Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrBilly JO Crystal @tycrust.bsky.social · 04/10/2026I remember you describing the nuclear family as a "hunting ground" at one point and that image/phrasing has never left my head 1883
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrPOLITICO Europe @politico.eu · 04/10/2026Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt is under investigation by Belgian federal prosecutors over the supervision of European Parliament interns during his time as leader of the liberal group.politico.euFormer Belgian PM Verhofstadt investigated in EU Parliament intern probeThe probe focuses on the period from 2009 to 2019, when Verhofstadt chaired the ALDE group in the European Parliament. 2176
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrPrem Sikka @premnsikka.bsky.social · 04/10/2026UK chancellor to meet bank bosses for a pre-budget summit to discuss possible tax raid. Banks profiteering but resent windfall tax. Any chance of ending bank subsidies? Any chance of meeting pensioners, disabled, sick, poor to hear their concerns?news.sky.comHealey summons UK bank chiefs to pre-budget summit next weekThe chancellor, John Healey, has called in the CEOs of lenders including Barclays, Lloyds and NatWest for talks ahead of his crucial budget statement. 32396157
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrLegal C @legalclaret.bsky.social · 03/10/2026I believe most prisons hold around 1,000 prisoners. Therefore, the plan is to build 50+ new prisons. They need to be build. Land acquired, contracts exchanged, staffed. Up and running. This isn’t swift. Apart from the planning aspect, because all communities welcome prisons being nearby. 1184
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrLegal C @legalclaret.bsky.social · 03/10/2026I have heard some bonkerooney from the Tories in recent years, but this is off the charts. As a sensible policy, it is up there with making it a legal requirement for people called Jacob to wear trousers while taking a shower. That level of madness. Let’s break it down. 88824
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrThe Secret Barrister @barristersecret.bsky.social · 04/10/2026GOOD FREAKING MORNING! www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukBurnham scraps controversial plans to curb jury trialsThe key policy idea announced by David Lammy when he was justice secretary will no longer go ahead. 1978089
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrGaby Hinsliff @gabyhinsliff.bsky.social · 30/09/2026such a good eg of why political argument matters - polling previously showed over 60% support for keeping triple lock. Argue to unlock it *for something people also want* & numbers can change. (Obv can change back again if someone makes a good argument against, but either way, politics=argument) 1926164
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrTides of History @tidesofhistory.bsky.social · 30/09/2026As Burnham promises to repeal Thatcher's Water Bill, a look back at the original Labour fight against privatiastion It was led by a rising Labour star who warned it had no public support: "Under public ownership the industries are more accountable” 👇 yesterdaypapers.substack.com/p/tony-blair...yesterdaypapers.substack.comTony Blair and the Battle to stop Water PrivatisationIn the 1980s Tony Blair argued that “under public ownership the industries are more accountable” 14820
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Yeah. So that was the best conference I have ever seen. I never dreamed I would see a prime minister with the bravery to do what he just did. 4169561
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 29/09/2026No ifs and no buts, no caveats or provisos. Things are happening here which we haven't ever really seen before. Burnham is saying the things that are considered unsayable and doing the things which are considered undoable. 1631835
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Burnham speech: An astonishing moment of radicalism and commitment iandunt.substack.com/p/burnham-sp...iandunt.substack.comBurnham speech: An astonishing moment of radicalism and commitmentIt’s easy to be cynical, but it would be false. Something extraordinary is happening here. 54903251
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrRichard Littler @richardlittler.bsky.social · 30/09/2026The BBC's new director general's brain is smaller on the inside. 32927205
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 30/09/2026There was a chance here to look more grown up and it is entirely unsurprising that Badenoch did not take it. 42645105
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrTim Bale @timbale.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Knee, meet Jerk. 1222931
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrRobert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 30/09/2026It’s a mark of the corruption of our whole way of thinking about the world that trying to meet a planetary emergency is routinely described as “ideological”, while continuing to accelerate it is presented as “pragmatic” and “economic”. 211253449
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 30/09/2026This is testament to No.10's frankly astonishing degree of political competence. A policy which was branded electoral suicide 48 hours ago now showing signs of robust popularity. 55818198
