...

Cross-party campaigners have thrown their weight behind 30 parliamentary candidates in Conservative-held seats, who support replacing Westminster's winner-takes-all voting system with proportional representation (PR). The cross-party group Compass and its Win As One campaign aims to "channel support" to the candidates through its network of autonomous grassroots groups to help them unseat the Tories and "kickstart a democratic renewal of our country - starting with changing our voting system." The list (shared in full below) includes 11 candidates from Labour, 17 from the Liberal Democrats and two from the Green Party, all of whom have given written confirmation of their support for PR. There are 30 active Compass local groups in England & Wales, "several" of which have secured these endorsements by working with parties locally and analysing the data to determine which parties are best-placed to beat the Conservatives in certain seats, a spokesperson for the group said. Key target seats include Godalming & Ash (Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's constituency), Wycombe (right-winger Steve Baker's constituency) and North East Somerset (GB News host and former Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg's constituency). Local Compass groups will show their support for endorsed candidates with tactics including in-person campaign events, including US-style 'barnstorms' (speaking tours in lots of small communities), Facebook ads, street stalls, leaflet drops, phone-banking and door knocking. The membership organisation says it's committed to supporting candidates who want to replace First Past the Post voting (FPTP) with PR, noting: "Our current voting system stifles productive debate, promotes short-termism, tribalism and timidity, and blocks us from pressing ahead with the bold and transformative solutions that our age of permacrisis demands." Compass argues that FPTP pushes Labour towards a "narrow route to office" that panders to party donors and media barons, as well as the views of a small number of swing voters in a few swing seats. Targeting a small number of swing seats this way while ignoring core Labour voting areas "discourag[es] Labour from taking radical and desperately needed action on inequality, climate and public services," according to the progressive campaign. That in turn fuels voter cynicism that the parties are "all the same" and that "voting is pointless". Compass is aiming to "galvanise the progressive vote" in the UK by uniting people from all parts of the country behind a pluralistic vision for the country's future. The ultimate goal is to enact PR to ensure to stop majority Governments being elected on a minority of the vote - most of which have been Conservative, as the right-wing vote has traditionally been less "split" than that of the left (something that may change this time with a high Reform UK vote). Candidates who back Compass' pledge for change are likely to become "part of a substantial PR crossparty caucus in the next Parliament." A spokesperson for Compass said: "We desperately need to get rid of the Tories on July 4th. But this election isn't just about winning office - it's about winning a mandate for the change this country desperately needs. "This change is as much about how people win power as what they do with it when they get there. We're looking forward to welcoming, for the first time, a strong, cross-party caucus of pro-democracy candidates into Parliament who have recognised that only by changing the system will we change the country for the future." At least four of the seats chosen by Compass members could prove controversial. In Suffolk Coastal, the group recommends a vote for the Liberal Democrats. But three of seven election models predict it could swing to Labour, compared to four predicting a Conservative hold and none predicting a Conservative win. However, Suffolk Compass activists will argue that Lib Dem Julia Ewart has enthusiastically backed PR, and it is not officially a Labour "battlegr...

On a drizzly Tuesday morning in Northamptonshire, the Conservative Party launched a work of fiction for which even the sneak previews felt hopelessly passe. Byline Times weren't present, as we weren't invited. But we knew the shape of what was coming, through puff pieces and leaked press releases. Contained in the document is National Service, for 18-year-olds who've had their futures blunted. There are more welfare cuts for the left behind. The latter will pay for a tax cut on landlords, as the - let's face it, outgoing - PM pledges to revive the "party of Margaret Thatcher and Nigel Lawson". Unfortunately for him, voters seem to want a party of Clem Attlee and Nye Bevan, by a twenty point margin. A 2p cut in National Insurance alongside a pledge to abolish it will only cause fear among those still desperately trying to get a doctor's appointment, or those left stranded on growing surgery waiting lists. It is a pledge to ensure school roofs remain replete with cracks, for the rivers to remain flooded with filth. Even if his pledges were desirable, the crux of Sunak's problem is credibility. After 14 years of Conservative rule, the public have no faith any of it will be enacted. A promise to solve the social care crisis is simply the reheated commitment of Boris Johnson, a man who also failed to fix the mess. One of the few progressive pledges is the promise to end no-fault evictions for renters. But again, it's one that successive Conservative Governments have made and failed to deliver on. The drive to "reform" our relationship with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) is intended as red meat for the foot soldiers, but it's a stale offering past its use-by date. Nor are voters likely to be moved by Rishi Sunak's claim that Starmer is a "socialist". He makes it sound incredibly tempting. Sunak goes big on his youth-baiting mission to scrap Mickey Mouse degrees, in a Mickey Mouse manifesto aimed at a slither of the electorate: GB News viewers, 120,000 Conservative members, and those who somehow haven't noticed the withering of Britain's social fabric. But in focusing on policies that resonate primarily with Reform Party switchers and the hard right, the Conservatives have effectively given up on winning back Labour voters. This is not a strategy for victory; it's a strategy for maintaining the status quo. Indeed, much of the pledges seem to admit as much, comprising commitments not to do XYZ - not to raise income tax, national insurance, or VAT, and pledging not to introduce new taxes on pensions. That approach may have worked in the past, but it misses the mark now. The 2p cut in National Insurance failed to move the polls back in January, and there's no reason to believe another one will today. We are in a 1945 moment. People seek a new settlement with the state - high taxes actually leading to better outcomes. A welfare state that works, mended schools, and a reliable health service. During his interview with the BBC on Monday night, Sunak acknowledged euphemistically that his plans would involve "prioritisation" within Government departments. That means more cuts are inevitable. But he is failing to level with voters on where those cuts will occur. The same, it must be said, goes for Keir Starmer and the IFS' analysis that Labour plans may also involve £18bn in spending cuts, if the party retains its commitment to get debt down at the end of the next parliament. A handful of still uber-loyal newspapers will give the manifesto the works: glowing front pages that look like blusher on a cadaver. Those too will gather dust before they hit the shelves. Because Sunak's campaign has become moot. And this week's tome will prove interesting reading for historians on holiday in 40 years, or as a source of Whitehall pub quiz questions in another era. Little more can be said for it. Byline Times is relaunching our VoteWatch project to monitor disinformation, dodgy campaigning, and dark money during the 2024 General Election. G...

