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Josiah Mortimer

@josiahmortimer.bsky.social
54K followers 4K following 29K posts

Chief Reporter at UK political outlet Byline Times. I cover democracy, campaigning, and Britain's media. Followers can reply to posts. DMs open for news tips and chatter. 'Fake news w*nker' - Tommy Robinson.

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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 1h
The tech isn't operational yet, but this looks like the world's first commercial space-based solar power deal. Pretty cool renewablesnow.com/news/virtus-...
renewablesnow.com
Virtus Solis seals its 1st space solar PPA with Brae Systems
US space-based solar company Virtus Solis Technologies has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Brae Systems for 100 MW of continuous orbital solar power to supply the computing start-...
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 1h
Greenpeace UK has threatened The Crown Estate with legal action over what it describes as its “extortionate” lease fees for offshore wind farms www.rechargenews.com/legal/greenp....
rechargenews.com
Greenpeace threatens Crown Estate with lawsuit over 'extortionate' offshore wind lease fees
The Crown Estate argues its approach has helped build the UK’s world-leading offshore wind sector and that lease fees were determined by an auction process
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bylinepodcast.bsky.social @bylinepodcast.bsky.social · 14h
"It was a real game changer moment in terms of Labour and and its direction." @josiahmortimer.bsky.social on Burnham's conference speech - latest @bylinetimes.bsky.social pod with @adambienkov.bsky.social @goldbergradio.bsky.social Listen: pod.fo/e/63fac8 YouTube: youtu.be/HO3hKXvXx00
youtu.be
Andy Burnham's 'Honest Gov' Speech
YouTube video by Byline Times TV
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Sharpie @sharpinsky.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I suppose the Free Speech Union will be all over this… won’t they? Is anyone there?
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Hugo Gye @hugogye.bsky.social · 9h
Ridiculous behaviour from the Tories. Dealing with unfriendly journalists is a basic requirement for a political party!
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 4h
The UK has added 291,000 new solar PV installations in the 12 months to August 2026, the most in any 12-month period since 2012 It brings the cumulative installed solar in the UK to 23.2GW across 2,131,000 installations. It's also a 9% increase from August 2025, with 1.9GW of new capacity
solarpowerportal.co.uk
UK installs record 291,000 PV installations in 12-month period
This brings the cumulative installed solar capacity in the UK to 23.2GW across 2,131,000 installations.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 11h
Climate campaigners staged a protest outside The Sanctuary, London base of crypto-billionaire Reform UK donor Ben Delo, this morning. Some protesters wore Nigel Farage and Ben Delo masks and passed around bags of money
Protesters near Westminster Abbey holding a "£36m in donations to Reform...tax breaks for Ben Delo" banner
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 11h
This is great news. Sunny California is legalising plug-in solar (like GB has). There were some fears Gov Gavin Newsom would veto the bipartisan law. The state has 39m+ residents and is one of the largest economies in the world. Another loss for Trump and his fossil fuel pals.
kqed.org
California Officially Legalizes Balcony Solar, Opening the Market to the New Technology | KQED
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation to make it simpler for Californians to install plug-in solar panels. Models that meet state standards are expected to be on sale in mid-2027.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 12h
Govt appears to have extended the temporary right to put up emergency school buildings on RAAC-affected sites from 3 years to 5, pushing expiry from Oct 2026 to Oct 2028. So schools that were given temporary classrooms in the 2023 RAAC crisis are now expected to need them for another two years...
Statutory Instruments

