Are Starmer's defence spending promises enough?The Independent reports on a warning by former defence leaders that Britain's armed forces have been "hollowed out by years of chronic underfunding". The paper says that an open letter to the prime minister, signed by three ex-defence secretaries, retired senior military chiefs, and former MI6 head Sir Richard Dearlove, argues that the UK faces a "1936 moment", with global conflict likely amid rising tensions and Russia's invasion of Ukraine: The letter, published in The Telegraph, calls for defence spending to reach 5 per cent of GDP. This contrasts with Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to increase it to 2.5 per ... (more) |
Lib Dems gain seat from Labour with 20% swingThree principal authority council by-elections this week, starting off with a spectacular Lib Dem gain from Labour in Zetland ward on Redcar and Cleveland Council: [IMG: Alison Barnes pointing at a Lib Dem poster] Alison Barnes proving that you don't need a pothole to point. Zetland (Redcar & Cleveland) Council By-Election Result: [IMG: 🔶] LDM: 50.5% (+15.2) [IMG: 🌹] LAB: 21.6% (-25.2) [IMG: ➡] RFM: 13.5% (New) [IMG: 🌍] GRN: 7.4% (New) [IMG: 🌳] CON: 7.0% (-10.9)Liberal Democrat GAIN from Labour.Changes w/ 2023. — Election Maps UK (@electionmaps.uk) 2026-02-19T23:13:26.353Z Thank you to Tony Potts for getting the Lib Dems on ... (more) |
Council by-election results scorecard 2025-2026Here's the tally of seats changing hands in principal authority council by-elections held between the May 2025 and the May 2026 local elections: Con Lab Lib Dem Green Reform SNP Plaid Ind/ Other Net Con [15] +2 (+2/0) -10 (+2/-12) +2 (+2/0) -20 (+2/-22) -1 (0/-1) – +1 (+2/-1) -26 Lab -2 (0/-2) [16] -5 (0/-4) -6 (0/-6) -29 (0/-28) – -2 (0/-2) -7 (0/-7) -51 Lib Dem +10 (+12/-2) +5 (+5/0) [32] +2 (+3/-1) -1 (+2/-3) +2 (+2/0) – +3 (+3/0) +21 Grn -2 (0/-2) +6 (+6/0) -2 (+1/-3) [7] +1 (+1/0) – – -1 (0/-1) +2 Ref +20 ... (more) |
Scarcity and the Social ContractScarcity on the surface When I sat down for lunch with a local council leader one afternoon, in a café adjacent to a YMCA, one of the first things we discussed was capacity. The ability of the state to serve its people, to foster a society where they can access social mobility, and to give them support when they need it. As I sat down and talked with them, drinking my "woke" chai latte, I understood some of the problems we faced in Somerset and it was upsetting. Children unable to access SEND schooling, or falling out of education. People ... (more) |
Andrew Lownie on today's arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-WindsorAndrew Lownie, the indefatigable author of Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, responds to today's developments. (more) |
The rise and fall of Captain HindsightFor many of us growing up in the 1970's the TV superhero Hong Kong Phooey was a regular fix on our televisions, despite only running for one series of 16 episodes. Mild mannered janitor, Penry Pooch by day, and superhero by night, ably 'assisted' by his sidekick Spot the Cat. Oddly this bumbling character seems an early metaphor for the Starmer government with its bumbling mild mannered Prime Minister and his trusty sidekick Morgan McSweeney, constantly making U-Turns and never really being seen for who he really is by the people around him. A former bumbling Prime minister coined the ... (more) |
Why aren't the Liberal Democrats doing better?The Liberal Democrats and the need to move away from the 'Core Vote Strategy' After the catastrophe of 2015, when the Liberal Democrats were reduced to eight seats and 8% of the vote, the party needed a serious strategic overall. The 20% core vote strategy developed by Mark Pack and David Howarth provided it. It argued that survival required cultivating and appealing to a voting bloc rooted in a younger, more tolerant and pro-remain base. And that foundation could carry the party through difficult cycles. At the time, that was exactly what we needed. The result has been 72 Liberal ... (more) |
The liberal case for the Employment Rights Act changesThe latest implementation of the Employment Rights Act is not an attack on order; it is a move away from procedural friction and towards fair, workable industrial relations. Liberal Democrats should say so. The Employment Rights Act changes now taking effect should be easy for Liberal Democrats to welcome. Not because we owe any particular institution a blank cheque, but because we believe in free association, fair process, and accountable power. In the labour market, power is not held only by the state; employers also hold it. For a decade, trade union law drifted towards procedural friction. The Trade Union ... (more) |
The Iron Lady: first episode of Political Fictions is now out!The first episode of my new podcast Political Fictions is out, in which Cory and I take a look at the Margaret Thatcher biopic, The Iron Lady: Feedback very welcome, and do share this podcast with others who you think may enjoy it. Show notes You can view the IMDB page for The Iron Lady here. Cory's email newsletter Paperback Rioter. Mark's family of email newsletters. Our theme tune is "Monkeys Spinning Monkeys" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) and licensed under the Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Sign up to get the latest news and analysis (more) |
U-turn or incompetence? Labour get it wrong againThe Guardian is absolutely scathing about the decision by Keir Starmer to change his mind, yet again, about cancelling elections in a number of local councils in England. The paper says that being forced to abandon plans to delay local elections in England with fewer than three months' notice is not just another policy U-turn by the government, it brings to a head issues of aptitude and judgment: The rationale seemed sound: avoid electing councillors to bodies that would be abolished under Labour's reorganisation of local government. The political problem was that 21 of the 30 councils were Labour-led. That ... (more) |