Reality TV star Ampika Pickston hired two managers who had been sacked from their previous jobs to run the children's care home she owns before it was closed due to a series of "chaotic" child safeguarding failures, a tribunal has heard. Although AP Care Homes Ltd had previously been assessed "inadequate" and closed by Ofsted inspectors last November, the watchdog in early January permitted the facility to look after some of the most vulnerable children within the care system. AP Care Homes Ltd, which was set up through a £1.2 million loan from Ms Pickston's fiance - the billionaire West Ham co-owner David Sullivan - was understood to have been paid around £10,000 per child, each week, from the public purse . On January 3, Ms Pickston, who has no qualifications in social work or child care, hired Darren Roberts and Leigh Brooks, despite questions over their past employment and suitability. The Care Standards Tribunal heard how Mr Roberts, who as Responsible Individual oversees all aspects of the home's management, and deputy manager Ms Brooks went on to oversee a period of "chaos". For Ofsted, Dominic Howells alleged Ms Pickston had overruled an earlier recommendation made by the home's manager Brendan Prior not to take in an extremely vulnerable child, identified only as Child A. The tribunal heard AP care Homes Ltd's decision in mid-January to accept Child A was made after the fee it received from the local authority was increased to a sum Byline Times has learned was around £14,000 per week, having agreed the child would be the home's only resident, and would always be accompanied by two staff. Iain Simpkin KC for AP Care Homes Ltd and Ms Pickston admitted several times during the hearing that the company lost money when there were no child residents. However, Ms Brooks said she had made the decision while deputising for Prior, who had been off work on the day they accepted Child A, and denied it had anything to do with Ms Pickston. The tribunal heard that in the days that followed the girl had gone missing from the home, threatened employees, self-harmed, caused significant damage to the property and received hospital treatment. Police had been called to once incident. Within a week of Child A's arrival, AP Care Homes Ltd requested the child be removed from the facility, which has capacity for four children, admitting it was unable to keep her safe. The tribunal described Child A as having been put "at risk of serious harm". The incident led the 'luxury' five-bedroom home in Styal, Cheshire to be shut by regulator Ofsted on 30 January, for the second time in three months. AP Care Homes Ltd has been barred from taking children ever since and, despite only opening in July 2023, the tribunal heard the home is now facing the possibility of permanent closure. Mr Simpkin argued restrictions should be lifted as improvements in standards at the home have taken place and Mr Roberts and Ms Brooks - now the home's acting manager after Prior's departure - were working to gain approval from Ofsted for their roles. But Mr Howells told the Tribunal that these efforts had been deemed insufficient by Ofsted and that the home continues to lack adequate safeguarding and skilled staff. He described the case of Child A as "not an isolated incident". The home had previously been closed by Ofsted after multiple failed inspections, one of which included an allegation made against Ms Pickston, 42 - who found fame in ITVX series The Real Housewives of Cheshire from 2015 - that she had "blurred boundaries" by taking a child back to her home. AP Care Homes Ltd was also criticised by Ofsted for the lack of monitoring of children in its care. Rooms were not inspected, allowing children to vape and keep drugs within the property and staff failed to monitor internet usage, potentially allowing vulnerable children to be exploited online. Mr Simkin implored the Tribunal, which took place on 4 and 5 June, to make an expedited decision on reopening the ho...

Manchester Metropolitan University has been criticised for allowing invasive ground investigation surveys which could disturb or even destroy active birds' nests and will involve heavy machinery working within recommended exclusion zones without appropriate protected species licenses. According to locals, Ryebank Fields in south Manchester is a rewilded oasis for urban wildlife, a much loved resource for the local community and a valuable carbon sink. But once planning permission has been granted, the university (MMU), which ranks as the seventh best University for Biological Sciences in the UK, plans to sell the land to its preferred developers, Step Places and Southway Housing, who will clear the 10-acre site to make way for 120 new homes. A website set up to promote the Ryebank housing development and a letter sent to residents said the works, which are due to start imminently and are expected to last up to six weeks, will include driving steel tubes into the ground, drilling bore holes, digging trial pits and dropping weights on to steel rods buried up to 6m in the ground. Potential bird nesting habitat will also be cleared from various locations around the site to allow access for heavy machinery and survey equipment. All wild birds and their nests are protected by law under the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act. MMU, Step Places and Southway Housing refused to comment directly to Byline Times, and replied via PR company Lexington Communications, which said "no active bird nests have been recorded on site to date". However, during a short walk just after dawn earlier this week ten species of bird were recorded singing and defending breeding territories. Professional ecologists volunteering free of charge for Friends of Ryebank Fields, a campaign group set up to save the site from development, say that they have strong evidence that there are active nests in the area which would be disturbed or destroyed by the works. The PR firm also said that although Natural England, the Government body tasked with promoting nature conservation and protecting biodiversity, had not issued any licenses to legally allow disturbance of protected species on the site, "all exclusion zones will be applied and respected when the site investigation works are carried out". Images and footage seen by Byline Times of similar works commissioned by MMU at Ryebank Fields in 2019 shows heavy machinery working inside the recommended protected species exclusion zones. Other images show core samples, some of which were later found to be contaminated with asbestos, littering the site after contractors left. Sam Easterby-Smith, Green Party parliamentary candidate for Manchester Withington in the forthcoming general election, knows Ryebank Fields well and is adamant that the ground surveys should be carried out in full compliance of environmental regulations and best practice. "Any vegetation works and clearance should certainly be avoided during the official bird nesting season from February to August. It would be extremely disappointing if they were to fail in their environmental duties," he said, adding: "While I absolutely recognise the need for more housing, particularly affordable housing, there are other, more appropriate sites nearby." Councillor Richard Kilpatrick, parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Democrats, said if contractors are ignoring protected species exclusion zones, "this is a serious act of environmental vandalism, the type of which we were given cast-iron guarantees would not happen on this site". Kilpatrick also expressed his concern that the work was happening at the wrong time of the year for nesting birds and is likely to disturb contaminated land. After 14 years of successive Conservative Governments failing to address biodiversity loss, the 2023 State of Nature report, a collaboration between environmental NGOs, academic institutions and government agencies including Natural England, concluded that the UK is now one of the...