2026 No. 1056
TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING, ENGLAND

The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2026
Made25th September 2026
Laid before Parliament30th September 2026
Coming into force21st October 2026 
Amendment of Class CB of Part 4 of Schedule 2
6.  In Class CB of Part 4 of Schedule 2 (temporary provision of buildings for a school with a RAAC-affected building), in paragraph CB.1. (development not permitted), for “three” substitute “five”, and for “2026” substitute “2028”.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Good to join @goldbergradio.bsky.social and @adambienkov.bsky.social on the Byline Times podcast to talk through Andy Burnham's speech www.bylinesupplement.com/p/burnhams-h...
bylinesupplement.com
Burnham’s ‘Honest Gov’ Speech
For the Byline Times Podcast, Adrian Goldberg catches up with Byline Times Political Editor Adam Bienkov and Chief Reporter Josiah Mortimer to analyse the Prime Minister’s Conference Speech.
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
“We urge the Conservative Party to explain why Byline Times journalists have been denied accreditation and to rethink its decision. Once again, the union calls on all political parties to uphold press freedom, freedom of expression and the public's right to be informed.” ✍️ NUJ responds
nuj.org.uk
NUJ responds to reports of Conservative party banning Byline Times journalists from conference
The NUJ has responded to reports that Byline Times journalists have been denied access to the Conservative Party conference.
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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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Jo 🕊️💚 @i-do-despair.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
🐔🐔🐔
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I've been blocked from attending Conservative Party conference. Just a few weeks after Badenoch blasted Reform for doing the same thing... bylinetimes.com/2026/09/30/k...
bylinetimes.com
Kemi Badenoch's Conservatives Block 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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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
ICYMI: This morning on Radio 4's Today programme, Andy Burnham confirmed joining the EU customs union, single market membership and full rejoining are all on the table, and said "we could go all the way" (after the next election)
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
🔴 NEW Andy Burnham’s Pledge for Electoral Reform: What We Know So Far By @josiahmortimer.bsky.social Read below. ↓
bylinetimes.com
Andy Burnham’s Pledge for Electoral Reform: What We Know So Far
After years of pressure from campaigners, a Labour Prime Minister has now finally committed to overhauling Westminster's First Past the Post voting system, reports Josiah Mortimer
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
🔴 Andy Burnham’s Pledge for Electoral Reform: What We Know So Far After years of pressure from campaigners, a Labour Prime Minister has now committed to overhauling Westminster’s First Past the Post voting system bylinetimes.com/2026/09/29/a...
bylinetimes.com
Andy Burnham's Pledge for Electoral Reform: What We Know So Far
After years of pressure from campaigners, a Labour Prime Minister has now finally committed to overhauling Westminster's First Past the Post voting system, reports Josiah Mortimer
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
To be clear on the PM's water industry commitment, there's no guarantee any water companies in England will be in public ownership by next election. The mechanism is the Govt is repealing the ban on public ownership. A new water bill will exert more public control of the companies in the meantime.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
I've been to a lot of party conferences. Burnham's speech was the best I've heard in a long time. It was emotive but with major policy announcements and a clear diagnosis of how he thinks the country has taken the wrong path. "Public control" is how he thinks it can be put right.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
PM Burnham: "We will contest the next election with a manifesto of commitment to change the electoral system, so that everyone's vote counts and everyone's voice is heard"
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
PM Burnham on the water industry (in England): "Where private companies serve the public interest, we will support them, but the consequences will be clear for those who do not, including taking back control or public ownership."
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
PM Burnham on privatisation: "The British right talk about taking back control. Never let them forget: They are the ones that gave it away in the first place."
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Andy Burnham in his conference speech now: "I am 10 weeks into this job, and not all of my recent predecessors have been able to say that."
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Andy Burnham will set out process to identify a replacement for the First Past the Post voting system as part of his platform for fixing politics, according to the Guardian Earlier this month almost 200 MPs supported an elections bill amendment calling for a National Commission on Electoral Reform
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
ICYMI: The PM is announcing a new publicly-owned ‘GB Grid’ to "rewire public control into Britain’s energy system and drive down costs" Labour: Greater public control of energy will be a major theme of the Prime Minister’s Labour Party conference speech at 2pm
