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Josh Self

@josh.politics.co.uk
21.9K followers 1.6K following 1.7K posts

Editor of Politics.co.uk | josh.self@politics.co.uk

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Reposted by Josh Self
Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 3h
#Onthisday 1990. The Liberal Democrats won the Eastbourne by-election, overturning a 16,923-vote Conservative majority. The result likely accelerated the downfall of Margaret Thatcher, who just six days previously likened the Lib Dems to a “dead parrot” www.politics.co.uk/history/libe...
politics.co.uk
1990 Eastbourne by-election: Lib Dem gain rocks Thatcher
On 18 October 1990, the Liberal Democrats achieved a victory in the Eastbourne by-election, confirming the trouble facing Margaret Thatcher.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 3h
#Onthisday 1990. The Liberal Democrats won the Eastbourne by-election, overturning a 16,923-vote Conservative majority. The result likely accelerated the downfall of Margaret Thatcher, who just six days previously likened the Lib Dems to a “dead parrot” www.politics.co.uk/history/libe...
politics.co.uk
1990 Eastbourne by-election: Lib Dem gain rocks Thatcher
On 18 October 1990, the Liberal Democrats achieved a victory in the Eastbourne by-election, confirming the trouble facing Margaret Thatcher.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 2h
The official Liberal Democrat website refers to the Eastbourne by-election as a significant moment in the party’s “recovery” The current MP for Eastbourne is Liberal Democrat president @joshbabarinde.bsky.social www.politics.co.uk/history/libe...
politics.co.uk
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 2h
The by-election was also significant in shaping the development of the Liberal Democrats under Paddy Ashdown After Eastbourne, the Lib Dems secured further by-election victories in Ribble Valley (March 1991) and Kincardine and Deeside (November 1991) www.libdems.org.uk/history
libdems.org.uk
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 2h
The result immediately influenced the long-running debate over Thatcher’s premiership. It reinforced the fears among Conservative MPs that she would not be able to win a fourth general election, having triumphed in 1979, 1983 and 1987 www.politics.co.uk/history/geof...
politics.co.uk
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 2h
The political secretary to Thatcher at the time, John Whittingdale, later recalled having to explain the joke to the prime minister “I was never sure that she entirely grasped why it was funny.” www.independent.co.uk/news/people/...
independent.co.uk
Margaret Thatcher didn't get Monty Python's 'dead parrot' gag
'It is not merely stunned, it has ceased to be, expired and gone to meet its maker'
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 2h
The Eastbourne result was notable in light of Thatcher’s mockery of the Lib Dems at the 1990 Conservative conference Thatcher ridiculed the Liberal Democrats’ new logo, the “bird of liberty”, likening it to Monty Python’s famous “dead parrot” sketch www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qyvd...
youtube.com
Margaret Thatcher does the Dead Parrot Sketch
YouTube video by Parrot EarthPeople
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 2h
The 1990 Eastbourne by-election was triggered by the assassination of Conservative MP Ian Gow, a close personal friend and loyal confidante of Thatcher Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe said the result meant the IRA would be “toasting their success”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 7h
#Politicle: 18/10/2026 I identified the mystery MP after 3 clues 🟥🟥🟥🟩⬛⬛ Can you do better? politics.co.uk/politicle
politics.co.uk
Guess the MP! Politicle - Politics.co.uk
Can you guess today's mystery MP? The game for Political obsessives. From Politics.co.uk. New Politicle Puzzle Every Day.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 9h
The Reform ‘project’ promised professionalisation and discipline. But vetting failures, undercover investigations, internal rows, performative stunts and a self-defeating public debate over national identity suggest it is unravelling Piece for @politics.co.uk: www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/is-t...
politics.co.uk
Is the Reform project unravelling? - Politics.co.uk
Nigel Farage set out to build a professional party. A drip-feed of scandals and mismanagement is dragging Reform UK back to the fringe.
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Reposted by Josh Self
@bobhudson.bsky.social @bobhudson.bsky.social · 11h
Reform: Can a rabble of political amateurs be professionalised and packaged? This is very good from @josh.politics.co.uk www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/is-t...
politics.co.uk
Is the Reform project unravelling? - Politics.co.uk