Several more Reform UK candidates have been caught sharing social media content that is racist, promotes conspiracy theories and fringe far-right ideas. The discovery comes less than three weeks after a Byline Times report led to the party - which insists it isn't far-right - confirming it had dropped Andrew Raw, its candidate for Darlington, after he was accused of sharing "extreme racism and hateful ideology". At that time, it was thought Raw was at least the 11th candidate Reform has had to bin since the party gained its first MP, following Lee Anderson's defection from the Conservative Party in March. It also comes as the party faced another election set-back in recent days when - hours before nominations closed - Tom Wellings, the Reform candidate for the new seat of Stone, Great Wryly and Penkridge in Staffordshire, quit and put out a statement endorsing former cabinet minister Sir Gavin Williamson. Before nominations closed there had been speculation that as many as six Conservative MPs and other candidates may defect to Reform after Nigel Farage announced on 3 June that he was standing in Clacton and becoming the leader of the party. However, that never happened. Reform chair Richard Tice has since accused the Conservatives of "dirty tricks" and challenged Williamson to say "whether money, jobs or a safe seat was offered to Wellings to do this". Wellings said he was concerned his candidacy risked splitting the vote in the seat, handing victory to Labour. Sean Matthews, the Reform candidate for Louth and Horncastle, is the latest member of the party whose social media judgement has been called into question. In February, he retweeted a photo of Keir Starmer with the caption "owned by muslims". The account that posted the original tweet wrote, "If you vote for this man you will get the Islamification of Great Britain". Matthews also regularly shares climate change denial content on X. Posts he shared included one claiming that "CO2 is irrelevant" to the planet's warming, that there is "no definitive proof that CO2 is responsible for any of the slight warming of the global climate" and a post describing "the man-made global warming scam". Reform UK's manifesto opposes Net Zero. Byline Times has previously reported on several other instances of climate change denialism from Reform UK candidates. In August 2023, the party received a £10,000 donation from the disgraced financier Crispin Odey who has previously invested heavily in a Brazilian agribusiness that received numerous fines for aggressive deforestation. The party has also received £1,578,000 from Jeremy Hosking, including a donation of £15,000 in July 2023. According to Open Democracy, Hosking's company had at least $134 million in investments in fossil fuel companies in 2022. Bob Ward, policy and communications director at the LSE's Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, previously told Byline Times that "the material on the Reform UK website is demonstrably false and it's not just the result of incompetence, it's disinformation, it's deliberate misinformation about climate impacts". Conspiracy theories among Reform candidates extend beyond climate change denial. Byline Times previously reported on the prevalence of the ideology of the "freedom movement" which states there is a global plot by the World Economic Forum and WHO to enforce lockdowns, insect eating and major restrictions on movement. One politico with a penchant for this kind of conspiracy theorising is Rowland O'Connor, the party's candidate for North Cornwall. He regularly shares conspiracy theories on X including false claims that 17 million people have died from the Covid vaccine. Research by the UKHSA and Cambridge University suggests that Covid vaccines saved more than 100,000 lives in England alone. Another post suggested that the snap election means people should avoid London in case of "false flag attacks" - a theory that states the government organises terror att...

Lying works. Whether it's Rishi Sunak's 'Labour will cost you £2,000 in extra tax' claim or Boris Johnson's '£350 million for the NHS', once the mud of deception has been slung, enough of it sticks to make it worth the fallout. If lying didn't work, Sunak would have corrected the record instantly. Instead, he has taken every opportunity to repeat the tax claim and stand by the lie. No matter that the Office for Statistic Regulation or the civil service have decried its use - the deception has delivered, the figure is neatly lodged in our heads, and every new august rebuttal merely creates an opportunity for the lie to be repeated anew. Contrast this with Sunak's relatively swift apology for the D-Day debacle. That was a story that didn't serve him and a swiftish apology, he hoped, would dampen its flames. But, the longer the £2,000 tax story runs, the better. These lies are akin to what psychologists call the 'Pink Elephant Paradox'. When instructed not to think of a pink elephant, it is all but impossible not to think of a pink elephant. Knowing that the elephant doesn't exist doesn't stop the image from lodging in our brains. So, the more opportunities Sunak gets to repeat his skewed if not fictional figure, the greater the chance of it sticking. While lying, like crime, pays, it will continue unabated. The incentives must be changed. When Compassion in Politics polled the public about the thing they most wanted changed about the culture of British politics, the overwhelming response was the lack of honesty. And yet, the litany of lies - from both the major parties - continues. The Lilliputian regulations designed to protect the public from unscrupulous politicians when Parliament is sitting have also manifestly failed. We have a system dependent on the 'gentlemanly' observance of the Nolan Principles when that ship, if it ever existed, has well and truly sailed. We have a Ministerial Code, which a government with a large majority can ignore. We have an 'Independent' Advisor on Ministers' Interests who is only able to open an investigation at the behest of the Prime Minister, who can also ignore their recommendations. And we have perhaps the biggest absurdity of all in the rules that govern parliamentary debate, whereby a liar may lie but may not be called out for it - with the Alice in Wonderland, topsy-turvy result being that MPs Dawn Butler and Ian Blackford were obliged to leave the House of Commons for calling Boris Johnson a liar, while he remained. Exceptionalism, rule-breaking, dishonesty flourish in a culture that sees itself as too complex to be governed by the rules that the rest of society is obliged to live by. It is clear that our voluntary codes don't work. Putting them on a statutory footing, which the Labour Party has indicated it will do, should help the situation when Parliament is sitting, but this won't affect what politicians propagate online, blazoned on buses or broadcast on air. Our slide into a post-truth era has alarming implications for us all. When the cocktail of hate and fantasy offered by the toxic politics of the far-right becomes more appealing than factual reality, it is time for decisive action. Reluctant tolerance of deception becomes complicity. Let what is happening across the Atlantic act as an impetus to action. So, what can be done? Quite a lot actually. Although, the political class and commentariat are often given to bemoaning the impossibility of the situation, the reality is that enforceable rules and laws exist in other areas of work which clearly prevent such conduct. In professions outside of politics, laws prevent deliberate misrepresentation whether you're buying a car, selling a soap product, filing your taxes, or performing a medical procedure. Deliberate deception is verboten. There is no reason why the same rules can't be applied to politics. This is not the creation of a new area of law, or an invitation to courts to adjudicate on matters with which they are not fami...