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Conferences are weird aren't they
Angela Rayner DJing at the Mainstream reception, with her hands up in a confused manner
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
ICYMI: Announced to Labour conference today: The government will consider public-ownership of trains rather than leasing "where it’s best for passengers and taxpayers" Part of new strategy for trains across Great British Railways, "joining up operations to create a simpler, more reliable railway"
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I think Shabana Mahmood has been the only main stage speaker today not to credit or name the Prime Minister. Might not be significant, might be...
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Blimey. Baroness Margaret Hodge - the Govt anti-corruption champion, on the £72m donations to Reform recently: "I think it came from the Russians." She's speaking at a Fabian event on donation caps
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Transport sec Heidi Alexander on the rolling stock rail companies (ROSCOs): "As we set up Great British Railways, we will explore whether the state can directly own the trains that we order...If GBR owning trains would best serve taxpayers and passengers then we will do it"
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Transport sec Heidi Alexander says she will "never accept that state-owned means second best" as she bigs up rail renationalisation. She lays into Avanti West Coast, which goes down well
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Chancellor John Healey calls Nigel Farage "Liz Truss with a bitcoin account"
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Chancellor John Healey praises the RNLI, "risking their lives to save others on the sea" - part of "the quiet patriotism that makes Britain great"
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Foreign sec Ed Miliband tells people angered by Labour's past approach to Gaza: "We hear you. You were right." (It doesn't, of course, speak to those still concerned about the continued ban and mass arrests re. Palestine Action)
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Comment on Reddit about this: "My mum tried to send a gift card to someone at the council who had helped her quit smoking. They turned it down because she wasn't allowed to accept gifts." And yet some MPs (and the authorities) think it's totally normal and fine to do this...
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
I'll be at Labour conference over the next few days. I'll try and share anything interesting I spot (and if you're around do say hi!) Today the Transport Sec confirmed the Govt will take control of Avanti West Coast’s services from 7 March 2027, ICYMI
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
The crypto-billionaire cash being put to use. We're going to see a lot of this. Unchecked, endless ads attacking the Government outside of regulated election periods (including a lot of Reform spending in the unwinnable Holborn by-election, as Who Targets Me has also found)
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
📌 ICYMI — Rupert Murdoch Flew Kemi Badenoch and Her Deputy to Mediterranean for Summer Trips Worth £12,000 — @josiahmortimer.bsky.social The Conservative leader and Alex Burghart MP held "off-site meetings" with the billionaire media mogul in August
bylinetimes.com
Rupert Murdoch Flew Kemi Badenoch and Her Deputy to Mediterranean for Summer Trips Worth £12,000
The Conservative leader and Alex Burghart MP held "off-site meetings" with the billionaire media mogul in August
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
🔴 NEW Rupert Murdoch Flew Kemi Badenoch and Her Deputy to Mediterranean for Summer Trips Worth £12,000 By @josiahmortimer.bsky.social Read below. ↓
bylinetimes.com
Rupert Murdoch Flew Kemi Badenoch and Her Deputy to Mediterranean for Summer Trips Worth £12,000
The Conservative leader and Alex Burghart MP held "off-site meetings" with the billionaire media mogul in August
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
🔴 Rupert Murdoch Flew Kemi Badenoch and Her Deputy to Mediterranean for Summer Trips Worth £12,000 The Conservative leader and Alex Burghart MP held “off-site meetings” with the billionaire media mogul in August bylinetimes.com/2026/09/25/r...
bylinetimes.com
Rupert Murdoch Flew Kemi Badenoch and Her Deputy to Mediterranean for Summer Trips Worth £12,000
The Conservative leader and Alex Burghart MP held "off-site meetings" with the billionaire media mogul in August
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
📌 ICYMI — Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500 — @josiahmortimer.bsky.social The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns
bylinetimes.com
Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500
The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
📌 ICYMI — Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500 — @josiahmortimer.bsky.social The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns
bylinetimes.com
Nigel Farage-Backed Bitcoin Firm to Buy Gold Dealer That Paid Him £685,500
The deal would put the Reform leader's gold bullion 'brand ambassador' fees in the hands of a crypto company he part-owns
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Mind-blowing story in Private Eye about how the Telegraph's chief reporter reached out to James Orr (or meant to) after the Channel 4 donation revelations


