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Chris Ames

@christoframes.bsky.social
96 followers 21 following 1.9K posts

Freelance investigative journalist and writer of original fiction. Creator and one-time editor of the Iraq Inquiry Digest. Blogs @ transportinsights.blog

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 19h
But you played his game by showing his video www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Manchester City Ferran Sorian CEO refuses to answer questions on guilty verdict
Manchester City chief executive Ferran Soriano refused to answer questions about the Premier League charges from BBC Sports Editor Dan Roan at a conference of top European clubs in Copenhagen.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 20h
"I think it was on Pinterest," she said. "Somebody got married in a castle and I was like 'Oh, I have to do that'." She’s called Savannah, of course she is. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Why thousands of couples are choosing Scotland to say 'I do'
A quarter of all marriages in Scotland involve couples who don't live here but see it as the ultimate wedding destination.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 20h
Just in case you didn’t know she’s a Tory www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Laura Kuenssberg: Kemi Badenoch has cemented her image. Now she wants to take her party back to its roots
The Conservative leader is expected to set out a return to core conservative principles at the party’s annual conference.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
This is a huge scoop and a huge scandal. The government said it expects National Highways to upgrade CCTV on smart motorways. National Highways has said that it won't be doing this. Get ready for assertions that "safety is our top priority". transportinsights.blog/2026/10/02/e...
transportinsights.blog
Exclusive: National Highways bins smart motorway camera upgrade
National Highways has no plans to upgrade CCTV on its smart motorway network, despite an express statement in the Road investment Strategy (RIS3) that the government expects it to do so. The govern…
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Appalling journalism. Includes a claim that ministers “feel confident opposition has waned” and a scripted, self serving quote from a so-called source. Client journalists laundering controversial policies on behalf of the state. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Key disability benefit for young people may be axed under major welfare changes
Exclusive: Plan under discussion involves intensive support to help young people into employment
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
More lazy hackery. If the Guardian is accusing Trump of being "conspiratorial", it is accusing him of conspiring and it - *the guardian* - is engaging in conspiracry theory. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
‘Page one of repressive playbook’: critics warn of Trump’s conspiratorial attacks
President’s outlandish and extensive conspiracy theories endanger US freedoms, health and science, experts say
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
In shock news, not everyone in a forthcoming election is going to vote the same way. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...
theguardian.com
Israelis divided as vote that could oust Netanyahu only weeks away
Some on streets of Jerusalem pledge their support to prime minister while others hope for change
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The guardian and the BBC both reporting that she survived two “lethal” injections . Without diminishing the horror of the attempted murder, common sense tells you that you don’t survive a lethal injection. Lazy hacks reaching for the easy words without thinking 🤦‍♂️ www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Tennessee woman on death row taken to hospital after surviving two lethal injections
Christa Pike, sentenced to death over 1995 murder, was heard snoring 40 minutes after lethal doses administered, witnesses said
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Robespierre? www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...
theguardian.com
Netanyahu says too early to tell who was behind plane incident as flydubai halts all flights to Israel
Israeli prime minister cautions against early conclusions when asked if there were any signs of Iranian involvement
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Reposted by Chris Ames
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Kemi Badenoch condemned Reform's ban on critical journalists covering their conference as "authoritarian", saying her own party would never do the same as "we believe in free speech. We believe in a free press." Now the Conservatives have banned Byline Times from their conference
bylinetimes.com
Kemi Badenoch's Conservatives Ban Byline Times From Conference After Condemning Reform for Journalist Ban
The ban comes just weeks after the Conservative leader called Reform's barring of critical journalists from their conference an "authoritarian" attack on the free press
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
I’m guessing they’ve got Alastair Campbell to spin for them www.theguardian.com/football/202...
theguardian.com
Manchester City CEO Soriano says guilty verdicts are ‘a Premier League conspiracy theory’
Ferran Soriano has said the guilty verdicts against the club for breaches of financial rules are based on ‘a single false accusation’
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Yes "thousands more flights" are exactly what the climate emergency needs. www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/advic...
telegraph.co.uk
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Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
The BBC news summary this morning went seamlessly from "critics warn PM scrapping triple lock would be electoral suicide" to "critics ask if PM has nerve to make tough decisions" and I don't think it's a particularly pro Burnham stance to suggest he might not be the entire problem here.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This story is embarrassing. The guardian has become a channel for the centrists to launder lame announcements that seek to provide cover for not doing anything radical. The more these hacks try to big this stuff up, the more they sound like they are doing PR. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Burnham to announce government-backed body to invest in electricity grid
Exclusive: Creation of GB Grid will be major step towards putting Britain’s utility companies into public control
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Presumably Streeting will be resigning?