A new report sounds the alarm on a failure by UK regulators to sanction companies that are flagrantly breaching rules on pollution, workers' rights and other violations. 'Protecting All We Care About', written by the non-profits Good Jobs First and Unchecked UK, examines the current state of the UK's regulatory system, branding it in dire need of an overhaul in many areas following years of political pressure and cuts. It draws upon extensive data from the Violation Tracker UK database, documenting over 100,000 cases of corporate wrongdoing since 2010. Often the same companies come up time and time again, suggesting that they are not learning their lessons. At a launch conference on Thursday, speakers highlighted how Amazon 'fulfilment centres' or warehouses have had thousands of ambulance call-outs in recent years - but have had just three safety offences recorded against them. The US consistently enforces regulations more strictly than the UK across all areas, attendees heard, while in the UK, deep funding and staffing cuts to regulatory budgets are having "immense effects on enforcement gaps". For instance, there has been a nearly 90% decline in prosecutions by the Environment Agency since 2010. As of 2021, a farm in England - supposedly regulated by the EA - can expect a visit from an environmental officer only once every 236 years. It comes as the UK Finance industry is gearing up to push for further deregulation, even under a Labour Government, amid pleas from executives in the City of London. Yet the use of bans or "prohibitions" barring City firm directors by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has fallen by 62% since 2013, while the number of individual fines has also collapsed, the report finds. Many FCA investigations end in mere warnings, while over half of decisions don't carry any monetary penalty. Ian Tyler, a non-executive director and former senior banker, told the conference that enforcement by the FCA is "highly selective", with big firms often facing only fines, while smaller firms and their bosses face more severe consequences, such as criminal prosecution. Meanwhile, the Treasury Select Committee which is also meant to hold rogue bosses to account "lacks rigour and knowledge," with staffers often being secondees from finance firms, he said. Other speakers pointed out that "regulatory capture" has worsened in the UK in recent years, with watchdogs sometimes receiving gifts from those they scrutinise, particularly in the water industry. Research by he Liberal Democrats earlier this year found that OfWat bosses have been treated to dinners from disgraced water firms despite public outrage over sewage scandals. Officials there received lunches at shows and even an umbrella gifted by firms, seemingly attempting to keep the regulator on side. Some regulators in the UK are also expected to be cheerleaders for industry, unlike in the US. The FCA now has to deal with alleged conflicts of interest after the Government passed the 2023 Financial Services and Markets Bill, where ministers gave the FCA a new 'growth duty' - a demand for it to promote growth and competitiveness. In other words, to act as an industry cheerleader as well as its regulator. "This new obligation to promote market interests presents a conflict with FCA's mission to ensure financial stability and protect consumers," the Good Jobs First report suggests. Equally, the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) which regulates North Sea Oil firms, has a "conflicting" core mission to achieve the maximum recovery of UK petroleum. Environmentalists say that industry-promotion objective stands in "direct conflict" with the UK's commitment to net zero. Other issues like the 'fragmentation' of watchdogs, such as lack of a single enforcement body for labour rights, was also cited as a significant problem. Watchdogs or Lapdogs? The report from Unchecked UK argues that the UK's regulatory system is "not delivering" - pointing to a huge disconnect between w...

