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stephenmcnair.bsky.social

@stephenmcnair.bsky.social
242 followers 54 following 217 posts

Retired academic and policy person living in north Norfolk. Senior Editor at East Anglia Bylines (citizen journalism).

PostsRepliesMedia
stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Starmer and Sunak both offered vague 'closer' wihtout ever esplaining the options and trade offs. Burnham is proposing to explain to people what the real options are.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
EU is one of several big changes he proposes for the next manifesto. Three years to prepare the ground and negotiate options. A clear election result, coupled with PR, would be a sign that Britain is serious about a close relationship/membership.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Fortunately we are not the USA, though Farage would like us to be
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Frit and a liar
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Reposted by @stephenmcnair.bsky.social
Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
Support for my theory that we are in fact in an incredibly hackish TV show that keeps getting renewed and having to do contrived resets and rewrites around actor availability continues to grow, as the “Farage” character is forced offscreen by increasingly silly financial scandals.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
C4 coverage of the prison early release scheme seriously lacks balance. Early release of someone who has just been sentenced to 20 years is not an immediate risk. Without prison places, other women are at risk - the police cannot arrest current perpetrators. Is this applying to all prisoners?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Energy intensive, but perhaps we could use some of the surplus coming in from the windfarms.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Dangerous stuff. Exactly the same happened to me in 1959. The whole family had to sleep it off on a roadside verge outside Escorial.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Not a lot for HE!
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
You only care about social care when you need it for a relative and discover how poor and expensive it is. Likewise, there are more home owners who don't want more houses next door, than people who need homes. That's democracy!
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
17% turnout - winner on 4.6% of electorate!
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
On a 17% turnout, 4.6% of the elctorate voted for the winner.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Isn't that what the left used to call 'soldarity'?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Chris Mason says old people will be reluctant to pay a charge for the national care service, 'when they may not get their money back'. In the last ten years I have spent thousands on house insurance. I don't like paying it, but I really don't want to get my money back. What's the difference?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Dreadful idea. She has political instincts but Ed has much more relevant experience and a record of delivery. If this is true, a lot of people will be very disappointed. First big mistake
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
So defeat with a high vote share convinces people Labour is serious, and consolidates its supporters, and the opposition voters lose heart
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
I calculate that the CEO of Thames Water, next year will be paid (I didn't say 'earn'). £1.247m, including £99k performance related, £120k cash in lieu of pension contributions, and £34k medical, car, accommodation and security
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
It seems our readers can't resist a list of memes. In 5 years we have published 3,000 stories. Lots of good earnest stuff about politics and the environment. But 24 hours after publication, this is in the top ten for views!
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
So much better than 'I am a doughnut'.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Are the photos of the campaign bus fake?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
He could have made more of Picketty and Zucman, who he gave a cursory nod to at the end. Zucman's wealth tax proposals are more thought through. The rich would still get richer, but slightly more slowly, and the benefits to the public purse would be substantial. Why would they not work?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
A balanced programme, given Gary's agenda, but he missed two points. Reducing inequality is not about being mean to rich people, its about reducing the massive social costs which Kate Pickett has demonstrated This is not a natural condition - the wealth gap has been growing rapidly for decades
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Reposted by @stephenmcnair.bsky.social
East Anglia Bylines @eastangliabylines.co.uk · 01/07/2026
Reform won control of three county councils in May. Now it's spending £1.5mn of taxpayers' money trying to stop local government reorganisation – despite making no mention of it in its election manifesto. Our latest analysis looks at what's happening, why, and what comes next ⤵️
eastangliabylines.co.uk
Reform’s million-pound challenge to the government
Reform councillors are trying to block local government changes in the East. And in Norfolk this appears to be without council authority.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Not really appropriate for the Earl Marshal to get involved in party politics.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
Only one ever executed
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Why do Angela Rayner's tax problems still stop her running for the leadership? She was cleared of all charges on the Stockport house, by HMRC, GM Police and the council. On the Hove flat she paid the wrong rate of stamp duty. The difference is £40k. Not complicated. Not comparable to a £5m donation.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Frit!
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Institute for Government confirms it is not unusual for appointments to be announced in advance of DV. And the vetting produces advice to the FO, which they can choose to accept, mitigate or reject. So it was the normal process, just not the process most people (including KS) would have expected
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
The objection is not that it is inaccurate, but that the evidence of small scale criminality is elevated into a major issue, and that it is published during an election campaign when one party wants to make this an election issue, despite being irrelevant to the election.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
With five political parties in contention, a government can be elected with under a quarter of the votes cast This is undemocratic and dangerous. This petition is calling for a national commission to review reform to our voting system. Please sign. petition.parliament.uk/petitions/76...
petition.parliament.uk
Petition: Set up a National Commission on Electoral Reform to review the electoral system
I ask the Government to set up a National Commission on Electoral Reform, as advocated by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Fair Elections. It should be an independent, time limited, expert led re...
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Is that not what I said?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
have you read the article?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
But, as Jackson points out, his coverage is not inaccurate. Its the framing that distorts.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
The article points out that very little of his coverage was about RUK
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
The problem is that the audience is not journalists, its casual viewers looing only at headlines
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
The programme was not always clear about who came from which agency. They presented it as an EA decision. As I understand it it was agreed between DEFRA and EA to ease workloads. I don't think it makes a difference to the argument, but I have amended the text
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
Not a new idea. I remember in 1950 my father driving round Wembley in a van with a loudspeaker on the roof caling on people to vote Labour.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 14/02/2026
Not guilty. Only Irish ancestor in five generaitons is one great great grandfather from Co Down. Otherwise all Ayrshire or Fife.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Gosh, he's Irish. Enough said!
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Relevance?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
Have you read the story? It was not immigration that broke Britain.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
Strange to use a photo of Rotterdam. There is nowhere in the North East like that.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
eastangliabylines.co.uk/politics/who...
eastangliabylines.co.uk
Who broke Britain?
Reform says Britain is broken, and they offer radical change to put it right. But who broke it? We name the guilty parties.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Who wrote that terrible headline?
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
We can debate whether MPs who switch parties ought to face a byelection. But Jenrick is a special case. In 2024 he won as a Conservative with 39% of the vote. Reform came third with only 15%. The electors of Newark were clear, they didn't want a Reform MP. Surely a byelection would be proper
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
a clear majority of elected MPs have considered and approved. It seems likely that a majority of peers agree. This is not scrutiny, it's abuse of power.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
This bill has had over 130 hours of scrutiny, plus 5 days of expert evidence in committee. Many of the amendments are clearly wrecking.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
Please read the story. How is requiring a pregnancy test appropriate for a request to die. That is not scrutiny, it's obstruction.
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stephenmcnair.bsky.social @stephenmcnair.bsky.social · 03/01/2026
Is that not what he said?
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