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Humiliation for the Guardian from Frank Gardner: Whitehall officials have been clear that this was not an "intelligence-led operation". ... Nothing about this case looks like that. www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c6...
bbc.co.uk
Farmer who says 999 call foiled RAF Fairford plot only has 'partial picture', says defence secretary
The farmer - who called police after seeing three vans and a group of masked men - says someone "dropped the ball" by allowing the suspects to get near the base.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This story is an object lesson in how hacks fall for creepy Wes' bullshit - but quite why anyone rates him in the first place is beyond me How tf do you turn a weak and predictable arse-covering hint like "she had a partial picture” into this? www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
UK security forces were aware of RAF Fairford suspected bomb plot, hints defence secretary
Wes Streeting indicates farmer who alerted police and said security forces had ‘dropped the ball’ only ‘had a partial picture’
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Wes Streeting’s lips moving on live tv again this morning, covering for Trump bullshit.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
“The big drama event for most British viewers this autumn has been the return of Slow Horses” What is this based on? For anyone who thinks Marr used to be a serious journalist who dealt in facts, he was always full of shit. www.newstatesman.com/politics/med...
newstatesman.com
The BBC is fighting for its life
As the Today programme loses presenters, the corporation is suffering a crisis of confidence
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Well there's a surprise. The lying filth are still lying. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Undercover police officer lied to spycops inquiry about sexual relationship
Officer forced to admit relationship with woman lasting at least six months while working under fake name Dave Evans
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Meet the new centrist incrementalist pm, same as the old centrist incrementalist pm www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
‘I can deliver’: Burnham pledges radical change on eve of Labour conference
Exclusive: UK prime minister says delivering fiscal stability would be ‘crucial’ to be able to fix bigger problems
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Tbf she probably made most of it up
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
The spin continues www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Manchester City charges: Could club be stripped of eight trophies?
After being found guilty of the majority of the 115 charges for breaching Premier League, could Manchester city really be stripped of eight trophies?
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
You have to be joking. You have no idea what’s going on in his head and are now spinning for him🤦‍♂️ www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Manchester City charges: Khaldoon Al Mubarak confident club will prove innocence
Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak says he is still confident of proving the club's innocence after they were found guilty of breaking Premier League financial rules.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
“you’ve got to set out how you’re going to pay for it, and saying that you were going to take the money from a scheme that I know was not funded, that’s not OK” How dumb is this guy? www.newstatesman.com/politics/pol...
newstatesman.com
Darren Jones: “I was asked whether I would call for Keir Starmer to resign”
The former cabinet minister on the dirty deals behind the No 10 takeover, and what Labour should do next
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
In episode 158 of are you the Tories in disguise? I look at the inability of the government to say when passenger services on the first bit of East West Rail will begin, which does seem to result from a stubborn insistence on bringing in driver only operation. transportinsights.blog/2026/09/24/e...
transportinsights.blog
EWR still stuck as Labour backs destaffing
The transport secretary has admitted that she is unable to give a start date for services on East West Rail (EWR) as ministers continue to back the destaffing of the railways. The Oxford Mail repor…
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Dame Siobhain McDonagh... added: “The debate over Heathrow expansion has been going on for far too long; the time has come to simply get on and build the third runway.” It's the same logic that made Father Dougal press that big red "do not press" button in the cockpit🤦‍♂️ www.ft.com/content/0206...
ft.com
Burnham’s opposition to Heathrow expansion puts third runway in doubt
New prime minister has been a longstanding critic of the project
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Given the well-known tendency for Labour prime ministers to sell out the people who believed in their promises to be radical, we thought we would give Andy Burnham some cover for his inevitable retreat into "careful now" Starmerite centrist incrementalism." www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Andy Burnham talks about ‘public control’ of the utilities but it’s a minefield. We can lead him through it | Will Hutton and Andy Haldane
Nationalisation is not the ultimate answer for companies like Thames Water – but they could be run for the public benefit, say journalist and economist Will Hutton and former chief economist of the Ba...
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Within two minutes of Somerset council announcing the identity of the preferred bidder – Newcore Capital – at the end of an impassioned meeting, it had issued a full press release on the deal. Less than 15 minutes later, Newcore released its own press release." www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
theguardian.com
‘Devastating’: council rejects Frome residents’ bid for regeneration project
Locals raised £1m for Mayday Saxonvale scheme involving homes and park but Somerset officials agreed deal with London-based real estate company
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I’m not saying the BBC is obsessed #47
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I got as far as: “Nothing is off the table,” one source close to Downing Street told me in August. If your article relies on meaningless spin from an unaccountable, anonymous source, I really can't be arsed. www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...
theguardian.com
Labour’s last chance? The people shaping Andy Burnham’s grand plans for Britain
The long read: The new prime minister has declared he wants to end 40 years of neoliberalism. But is he really prepared to be that radical?
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
To be fair the TBI (tech bros institute) turned him down for being too leftwing www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Tom Watson’s move to Palantir is the latest sign of how far the rot has spread in UK politics | Clive Lewis
When a former Labour deputy leader joins a firm built on surveillance and military targeting, it deepens public cynicism – and democracy depends on trust, says Labour MP Clive Lewis
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We Own It @weownit.org.uk · 05/09/2026
What are they going to privatise next? The roads we drive on? YES, and the government pumps public money into it too After privatising the Lower Thames Crossing, the government is also privatising the Dartford Crossings Demand the National Audit Office investigate this: vist.ly/5hdn6
actionnetwork.org
Investigate the privatised Lower Thames Crossing now!