In a drab courtroom in the Rolls Building on Fetter Lane in London, a slow and expensive drama that touches millions of lives is being played out. Northern & Shell, former publisher of the Express, is suing the Gambling Commission for mishandling the 2022 National Lottery licence bidding process. As well as newspapers, Northern & Shell, owned by the tycoon Richard Desmond, ran the Health Lottery. When the company tried to win the licence for the National Lottery, its attempt was rejected. Other losers included the incumbent, Camelot, which had operated the Lottery since its launch in 1994. The winner was Czech gambling organisation, Allwyn. In the biggest UK public procurement contract of its kind, Allwyn agreed a 10-year deal worth £6.5 billion. It took over operating the prize draw and the attendant lesser competitions like the scratchcards, in February this year. It is not just the size of the contract, or the central place the weekly Lottery jackpot occupies in the nation's life, that made the licensing battle so significant - it is the fact that thousands of good causes rely on funding from the proceeds to be able to continue their activities. Allwyn stands to make substantial long-term profits, but these numerous, often hard-up bodies, also look to the Lottery for a vital cash pipeline. That's what sets the Lottery apart. It's unique: a piece of fun that millions enjoy in the hope of changing their lives forever and at the same time it's a key source of finance that improves countless people's lives. It is 'the People's Game'. This is why, you would suppose, the selection exercise would be completely open and transparent. That we, the people, would be fully appraised of what transpired, why other bidders were rejected and Allwyn triumphed. Think again. The losers are none the wiser about the detail of what occurred - the little they were told was full of holes. That's why Northern & Shell has launched a legal action: it wants to get to the bottom of how the nation's jackpot draw came to be handed to the Czech firm. Camelot was also incensed and initially hit the Gambling Commission with a lawsuit. This was dropped, though, after Camelot was itself taken over by Allwyn. Desmond, via his company, is determined to get to the truth. He will not let it rest. His motivation is not the conviction that his was necessarily the best entry - it's more that he can accept losing, provided the decision-making was scrupulously fair and above board. Doubtless, the Gambling Commission will maintain Northern & Shell is a bad loser and is merely trying to prolong and even overturn the judging, but the company insist that is not the case. What they are asking is for Northern & Shell, Camelot and most significantly, the British people, to be taken through in detail what exactly happened, to explain how the plum, government order went to a foreigner. The Gambling Commission, as a public organisation, owes it to them and us - it cannot, should not, hide. Obfuscation and prevarication will not do; there should be no cover-up. This is the most public of public contracts and we surely have the right to ensure its destination was properly determined. Unfortunately, the Gambling Commission does not see it like that - hence the courtroom spectacle of rows of expensive leading barristers and solicitors. This is only a case management hearing; the actual trial is far off. Already, the lines are drawn. Northern & Shell claim they were not fully informed at an early stage about the quality of their bid, which they should have been. Adequate feedback would have enabled them to refine their application, as the terms of the contest provided. Everything was meant to be confidential, but there were press leaks pushing Allwyn's entry, which should have been investigated and closed down. Possibly at the very least Allwyn should have been reprimanded and reminded of the rules. No credible explanation has been given for this lapse. Likewise, what looks like a...

Conservative politicians have repeatedly promoted a pothole-repairing machine, after their party took millions of pounds in donations from the company that makes it. Conservative Deputy Chair Jonathan Gullis told MPs in December about his local council's purchase of the "JCB Pothole Pro", which he described as "revolutionary", claiming that it "fixes potholes twice as fast and at half the cost of other machinery". He also repeated his endorsement on Facebook. He later went on to register a £10,000 donation from the company. Other Conservative politicians to endorse the product include the Transport Secretary Mark Harper, who took part in a photo opportunity with JCB and the Pothole Pro last October. Harper went on to tell MPs in December that "I was lucky enough to visit JCB myself and see the Pothole Pro in action, as well as the innovative work it is doing, as a fantastic world leader in innovation, on some of its hydrogen engines for its mobile off-road machinery." He added that "I am sure that local councils will look carefully at the Pothole Pro and other technologies that can help us make the best use of that record investment in road improvements." Neither Harper or Gullis declared to MPs about the millions of pounds their national party has received in donations from the company. According to the MPs Code of Conduct, members of the House of Commons "must always be open and frank in declaring any relevant interest in any proceeding of the House or its Committees, and in any communications with Ministers, Members, public officials or public office holders". Neither man had received a personal donation from JCB before making their comments. The purchase of the machines by Conservative councils has caused controversy in some parts of the country, due to the party's acceptance of more than £2 million in donations from JCB and its owner Lord Bamford over recent years. Successive Conservative Prime Ministers, including Boris Johnson and David Cameron have posed on JCB products, while endorsing the company. A JCB tractor was also posed outside 10 Downing Street just last month, as part of a rural business event hosted by Rishi Sunak. Questions Over Probity Deputy Chairman Jonathan Gullis' own endorsement of the Pothole Pro came before he declared the acceptance of a £10,000 personal donation from the company, which employs hundreds of people in his constituency. As Byline Times revealed last week, Gullis accepted the donation just weeks before the company announced it would be closing its warehouse in Stoke on Trent. Replying to a question about his apparent silence on the closure, Gullis insisted on Facebook that he had had "no discussion or communication from JCB prior to the announcement." Another Conservative MP also promoted the 'Pothole Pro' after receiving a donation from JCB. Last week Theo Clarke, who is standing for re-election as the MP for Stafford, posted a series of social media posts referring to JCB and its' 'Pothole Pro' machine, after having previously registered a £5,000 donation from the company in 2020. She did not declare to her followers about her previous funding from the company. There has been criticisms of the decision by some Conservative councils to purchase the Pothole Pro. According to the Gloucestershire Live news website, Gloucestershire County Council approved a "last minute" amendment to its budget earlier this year in order to purchase a JCB Pothole Pro, worth an estimated £200,000. Liberal Democrat Councillor David Willingham raised concerns that the purchase had not been "properly audited for probity reasons" and pointed to criticisms about the effectiveness and value for money of the machines. Despite the high cost of the machines, the Pothole Pros do not actually fill potholes, but are merely used for preparing the holes to be filled by hand. Jonathan Gullis and Theo Clarke were contacted for comment and did not respond. A spokesperson for Mark Harper said: "All Mark Harper's donation...