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrCameron Clark @cameronclark.bsky.social · 30/09/2026The Home Office is about to discover that immigration actually has economic impacts too 010118
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 30/09/2026The current Conservative party is simply not intellectually equipped to handle Burnham's way of doing politics. That is the bleak reality of it. They'll assume they can do more damage by boycotting and then branding it a stitch up. 1034931
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 30/09/2026This deserves an honourary knighthood 36803131
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 30/09/2026A country that will not fix its mistakes is a country that has given up on the future. And Brexit was, it’s now clear, a terrible, terrible mistake inews.co.uk/opinion/brex... 491094324
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJoshua Rozenberg @joshuarozenberg.bsky.social · 23/09/2026A senior official from the Ministry of Defence will be called before an appeal judge on Friday to explain why 97 million unique records were not disclosed to the Afghanistan inquiry. rozenberg.substack.com/p/troubling-...rozenberg.substack.comTroubling and regrettableMinistry of Defence discovers 97 million undisclosed records 1137
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJacob Öberg @profjacob.bsky.social · 21/09/2026🚨🚨 Social media venues such as #facebook and #instagram's algorithms have been designed by #meta to filter out 'social topic' such as #civilrights and #feminism. #Freespeech my ass. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...theguardian.comMeta bans ads for Virginia Woolf play in Spain because they relate to feminismTheatre told that Facebook and Instagram filter out ads mentioning ‘social topics’ such as civil rights or feminism 15323203
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrFionna O’Leary @fascinatorfun.bsky.social · 21/09/2026Wowser! 27331
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrMike Masnick @masnick.com · 21/09/2026We're going to see more of these bogus stories trying to rehabilitate the image of DOGE bros who happily did massive damage. The premise of "oh we really thought we were helping" is a lie. 22895221
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrRachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 21/09/2026Anyway, sure this will all be fine and that everyone definitely knows exactly what they are talking about 191
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrSunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 21/09/2026Newsnight asking Daisy Cooper about high public concern about levels of immigration in general + if the UK was in the single market. Cooper says it would be a two-way street 2145
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrtimoconnorbl.bsky.social @timoconnorbl.bsky.social · 06/09/2026Poole is the centre of the RNLI; an organisation of those who risk their lives to go out and save others from the sea, not for pay, but for duty and civic goodness. The RNLI is one of the very best things that the UK has ever done. Targeting its centre is abominable and seen as such. 624046
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrEmma Yeomans @yeomans.bsky.social · 06/09/2026Extreme right-wing protesters are in a stand-off with the RNLI in Portsmouth. The group, led by Danny Tommo, are waist-deep in the sea and threatening to go "under the water" if police try to arrest them. Six lifeboats monitoring. Volunteer rescuers giving up their evening for this. 1921047382
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrRalph Lynch @ralphlynch.bsky.social · 06/09/2026We get a semi-frequent protests about the RNLI in Poole, and quite a few of them are clearly from outside Dorset. Meanwhile, just about everyone in Poole won't hear a bad word about the RNLI. 1122
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrFinancial Times @financialtimes.com · 07/09/2026A foiled attack at a German airport last month using a drone laden with military-grade explosives has provided a brutal wake-up call about the level of Russian impunity over its aggressive approach towards Nato member states. ft.trib.al/Tpzf1UG 26224
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJosiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 09/07/2026A six-month investigation by Byline Times reveals that with the support of Palantir's Peter Thiel, Reform's policy chief James Orr has used the University of Cambridge as a student recruitment ground for a hard-right, theocratic political project aimed at bolstering talent in Farage’s partybylinetimes.comPalantir Co-Founder Peter Thiel and Reform UK's Cambridge University Recruitment Pipeline Project RevealedThe world-renowned academic institution has nothing to say in response to a six-month investigation by Byline Times raising serious concerns about the safeguarding of students and foreign influence at... 2715991085
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrRoland Smith @rolandmcs.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Another signal that the Libdems are an incubator for radicalised right-wingery. E.g. Liz Truss, Mark Littlewood, John Cleese, Sir Paul Marshall, Lembit Opik, and now this. 176011