Nigel Farage set out to build a professional party. A drip-feed of scandals and mismanagement is dragging Reform UK back to the fringe.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 17/10/2026
“Reform’s espousal of hardline positions on national identity will add to its reputational baggage and reinforce the impression that it remains a fringe force.” www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/is-t...
politics.co.uk
Is the Reform project unravelling? - Politics.co.uk
Nigel Farage set out to build a professional party. A drip-feed of scandals and mismanagement is dragging Reform UK back to the fringe.
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Reposted by Josh Self
LittleGravitas, →EU immigrant, UK→ emigrant, anti-Brexit @catanonim.me · 17/10/2026
~ Is the Reform project unravelling? - Politics.co.uk ~ www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/is-the-r…
politics.co.uk
Is the Reform project unravelling? - Politics.co.uk
Nigel Farage set out to build a professional party. A drip-feed of scandals and mismanagement is dragging Reform UK back to the fringe.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 17/10/2026
Thanks Mike
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Reposted by Josh Self
Mike Hughes @mikejhughes.bsky.social · 17/10/2026
Grab a coffee and have a read. This is good stuff.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 17/10/2026
Is the Reform project unravelling? Nigel Farage set out to build a mainstream, professional party. A continual drip-feed of scandals and mismanagement is dragging it back to the fringe Weekend long-read for @politics.co.uk: www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/is-t...
politics.co.uk
Is the Reform project unravelling? - Politics.co.uk
Nigel Farage set out to build a professional party. A drip-feed of scandals and mismanagement is dragging Reform UK back to the fringe.
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 17/10/2026
🚨Today’s mystery MP has been selected Unlock more clues by playing #Politicle 👉 politics.co.uk/politicle/
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 16/10/2026
“We should be in the EU. We should never have left. And I was fiercely proud to be a European citizen, and furious at having those rights taken away”, writes Labour MP Daniel Zeichner 🗣️ Britain needs an honest debate about rejoining the EU www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/dani...
politics.co.uk
Labour MP: Britain needs an honest debate about rejoining the EU
We should be in the EU. And I was fiercely proud to be a European citizen, and furious at having those rights taken away.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 16/10/2026
The 2024 election data brings things nicely into focus
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 16/10/2026
#Politicle: 16/10/2026 I identified the mystery MP after 2 clues 🟥🟥🟩⬛⬛⬛ Can you do better? politics.co.uk/politicle
politics.co.uk
Guess the MP! Politicle - Politics.co.uk
Can you guess today's mystery MP? The game for Political obsessives. From Politics.co.uk. New Politicle Puzzle Every Day.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 16/10/2026
#Onthisday 1834. A fire destroyed most of the medieval Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Houses of Parliament. The blaze was started by the burning of tally sticks (a form of tax receipt) in two under-floor furnaces beneath the House of Lords www.politics.co.uk/history/pala...
politics.co.uk
Palace of Westminster destroyed by devastating fire (1834)
On 16 October 1834, a fire destroyed the majority of the medieval Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Houses of Parliament.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
#Politicle: 15/10/2026 I identified the mystery MP after 5 clues 🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟩 Can you do better? politics.co.uk/politicle
politics.co.uk
Guess the MP! Politicle - Politics.co.uk
Can you guess today's mystery MP? The game for Political obsessives. From Politics.co.uk. New Politicle Puzzle Every Day.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
It was later put to DH that such events might have strengthened the Conservatives He responded: “Well, we expected this, of course, and I think it was very public that we expected this… “But I think that perhaps the impact of an actual explosion of a bomb would have made people think a bit more.”
youtube.com
Sir Alec Douglas Home interview after he lost the election
YouTube video by Media's Biggest Fan
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
At the close of the campaign, two major international developments occurred that could have altered the outcome of the election On 14 October, Khrushchev was deposed as premier of the Soviet Union. Two days later, the People's Republic of China tested its first atomic bomb
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