A Labour candidate and director of the lobby group We Believe in Israel faces a complaint of antisemitism after footage emerged of him suggesting that Marxist Jews had "abandoned very much of their Jewish identity" and saw Judaism as "a purely cultural thing around a bowl of chicken soup". Luke Akehurst, who is not Jewish, sits on Labour's National Executive Committee as an ally of Sir Keir Starmer. He made the controversial remarks in a talk of Marxism, titled "What's Going on in Regard to Israel, Jews and Antisemitism in the Labour Party" for the Edgware United Synagogue in 2020. In the speech, he claims that Marxist Jews "have abandoned very much of their Jewish identity, they don't go to shul [synagogue] at all. You know, it's become a purely cultural thing around the occasional bowl of chicken soup or whatever. "They kind of look at all of you who are either more observant or even in a secular way more involved in the community and they're like...that's deeply frustrating for them. They can't understand why you haven't moved on. They can't understand why you feel this affinity to Israel for instance." In the talk, he adds that Marxist Jews "have to force things like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict...into a paradigm that makes it just part of a global history of class struggle." Now he is the subject of a complaint from Jewish London Labour councillor Martin Abrams, who told Byline Times: "As a Jewish Labour Party Member I believe Luke Akehurst's comments are deeply antisemitic by trying to define anti-Zionist Jews out of Judaism. The Good Jew, Bad Jew trope. "Many Jewish anti-Zionists go to shul (synagogue). Some don't. We are all Jews and for a non-Jew to state our Jewishness is solely culture based on a bowl of 'Chicken Soup ' is deeply offensive and I would question Luke Akehurst's suitability as a Labour Party candidate." The Lambeth Labour councillor and left-wing Momentum activist added that Keir Starmer has said he would take a "zero tolerance approach to antisemitism" and that "he wants the highest possible quality candidates to put before the electorate" "We have already seen similar occurrences of Labour politicians, like [ex-MPs] Steve Reed and Barry Sheerman, both in Keir Starmer's faction, making [allegedly] antisemtic comments and getting away with a simple apology," Cllr Abrams said. A lack of action against Luke Akehurst would "show that Keir Starmer certainly isn't taking a zero tolerance approach to antisemitism and you can get away with it if you are a Keir Starmer supporter," he claimed. "These double standards ultimately damage the very real fight against antisemitism within the Labour Party and as a Jewish Labour Party member that is deeply upsetting," he added. Poet Michael Rosen, who is Jewish, responded to the re-emerged footage, shared on X, by joking: "This is really useful. Could Mr Akehurst set himself up as a gatekeeper we could go to, to find out if we qualify as being Jewish? "Perhaps he could have a checklist that he could go through with us and then he could decide whether we could have the certificate or not." The left-wing group Jewish Voice For Labour also added: "We don't need any advice from Luke Akehurst about how to be Jews. We could however offer him some useful advice about how to be a better human being." Responding to the uproar and an inquiry from Byline Times, Luke Akehurst said via a party spokesperson: "I'm proud to have been an ally of the Jewish Community my entire political life and to have played a leading role in fighting the scourge of antisemitism in the Labour Party both before and since the EHRC Report. "I've been targeted persistently since my selection by online hatred from people who are not North Durham electors. The latest manifestation of this is to take completely out of context 15 seconds of a speaker event from 2020 that latest [sic] over an hour. "The event was a talk I gave to a Jewish audience about fighting antisemitism, and was hosted by Edgware U...

A top Georgian official recently met with UK authorities as her agency fends off allegations of failing to adequately investigate the mounting violent crackdown on opposition voices in the South Caucasian country. Photos posted to Facebook on May 28 show Natuti Pirashvili, Head of International Relations at Georgia's Special Investigation Service (SIS), standing in the lobby of the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) and meeting with an official at the National Crime Agency in London. An IOPC spokesperson said the watchdog did not meet with Pirashvili or have knowledge of her visit. Other images uploaded last week indicate Pirashvili was accompanied on her trip by Kate Tetrauli, another SIS investigator, and feature Pirashvili posing at Westminster Bridge, Tower Bridge, Abbey Road and the Natural History Museum. On Friday morning, only the tourist images were still visible on her public profile. On May 31, the same day the last of these photos was posted, a mob of roughly 30 to 40 masked men vandalised the headquarters of Georgia's largest opposition party, United National Movement. Offices of government-critical NGOs and independent media outlets were similarly targeted, while others received threatening anonymous phone calls. Recent weeks have seen such attacks become the new normal in Georgia, where dozens of activists, journalists, NGO workers and opposition politicians have been hospitalised in beatings by state security personnel for their opposition to the ruling Georgian Dream party's new law on 'foreign influence' which was passed on 28 May. The measures, decried by critics as an analogue of tactics used by the Putin regime to crush opposition to the war in Ukraine, represent the latest episode in Georgia's ongoing authoritarian slide away from its historic partners in the West. Both the US and the EU have threatened sanctions and a freeze to government assistance in response to the law's passing, with the EU adding that the measures spell an end to Georgia's present hopes of one day joining the bloc - which enjoys support from the overwhelming majority of the public. On Thursday, the US said it had imposed travel bans on a "few dozen" Georgian Dream officials. According to a report in the Financial Times late last month, Estonia, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Sweden were among the countries considering restrictive measures against Georgia. Though David Cameron has condemned the measures, the UK government has not publicly announced any intention to join the US and EU in taking concrete action over the law. Byline Times earlier reported how the Foreign Office appears to have for years repeatedly ignored warning signs that a UK-backed Georgian comms unit was using troll accounts to attack state critics and spread anti-Western disinformation. As a head of the SIS, it is the remit of Pirashvili's agency to investigate allegations of misconduct levelled against state officials. The body appears to receive significant international support, having been admitted to Europol's Internal Criminal Investigations Network last year as well as presently benefiting from a Council of Europe programme entitled 'Enhancing Human Rights Compliant Approaches in Law Enforcement Institutions in Georgia'. But to date, critics say that credible steps against those responsible for the beatings, menacing phone calls, acts of vandalism and online attacks against those opposed to Georgia's 'foreign influence' law have roundly failed to materialise. The ruling party, under whom Pirashvili's husband Givi Mikanadze presently serves as MP, have publicly thrown themselves behind the ongoing campaign of state terror. Dito Samkharadze, another Georgian Dream parliamentary representative, this week posted a video to Facebook of masked men vandalising an NGO office wall with the caption: "We know your identities one by one, your patrons cannot save you if you do something bad to any member of the Georgian Dream team!" His statement a...

