Author: Miles Donavan

At this summer’s general election, only just over half of the votes of all registered postal voters living overseas were counted. Many were denied that right. But as a new report demonstrates, solutions are at hand. Everyone’s vote should count. That’s a line you often hear from advocates of electoral reform, myself included.  To say that some votes don’t matter – or in other words, have no impact on the result – is a fair criticism of the way UK elections currently operate.  The suggestion is not usually that some votes literally don’t count. But this time, that is precisely…

Musk has had a strained relationship with Brazil’s left-wing government. Brazil’s first lady has sworn at billionaire Elon Musk at an event on tackling misinformation on social media, ahead of the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro. Janja Lula da Silva, whose husband is President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, was talking about the need to combat fake news and regulate social media networks when she made the remarks about the Tesla CEO. Musk has come in for criticism after taking over X, formerly Twitter, and allowing fake news and extremist content to go unchecked. He is also a close…

Trump, who is a protectionist, has said that he plans on introducing a 20% levy on most imports to the US in order to help out domestic businesses, with 60% on imports from China. After President-elect Trump made clear his intentions to engage in a trade war and impose tariffs on all imports, which would harm the UK economy, a former world trade expert has warned that the UK must now choose between the EU and the U.S. if it is to grow its economy. Trump, who is a protectionist, has said that he plans on introducing a 20% levy…

Governor Andrew Bailey said he took no position on Brexit “per se”, but added: “I do have to point out consequences.” The Governor of the Bank of England has confirmed what many of us already knew, that Brexit has been bad for the UK economy. Speaking at the Mansion House dinner in the City of London last week, Governor Andrew Bailey said he took no position on Brexit “per se”, but added: “I do have to point out consequences.” He said: “The changing trading relationship with the EU has weighed on the level of potential supply. “The impact on trade…

Tory party members give their verdict… A clear majority of Tory party members would have voted for Trump, with a majority also saying that they think his election is good for Britain, a survey of party members has found. The survey, carried out by Tory grassroots website Conservative Home, asked party members how they would have voted in the U.S. election.  A clear majority said they would have voted for Trump, with 60.5% backing the 45th President. Only 24.1% opted for Kamala Harris. 15.4% did not know or would have chosen someone else. That such a clear majority opted for…

In total, the Department of Health and Social Care has written off nearly £14.9 billion spent on unusable medical goods it procured during the pandemic. The fallout from the Covid PPE scandal is continuing, as the true extent of the billions wasted by the former Tory government on unusable personal protective equipment comes to light. The Tories were rocked by allegations of sleaze and corruption over PPE equipment when in office, after it emerged that a number of contracts worth millions of pounds were handed to friends and associates of Conservative ministers. It was previously reported that around £1.4bn worth…

‘Endless is the victory.’ As it tries to outbid neighbouring countries for limited supplies as we head into winter, Britain is paying more for natural gas than continental Europe. Data by the pricing agency Argus Media which was published by the Financial Times, found that UK gas prices for delivery rose to more than €1.6 per megawatt hour above the European benchmark, while prices for delivery next month have reached €1.5/MWh higher than Europe.  Both levels mark the widest points relative to Europe since late 2021, when Russia began reducing the amount of pipeline gas it sent, although the gaps have…

‘As by magic, poppy rage gives way to “they’re banning Christmas.’ We’re halfway through November, the time of year when the enraged cries of ‘Christmas is cancelled’ hit the pages of the right-wing press. The Daily Express, Daily Mail, and GB News haven’t held back this year, targeting a primary school in Hampshire. ‘Fury erupts as school bans Christmas references from festive panto to be ‘inclusive’ seethed the Express.   ‘Christmas is CANCELLED’: Festive references ‘banned’ from school pantomime performance to be ‘more inclusive to all faiths,’ was a GB News’ headline on November 12. But it was the Mail…

Girls aged four to six in the North East can expect to live in good health for only 59.7 years, the lowest healthy life expectancy in England, and six years less than those in the South East. Women in the North East of England are paid less, have poorer health, yet contribute more than in the rest of the country, were the findings of a damning report on regional inequalities. The ‘Women of the North: Inequality, health and work’ was compiled by Health Equity North and more than 70 academics from institutions including from Durham, Teesside, Newcastle and Durham universities.…

Orbán’s authoritarian playbook, which Trump and his fellow MAGA Republicans seem to idolise, shows just how vulnerable democratic institutions are in the face of rising populism, and how quickly democratic models can be eroded. The need for a robust defence of democratic values has never been more critical. As Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House, far-right populist leaders across Europe are celebrating, using his victory as a rallying cry for their own nationalist agendas. Among them is Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s authoritarian prime minister, who sees Trump’s success as a transformative moment for global nationalism. “History has accelerated… The…