Action Network
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Prem Sikka @premnsikka.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Paddy Power founder accuses Betfred billionaire of ‘scaremongering’ over tax rises. Scaremongering is used to squeeze concessions from govt. The industry should not be allowed to book profits offshore. Need higher taxes, the industry does not bear the social cost of profits. archive.ph/3ZCmq
ft.com
Paddy Power founder accuses Betfred billionaire of ‘scaremongering’ over tax rises
Stewart Kenny hits back at warnings over UK job losses, saying he used ‘the same script’ when he was in the industry
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Reposted by Chris Ames
Transport Action Network @transportaction.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Is this destructive £11 billion Smart Motorway actually worth it? It's time for the DfT to end the deception and release the Lower Thames Crossing's Outline Business Case. The public have a right to know how our money is spent. transportactionnetwork.org.uk/lower-thames...
transportactionnetwork.org.uk
Lower Thames Crossing: Digging Up the Truth
When publicly funded infrastructure projects grow to a multi-billion-pound scale, transparency should grow with them. Instead, the £11 billion Lower Thames Crossing (LTC) has become a textbook example...
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I think you’ve been played www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK shares findings of damning climate crisis national security report suppressed under Starmer
El Niño poses critical threat to nations’ defences, says Ed Miliband in presentation to global foreign ministers
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Tbf he is a lazy bastard www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Eric Idle has had tons of celebrities staying at his house. God, it must be exhausting | Adrian Chiles
Whether it’s an A-lister or an old schoolfriend emerging blearily from the spare room, those first moments of the day are tricky, writes Adrian Chiles
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
How did Laura feel about the NHS picking up the cost of fixing her cheap surgery?” I feel guilty... People will think 'it's your own fault', but I would never have gone had I known what could happen." Who knew going abroad for cheap cosmetic surgery could go wrong? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Open wounds and eyes that can't close - women warn about cheap bleph eyelid surgery
A concerning number of patients are reporting problems from treatment abroad, say doctors.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Given the RCN’s tendency (in my experience) to back its members to the hilt in misconduct proceedings when they are clearly in the wrong, they must have really had it in for her. www.theguardian.com/society/2026...
theguardian.com
Trans row nurse tells tribunal she ‘felt discriminated against’ by her union
Sandie Peggie accuses RCN of failing to adequately support her in dispute over sharing women’s changing room with trans doctor
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I thought Reform were the cross party www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
theguardian.com
PM’s new anti-disinformation unit gets cross-party backing, as Farage declares it an attack on free speech – UK politics live
Farage referred to the new unit and said Burnham was setting it up ‘using the excuse that Russia wants to interfere with elections’
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Oh look, Streeting’s lips are moving again. But tbf, the pm is turning out to be just as right wing and shifty as Streeing🙃 www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...
theguardian.com
Chagos Islands deal ‘can’t go ahead’ without US support, Streeting says
Defence secretary places annual payments to Mauritius on hold as UK government reviews deal over Diego Garcia base
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
RAIL understands Chiltern and the Department for Transport (DfT) don’t plan to change their position that a second person would not have a safety critical responsibilities. A Labour government supporting the destaffing of the railways. www.railmagazine.com/news/east-we...
railmagazine.com
East West Rail dispute continues as Chiltern Railways is nationalised
RMT stages protest at London Marylebone with no talks between the union and Chiltern for two months.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
See also: we tried to make a big drama of this but nothing happened.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Maybe help them chop up a few journalists? www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
UK to give support to Saudi jets in attempt to counter Houthi fighters
Andy Burnham seeks stability in Middle East to bring down prices at home as first meeting with Trump looms
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The Ranty Highwayman @rantyhighwayman.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
The Lib Dems have now turned populist.
static.klipy.com
This Is Fine Meme
Alt: This Is Fine Meme - a cartoon dog with a hat sits on a chair with a cuppa on the table as the room burns with smoke rising up. There is a caption - "This is fine".
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
How to signal that you really don’t give a shit about climate change. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Ed Davey calls for immediate 10p cut to fuel duty
Sir Ed blamed Donald Trump's war with Iran for damaging the UK economy and pushing fuel prices up.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
If anyone doubted that Burnham represents reheated Blairism… www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Parents could face prison for child's crimes under justice reforms, minister says
The reforms to Parenting Orders could also see parents losing benefits, Jake Richards MP told the Times.
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I’m so glad Nigella is getting credit for being able to afford lots of expensive food. If there’s one nepo baby who doesn’t get the exposure she deserves, it’s Nigella. See also Claudia. www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...
theguardian.com
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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Don’t be so hard on yourself, Shabana. You are responding to legitimate concerns. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
‘Outright racist’ Daniel Thomas will face full force of law over any crimes, says home secretary
Shabana Mahmood says she wants to distinguish between far-right extremism and legitimate local concerns over asylum sites
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Reposted by Chris Ames
Transport Matters @transportmatters.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Transport Matters gets exclusive access to the latest works on the West Midlands Metro. We also get an update on when the new line to Dudley might open? Click on the link to view www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vaaz...
youtube.com
Metro Exclusive
YouTube video by Transport Matters
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