But it is often forgotten how close Douglas-Home and the Conservatives came to winning in 1964 The Conservative campaign under Douglas-Home, a former foreign secretary, focused heavily on the nuclear deterrent and national security
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
Douglas-Home also struggled with hecklers during the campaign In Lancashire, he was hit by an egg and confronted with placards At least one placard asked: “Who exhumed you?”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
Douglas-Home recalls a conversation from the ’64 GE “Can you not make me look better than I do on television? I look rather scraggy – like a ghost.” The broadcast assistant replied: “No… because you have a head like a skull” DH asked: “Doesn’t everyone have a head like a skull?” Assistant: “No.”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
When Douglas-Home was appointed PM, Wilson said democracy had “ground to a halt with a 14th earl” DH replied: “I suppose Mr Wilson, when you come to think of it, is the 14th Mr Wilson. “If all men are equal, well, that’s a very good doctrine. But are we to say that all men are equal except peers?”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
#OTD 1964. Labour wins narrow majority after 13 years of Tory rule Harold Wilson defeated Alec Douglas-Home's Conservative Party with a majority of just four, becoming the youngest prime minister since 1894 Read the story of the campaign: www.politics.co.uk/history/labo...
politics.co.uk
1964 general election: Wilson and Labour win narrow majority
The general election held on 10 October 1964 resulted in a win for Harold Wilson’s Labour Party, ending 13 years of Conservative government.
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
🚨Today’s mystery MP has been selected Unlock more clues by playing #Politicle 👉 politics.co.uk/politicle/
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 15/10/2026
Five years ago today, Sir David Amess was murdered during a scheduled constituency surgery Amess was the second sitting MP to be murdered in five years, after Jo Cox in 2016 MPs from across the House paid tribute to a devoted parliamentarian www.politics.co.uk/history/cons...
politics.co.uk
Conservative MP Sir David Amess murdered at constituency surgery - Politics.co.uk
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 14/10/2026
Burnham rules out deal with Green Party over ‘Zionism is racism’ motion www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/burn...
politics.co.uk
Burnham rules out deal with Green Party over ‘Zionism is racism’ motion - Politics.co.uk
Andy Burnham has ruled out a future deal with the Green Party over its conference motion declaring Zionism a form of racism. Burnham was asked at prime minister’s questions by Conservative MP Harriett...
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 14/10/2026
Andy Burnham at #PMQs: “[Badenoch] comes here every week and poses as the world leading authority on defence. “I recall an interview she gave recently about the Conservatives' plans for an iron dome, and then she said it isn't our plan. “And then it emerged that it was briefed by her team.”
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 14/10/2026
‘Show of strength’: Davey allies point to ‘overwhelming support’ after MP meeting www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/show...
politics.co.uk
‘Show of strength’: Davey allies point to ‘overwhelming support’ after MP meeting - Politics.co.uk
Allies of Ed Davey have described a meeting of Liberal Democrat MPs as a “show of strength” for the leader and pointed to “overwhelming support” for him, after a week of pressure over his future. Libe...
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 14/10/2026
🚨Today’s mystery MP has been selected Unlock more clues by playing #Politicle 👉 politics.co.uk/politicle/
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
#Politicle: 13/10/2026 I identified the mystery MP after 1 clue 🟥🟩⬛⬛⬛⬛ Can you do better? politics.co.uk/politicle
politics.co.uk
Guess the MP! Politicle - Politics.co.uk
Can you guess today's mystery MP? The game for Political obsessives. From Politics.co.uk. New Politicle Puzzle Every Day.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Where the Labour MPs who voted against triggering Article 50 in February 2017 now sit in the party hierarchy
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
From today's note:
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
“Davey in deep water” Today's lunchtime newsletter on Liberal Democrat tensions is out This daily missive brings you the best of @politics.co.uk in one place. Free sign up: www.politics.co.uk
Davey in deep water
Liberal Democrat MPs meet at 5:00pm today for what promises to be a spikier-than-usual weekly gathering. It is their first meeting since Charlie Maynard resigned as a Treasury spokesperson and called on Ed Davey, the party’s leader since 2020, to quit.