...within hours of journalists on either the *Guardian* or *Sunday Times* contacting Reform for comment on the same stories ahead of them publishing their own investigations. Reform deputy leader Richard Tice and his fiancée, supposed journalist Isabel Oakeshott, even crowed online about their spoiler tactics.

Not that the *Telegraph* doesn't do its own leg work when reporting on Reform. After James Orr, the party's head of policy, had to resign after a sting by *Channel 4 News* (see "*Right Orr Wrong*, p14"), *Telegraph* chief reporter Rob Mendick texted Orr: "I was hoping to talk to you entirely on background," he schmoozed. "You must be feeling very bruised and I totally Appreciate [sic] the sensitivities. I suspect you deserve better and I wanted to see how I can put the record straight in some way." Alas, instead of the Reformer and Cambridge theologian, Mendick messaged someone else, who shared it with the *Eye*!
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I've been volunteering with a bit of local journalism on my days off - since a) I'm fun like that & b) you probably all know the state of the sector Looks like B&NES council is considering a congestion charge & workplace parking levy. My story for the Bath Bee (do give them a follow if you're near)
bathbee.substack.com
B&NES Council ‘Prepared to Explore’ Road Charging and Workplace Parking Levy in Bath
Exclusive: A line in the council’s new Local Plan commits it to considering charges on drivers, or on employers’ parking spaces, if car use doesn’t fall fast enough. Here’s what we know so far:
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Quite a few people have asked me for recommendations re. who did our (v fairly priced) solar panels. I haven't posted it publicly as that's not my bag, but if you're looking into it & interested, feel free to drop me a message (Now is probs a decent time to get solar as installers will be quieter)
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
European EV sales surged more than 50% year-on-year last month, as buyers turned away from petrol cars because of soaring fuel prices. EVs now make up almost a third of sales on the continent (h/t Semafor) www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
EV Sales Are Booming in Europe With Gasoline at $10 a Gallon
After years of broadly unsuccessful efforts to wean drivers off combustion engines, sales of electric vehicles are surging in Europe thanks to the jump in fuel prices stoked by geopolitical upheaval.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Here's Rupert Lowe MP's payments from X Corp over the past year. This man is making serious cash from Musk's platform. Payments surged over the summer, during UK 'unrest', and when Musk was frantically re-sharing Lowe's posts... Bleak, lucrative work if you can get it.
Line chart plotting 21 payments from X Corp to Rupert Lowe MP, as declared in the Register of Members' Financial Interests. The x-axis runs from 3 September 2025 to 16 September 2026; the y-axis shows the value of each fortnightly payment in pounds, from zero to £12,000.

Payments run between roughly £1,100 and £2,200 through late 2025, rise gradually through spring 2026 to around £3,000–£3,800, then jump sharply to £11,724.97 on 10 June 2026 and £10,265.50 in July. From there they fall in five consecutive steps — £4,412.76, £3,126.35, £2,885.36, £2,542.04 — to £2,413.89 on 16 September 2026, a fall of 79% from the June peak.

Two things worth carrying with the graphic whichever version you use.

The July point is marked with an asterisk because the register gives its received date as 7 August 2026 while recording it as registered on 15 July. Plotted it at the likelier 7 July.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Piddington Parish Council - of the anti-asylum 'village that roared' fame - appears to have been flying (or endorsing flying) drones over a local gypsy & traveller site, their July minutes suggest
38. Widnell Lane Gypsy/Travellers site
Reports suggest that the land immediately adjacent to the permitted site is
being developed and the number of pitches has increased significantly. It was
agreed that the activities would be reported to the CDC Planning Enforcement
team, and they would be sent copies of the drone footage.
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
YouGov today: 63-68% of Lib Dem and Green voters would tactically vote for Labour to stop Reform UK winning in their seat, as would 18% of Tories 43-49% of Labour & Lib Dem voters would tactically vote for the Conservatives to stop Reform UK winning in their seat, with 26% of Greens saying the same
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Byline Times @bylinetimes.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
📌 ICYMI — Royal British Legion Says It Wants ‘No Association’ With Anti-Migrant Group Behind Poppy Fundraisers — @josiahmortimer.bsky.social The charity says it never authorised a Hampshire group's 'Raise the Poppies' appeal, as crowdfunding sites take pages down
bylinetimes.com
Royal British Legion Says It Wants ‘No Association’ With Anti-Migrant Group Behind Poppy Fundraisers
The charity says it never authorised a Hampshire group's 'Raise the Poppies' appeal, as crowdfunding sites take pages down
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