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrGeorge Eaton @georgeeaton.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Burnham right to blame Brexit for low growth but he’ll need to break from Starmer’s red lines. Current EU reset will boost GDP by 0.5% at best, compared to 3% for single market membership and 5% for Rejoin. www.arguably.uk/p/we-cant-af... 23620
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Burnham falling into the trap of gauging the economic and social health of Britain by the state of its high streets when they are instead mostly a gauge of its increasingly online shopping habits which is not the same thing at all 2719221
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 01/09/2026FT exclusive: Russia has been secretly helping Iran develop advanced supersonic cruise missiles in one of the most significant known transfers of strategic military technology from Moscow to Tehran www.ft.com/content/6cf3...ft.comRussia secretly helping Iran develop supersonic cruise missilesLeaks reveal programme behind one of the most significant known transfers of military technology from Moscow to Tehran 57644
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrBrexit Bin 🇪🇺 🇬🇧 🇩🇪 @brexitbin.bsky.social · 02/09/2026🌻 It's a self propelling climate change disaster. 22715
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrBrexit Bin 🇪🇺 🇬🇧 🇩🇪 @brexitbin.bsky.social · 02/09/2026So long as they keep acting like merchants of doubt, asking whether or not Brexit is harmful (which it obviously is), the longer they can ignore the subject of what we need to do about it – such as explaining the benefits of Freedom of Movement. 49534
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 30/08/2026we are keeping tabs of what Andy Burnham says vs what Andy Burnham actually does www.ft.com/content/4371...ft.comAndy Burnham’s summer of quietly backing away from radical pledgesFrom Thames Water to electoral reform, the prime minister seems to be diverging from his campaign rhetoric 64517160
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 31/08/2026FT exclusive: the Labour government has shelved a promise to give local residents"first dibs" on buying newbuild properties Labour also promised to restrict the widespread sale of flats to overseas investors But both promises are now on ice www.ft.com/content/de28...ft.comLabour shelves plan to restrict foreigners buying new flatsParty downgrades its manifesto pledge to end ‘farce of entire developments being sold off to international investors’ 2910458
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrAndrew Lodge @andrewwj.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Well done Rachel Rees of the FT on the Chagos scoop @rachel-rees.bsky.social 0267
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Nigel Farage is sworn back in as an MP in the House of Commons One heckler shouts: “Until the next by-election” 401173177
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJames Heale @jaheale.bsky.social · 01/09/2026New: for the first time in 18 months, the Conservatives lead Reform in a More in Common poll 7398
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrAlexander Clarkson @aphclarkson.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Since that is how a lot of voters that Burnham needs on his side assess the state of society what might seem economically irrational is politically logical 2424
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrJohn Bull @garius.bsky.social · 07/07/2025One other 7/7 thread today. Because I think how the bus network got running again is a real testament to some serious heroes that day: The bus drivers and staff who got that network running again and got London home that night. And TfL/the Mayor disobeyed the Security Services to make it happen /1 16923377
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrCold War Steve @coldwarsteve.bsky.social · 13/08/2026The Haywain 2026 501949812
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrResolution Foundation @resolutionfoundation.org · 06/08/2026Andy Burnham said last week that social care workers should be ''the best paid people in society.'' According to providers, pay is a key factor contributing to the recruitment and retention crisis in the care sector. How can the Government make a success of the Fair Pay Agreement?➡️ buff.ly/veEOJFN 083
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrDan McCrum @mccrum.bsky.social · 06/08/2026So strange to see private equity failing in a competitive industry where quality matters 0244
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrAcyn @acyn.bsky.social · 06/08/2026El-Sayed on Vance: Is that Peter Thiel's boy with that Ohio charisma? The last thing that he said that made any sense was Hillbilly Elegy—after he said that Donald Trump had no business being president of anything. And then he decided to suck up to power. 26181181879
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrFinancial Times @financialtimes.com · 06/08/2026 BP North Sea exit presents wake-up call on Scottish energy ft.trib.al/wnWHaLD | opinionft.trib.alBP North Sea exit presents wake-up call on Scottish energyBlow to oil and gas industry comes as renewables projects are faltering 2115
Reposted by Charlotte Thompson grrrrBen Schwarz @benschwarz.bsky.social · 03/08/2026Btw the eSafety commissioner gets a yearly salary of $533,550 🙃 I don’t know about you, but I think that salary deserves at least a shade of competence 0227