Maynard has not commented publicly since leaving the Lib Dem frontbench (other than to publicise a meeting of the business and trade select committee). But his resignation comes at a time of growing discontent with Davey’s leadership, driven largely by frustration at the party’s lack of prominence in the national debate.

The Liberal Democrats secured 72 MPs at the 2024 general election, establishing Davey as the most electorally successful Liberal since David Lloyd George. Davey’s campaign drew significant media attention for a series of water-themed stunts. But since Davey hung up his wetsuit, reportedly under pressure from colleagues in parliament, the party has struggled to secure sustained coverage in a crowded landscape that now features Reform UK and Zack Polanski’s Greens.

That tension was addressed, but by no means resolved, at the Liberal Democrats’ autumn conference in Brighton. Davey delivered a mostly business-as-usual speech chastising Reform UK and positioning his party as an anti-populist firewall. He also promised a £17 billion income tax cut, funded entirely by the growth generated by rejoining the EU single market and customs union. That announcement may be relevant to Maynard’s resignation as a Treasury spokesperson.

Tensions were exacerbated by Andy Burnham’s sweeping address to Labour conference last month, in which he appeared to endorse a range of longstanding Liberal Democrat positions on UK-EU relations, social care and electoral reform.
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
🏛️ Fantasy Cabinets Fancy yourself a political strategist? Pick the prime minister, field a frontbench and share your creation
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Yusuf suggests Braverman and Jenrick should ‘take responsibility’ for Tory record Yusuf also disagrees with Braverman’s claim that people from ethnic minority backgrounds can be British but not English – the argument “doesn’t hold water with me”. Full story 👇 www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/yusu...
politics.co.uk
Yusuf suggests Braverman and Jenrick should ‘take responsibility’ for Tory record - Politics.co.uk
Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf has suggested that Suella Braverman and Robert Jenrick, who both defected from the Conservatives, need to “take responsibility” for the last government’s record on immigration. Y...
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Labour's @marshadecordova.bsky.social said Brexit “has been an unmitigated disaster”. She added: “The economic case is clear… Rejoining the EU would significantly boost the UK’s GDP.”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Labour's @helenhayes.bsky.social said she supported the PM in “exploring every possible option... including the potential for us to rejoin.” She said: "We have focused instead on the improvements that could be made without any suggestion of going back in. “I think the time for this is over."
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Labour's Daniel Zeichner said “we should be in the EU. We should never have left.” He described himself as “fiercely proud to be a citizen of Europe”. He concluded: “Now we should support the govt in trying to salvage the best we can. But, in the end, we are Europeans, and we should be in.”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Labour's @chelfulhamben.bsky.social endorsed the PM’s “readiness to look at every option: a customs union, yes; a single market, yes; full membership, yes.” He called for “a manifesto pledge to negotiate joining the European Union and then a referendum on the deal”.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
Labour's @tonyvaughanmp.bsky.social opened the debate He stated: “I strongly welcome the PM’s commitment to... set out the long-term options for our relationship with Europe; I urge the minister to make sure that membership is on the list of possible options.”
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 13/10/2026
‘We should be in the EU’: Labour MPs make case for rejoin in Brexit debate The calls came during a Westminster Hall debate on a petition calling on the UK to apply to rejoin the EU “as soon as possible” @politics.co.uk write-up and thread below 👇 www.politics.co.uk/2026/10/we-s...
politics.co.uk
‘We should be in the EU’: Labour MPs make case for rejoin in Brexit debate - Politics.co.uk
A series of Labour MPs have made the case for the UK rejoining the EU, urging Andy Burnham’s government to consider full membership as it prepares to set out options for the UK’s long-term relationshi...
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 12/10/2026
Good work!
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Reposted by Josh Self
Politics.co.uk @politics.co.uk · 12/10/2026
#Onthisday in 1984: IRA targets Thatcher and cabinet in Brighton hotel bombing An IRA bomb exploded in the Grand Hotel, Brighton, at 2.54am in an attempt to assassinate Margaret Thatcher. Five people were killed and more than 30 injured Full History Hub briefing ⤵️
politics.co.uk
Brighton hotel bombing: IRA attack on Margaret Thatcher (1984)
On 12 October 1984, a bomb planted by the IRA exploded in the Grand Hotel, Brighton, the hotel hosting the annual Conservative conference.
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Josh Self @josh.politics.co.uk · 12/10/2026
Being confident enough to do so is an important trait in the current political landscape, and a natural Labour response to the rise of Farage et al It sets Burnham apart from some of his predecessors. His ability to speak/do politics authentically is one of the reasons he is PM and Starmer is not
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