The deselection of Faiza Shaheen as a Labour candidate in this year's General Election dominated campaign coverage in the past week. The social justice campaigner and economist - who has since resigned from the Labour Party and will now stand as an independent - achieved the highest ever vote for Labour in the constituency of former Conservative Leader Iain Duncan Smith, Chingford and Woodford Green, in the 2019 General Election. It was widely thought she would unseat the Tories in the north-east London seat this year - an area in which she was born and raised. But a shock email from Labour's National Executive Committee informed Shaheen that she had been deselected. Why? If you only read the headlines, because of 14 'liked' tweets, one of which was allegedly antisemitic. But if you read beyond the headlines, it went far deeper than tweets which were 'liked' over the course of a decade. It was, in Shaheen's words, "a systematic campaign of racism, Islamophobia, and bullying". "Racism is never about individuals," journalist, equality campaigner, and ex-Labour councillor Shaista Aziz told this week's Media Storm podcast. "It's about systems of power." Applying the famous Toni Morrison quote to Shaheen's situation, she recited: "The very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being - that is pretty much what Faiza Shaheen has had to do." Shaista Aziz was one of first two Labour councillors in the country to resign over Keir Starmer's position on Israel and Gaza last October, which posited that "Israel has the right" to withhold power and water from Palestinian civilians. It is a position the Labour Leader later backtracked on, claiming that he meant only that the country had a right to self-defence. "I had no option [but to resign]," Aziz said. "It was a red line. And I think what we're seeing now is a red line for lots of other people. The mistreatment of Diane Abbott and Faiza Shaheen really do speak to the hierarchy of racism that Keir Starmer's Labour Party is overseeing." Indeed, mere days ago, seven councillors in Slough resigned from the opposition party, citing 'institutional racism' in Labour. Claims that it is 'purging' left-wing and minority candidates are being batted off by opposition spokespeople. But Shaheen's determination to speak out has given a face to the fight. Speaking to the power of listening to first-hand lived experience to demonstrate that minorities are not a monolith, Media Storm guest host and journalist Coco Khan referenced Shaheen's BBC Newsnight interview, which took place one hour after she received the email informing her of her deselection. "[The public] know nothing about her except she's got a brown face and a Muslim name... and then they see her on the screen," Khan said. "And what you see is someone who is not this one-note character that's been drawn in a racist cartoon, but a mother. A human… someone you get on with, someone you'd have a cup of tea with. But actually, [people of colour] often don't get the opportunities to show [their] humanity." We are currently witnessing the dehumanisation of people of colour across the media, through the almost daily images of unthinkable violence against the people of Palestine, which has become a regular feature of scrolling through our social feeds. "We have to wonder," Khan said, "why we aren't all downing tools right now and doing something about it." A possible answer? Because Palestinians are largely non-white and Muslim. "Look at images of poverty porn from charities," founder of South Asian magazine Burnt Roti, Sharan Dhaliwal, told Media Storm. "We've seen these images on the tube, on the TV, forever… it's saying that non-white people are always in need. And so when you see it [in Palestine], it feels like you've seen it before… you do become desensitised." Indeed, it is hard to imagine the scenes of suffering and starvation on the scale w...

Rishi Sunak's decision to leave yesterday's D-Day commemorations early in order to take part in an ITV television interview is one of the most shocking moments in election campaign history. His decision, which was reportedly a "compromise" with the French, after having initially refused to attend the event at all, comes just weeks after he announced plans to force millions of 18-year olds to spend a year of their lives taking part in national service. Yet on the 80th anniversary of one of the most important events in our national and international history, the Prime Minister couldn't even manage a whole afternoon of serving his country, before skipping off to serve his own interests instead. After a barrage of criticism from military leaders, and senior Conservatives, Sunak was belatedly forced to issue an apology this morning, posting on X that his decision to leave early had been a "mistake". Yet with polls showing that Sunak's party is already heading for its worst ever election result, this could well prove to be a moment that helps tip a Conservative landslide defeat into a complete wipeout. Dodging Service That seemingly no-one around the Prime Minister appeared to spot the problem with him dodging part of the D-Day commemorations, tells us a lot about the quality of both his own judgement, and that of his aides. The terrible optics of this decision should have been obvious to everyone involved. On the evening news bulletins, potential pictures of the Prime Minister representing the country alongside his French, German and US allies were instead replaced with an image of Biden, Macron And Schulz standing side-by-side with David Cameron instead. Meanwhile images of Ukraine's President Zelensky talking to Labour leader Keir Starmer, also made the front pages, alongside questions about Sunak's non-appearance. While most of the Conservative-supportive newspapers appear to have ignored the story, with even the BBC actively seeking to downplay it yesterday, the sheer wave of public outrage, plus Sunak's belated apology this morning, means it is now leading the corporation's news bulletins. That the Prime Minister got himself into this position is remarkable. To have made such a decision at the same time as running a campaign which is targeted specifically at older and more conservative voters, is truly baffling and only gives further credence to those in his own party who complain that he is simply "terrible at politics". Tonight the BBC will host a seven-way debate between the party leaders. Luckily for Sunak, he is due to be represented by Penny Mordaunt, while Starmer is being represented by Angela Rayner. However, with the Nigel Farage likely to make big play of this story during the debate, amid polls showing the Reform party is now just two points behind the Conservatives, this is one decision that is likely to stay with the Prime Minister, long after he is finally forced to leave Downing Street.

With the election looming, I've been reflecting on my political journey and whether any politician has ever made a difference in my life or the lives of disabled people. Culture, arguably, had a much bigger effect. I'm from the first punk generation and believe the movement had an impact on many of us in a multitude of ways. Living under the tyranny of Thatcherism, Maggie became something of a cartoon villain in my younger years. Her approach to disabled people was to primarily ignore us, but I also despised her hypocrisy as a woman in power pushing concepts of an outmoded family life and a love of Victorian values. I studied Victorian society and culture not long after the punk era, which took my ways of thinking to places once unimaginable. I came to love one of the grandfathers of British socialism, William Morris, a leader of the Socialist League and editor of the organisation's official magazine, the Commonweal. It was a time when other influences wound around me and flowered into what was plainly a wistful crush on the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Helped by the poems of Tennyson, it was all about Arthurian legend, knights, beautiful women, and the height of yearning, romantic love. How I came crashing down once I'd read Marx, learned about the London poor, and seen Booth's Poverty Map. Yet Morris' brand of British socialism - alongside the anarchist optimism of Kropotkin's 'Mutual Aid' theory - has remained close to my heart. And so I wish with all my strength to remove a Government that strikes me as the most self-interested and obscenely privileged in generations. My dystopian self wonders where it will all end. Who will be the slaves to satisfy the needs of such out-of-touch and offensively wealthy 'public servants' in future generations? But since my recent skirmish with serious ill-health, I am resolute in looking for a better future. It's easy to see the news only in terms of the gloomiest stories, told by a powerful media, under the control of a particular political agenda; while those speaking with an opposing voice are constantly bullied out of the arena and denied any genuinely balanced free speech. Yet, we are here - and I believe there are millions of us. It's simply difficult to be heard, and this is particularly true for disabled people. Interest and Access According to the DPO Forum, in its Disabled People's Manifesto, "there are 14 million disabled people in the UK, making up a fifth of the population", and "we are not a homogenous group: we have different impairments, are different genders, sexual orientations, come from different backgrounds, and live different lives". This is important to acknowledge as polling day looms. Politicians should be seeking our votes, with genuine understanding and a breadth of ideas to collaborate with disabled people as we fight, as always, for genuine equality and inclusion. Is this the case? I've heard Keir Starmer called a lot of things, and my sense here in Hastings is that he is not well-liked as Labour Leader. I am not entirely sure what the party is promising the disabled voter, although Shadow Minister for Disabled People, Vicky Foxcroft, seems at least consistent in her commitments, which is more than can be said for the Conservatives I've had the misfortune of encountering at close quarters for many years. I will vote for Labour as I see very few other options. I hope Starmer doesn't weaken our NHS by allowing more private healthcare to infiltrate it. I do feel Labour is boosted by an overwhelming malaise in politics generally, and by the ever-expanding disconnect of Conservative policy from the daily reality of most people. What I do hope is that disabled people have the capacity and freedom to vote, and urge everyone to support and share information within communities to make sure this happens. In the 2019 election, here in Hastings, it was felt that local Conservatives made more effort when it came to this, and it is also likely to reflect the fact that thos...

International media outlets reported celebrations Sunday as Mexico elected its first woman president in Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, but the mood on the ground was far more mixed. The ascension of Sheinbaum is indeed historic, and has also been lauded as an indication that Mexico's young electoral democracy - the nation endured one-party rule for 70 years until the year 2000 - is alive and kicking. The 61-year-old will hold office for the Morena party that was founded by outgoing president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, known by his initials as AMLO. Her victory was also, seemingly a win for the climate, with reports focussing on Sheinbaum's background as a climate scientist and member of the 2007 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that won a Nobel Prize. "Having a woman as head of the presidency is undoubtedly a significant advance in the historical demands for women's representation in public office and positions of power," Daira Arana, an international policy and security specialist and principal of the Mexico-based Global Thought consultancy, told Byline Times. "One of the demands of feminist movements is that these women, through their positions, break the power pacts that violate people's rights", instead advancing policies that "promote care and peace". President-elect declared you are not aloneto female victims of gendered violence with an accused rapist on stage next to her For Yolitzin Jaimes, spokesperson for CONAFEM - Colectivo Feminista Nacional Ningún Agresor en el poder, the No Abuser in Power National Feminist Collective - president-elect Sheinbaum has not taken any such actions in the past. Sheinbaum was mayor of Mexico City 2018-2023, during which time the capital saw historic numbers of feminist collectives and protesters take to the streets to protest the country's shocking levels of gender-based violence and the indifference and inaction of government at all levels. Instead of supporting the activists, says Jaimes, "Sheinbaums police gassed us and kettled us." Further, "The Mexico City public prosecutor's office opened investigation files against my feminist colleagues, accusing us of damage to public property, which I call political persecution." Particularly for feminists in Jaimes home state of Guerrero, Sheinbaums alliance within the Morena party with former candidate for governor of Guerrero, Felix Macedonio Salgado, is also evidence that she has no intention of breaking "the patriarchal pact", where those in power overlook men's violence and discrimination against women; instead elevating them to leadership positions and blocking processes for justice and accountability. Ahead of the 2021 gubernatorial elections for which he would be a candidate, Salgados campaign was hit with accusations of sexual violence and rape by five women dating back as far as 1998. Following pressure from CONAFEM and other feminist collectives across the country, Salgado withdrew. Morena replaced him as candidate with his daughter, Evelyn Salgado Pineda, who became the first woman governor of Guerrero state. Sheinbaum has stood by Salgado, with feminist groups noting in particular that she appeared with him in at her closing campaign rally on May 31 in which she declared to Mexican women that "you are not alone". "Putting him on the stage with her was an act that I consider an affront to all the victims of sexual aggression in the country," said Jaimes. Salgado was elected a senator for Morena in Sundays elections. Sheinbaum Supported 'Macho Austerity' Budget Cuts That Eeduced Womens Independence As an AMLO loyalist, Mexican feminists also observe that Sheinbaum takes up office with "the baggage of #AusteridadMachista", Dr Cecilia Farfán-Méndez told Byline Times. The hashtag #AusteridadMachista - macho austerity - "was used by civil society organizations to oppose budget cuts in areas that are known to be essential for preventing gender based violence or assisting women in escaping situations of violence", explained Dr F...