Alex Hall Hall
@alexhh.bsky.social
Ex-🇬🇧diplomat. Now an 🇺🇸. Resigned over Brexit lies. Frmr Ambassdr to 🇬🇪 . Writer Byline Times. Patron, European Movement. Advisor Eurasia Foundation. Member, Commission on Political Power looking at how to strengthen UK democracy. Frazzled mom. Owner of 2 🐕🦺
Loving the Olympics team figure skating. The stress on each dancer is terrifying- worrying not just about themselves, but about letting their teammates down. That’s why I prefer playing singles to doubles in tennis! I’m rooting for team Georgia to make it to podium. 🇬🇪 🇬🇪🇬🇪 www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
Japan's Miura and Kihara win the Olympic figure skating team pairs free program
Reigning world champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara scored 155.55 points to win the Olympic figure skating team pairs free program in Milan, Italy.
www.cbc.ca
February 8, 2026 at 8:45 PM
Loving the Olympics team figure skating. The stress on each dancer is terrifying- worrying not just about themselves, but about letting their teammates down. That’s why I prefer playing singles to doubles in tennis! I’m rooting for team Georgia to make it to podium. 🇬🇪 🇬🇪🇬🇪 www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
I wrote this yesterday - Starmer could still turn his premiership around, if he finally, FINALLY, finds the courage to address the grubby circs which allow people like Mandelson to rise so far. bylinetimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
'The Mandelson-Epstein Scandal Is an Opportunity for Starmer to Radically Reform Our Broken Politics'
The Prime Minister should use this moment to shine a light on the dark forces corrupting our democracy, argues former British diplomat Alexandra Hall Hall
bylinetimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 1:11 PM
I wrote this yesterday - Starmer could still turn his premiership around, if he finally, FINALLY, finds the courage to address the grubby circs which allow people like Mandelson to rise so far. bylinetimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
McSweeney is gone. Time for Starmer to try to salvage his government by launching long overdue proper action to address all the flaws in our political system - peerages, patronage, cronyism, party finances, MPs revolving door, appointments, ministerial code, business interests, Leveson, etc etc.
I wrote this yesterday - Starmer could still turn his premiership around, if he finally, FINALLY, finds the courage to address the grubby circs which allow people like Mandelson to rise so far. bylinetimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
'The Mandelson-Epstein Scandal Is an Opportunity for Starmer to Radically Reform Our Broken Politics'
The Prime Minister should use this moment to shine a light on the dark forces corrupting our democracy, argues former British diplomat Alexandra Hall Hall
bylinetimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 2:40 PM
McSweeney is gone. Time for Starmer to try to salvage his government by launching long overdue proper action to address all the flaws in our political system - peerages, patronage, cronyism, party finances, MPs revolving door, appointments, ministerial code, business interests, Leveson, etc etc.
This series of articles by Peter Oborne is so spot on - withering about McSweeney - and his obsessive focus on party politics, scheming and tactics, at expense of policy conducive to the national interest - and in process ultimately ruining Starmer’s govt.
February 8, 2026 at 2:56 PM
This series of articles by Peter Oborne is so spot on - withering about McSweeney - and his obsessive focus on party politics, scheming and tactics, at expense of policy conducive to the national interest - and in process ultimately ruining Starmer’s govt.
McSweeney is gone. Time for Starmer to try to salvage his government by launching long overdue proper action to address all the flaws in our political system - peerages, patronage, cronyism, party finances, MPs revolving door, appointments, ministerial code, business interests, Leveson, etc etc.
I wrote this yesterday - Starmer could still turn his premiership around, if he finally, FINALLY, finds the courage to address the grubby circs which allow people like Mandelson to rise so far. bylinetimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
'The Mandelson-Epstein Scandal Is an Opportunity for Starmer to Radically Reform Our Broken Politics'
The Prime Minister should use this moment to shine a light on the dark forces corrupting our democracy, argues former British diplomat Alexandra Hall Hall
bylinetimes.com
February 8, 2026 at 2:40 PM
McSweeney is gone. Time for Starmer to try to salvage his government by launching long overdue proper action to address all the flaws in our political system - peerages, patronage, cronyism, party finances, MPs revolving door, appointments, ministerial code, business interests, Leveson, etc etc.
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
And there’s also this, www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/la...
labour.org.uk/wp-content/u...
Written in 2022 and not much actioned. Both writers identify the problem areas, propose solutions…. and nothing has yet happened.
labour.org.uk/wp-content/u...
Written in 2022 and not much actioned. Both writers identify the problem areas, propose solutions…. and nothing has yet happened.
Labour’s constitutional proposals | Institute for Government
What the Brown Commission recommendations for constitutional reform say and what they mean.
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk
February 8, 2026 at 8:43 AM
And there’s also this, www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/la...
labour.org.uk/wp-content/u...
Written in 2022 and not much actioned. Both writers identify the problem areas, propose solutions…. and nothing has yet happened.
labour.org.uk/wp-content/u...
Written in 2022 and not much actioned. Both writers identify the problem areas, propose solutions…. and nothing has yet happened.
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
Morgan McSweeney has now resigned as Keir Starmer's Chief of Staff
February 8, 2026 at 2:24 PM
Morgan McSweeney has now resigned as Keir Starmer's Chief of Staff
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
Epstein was in and out of Russia every few months according to his travel documents, but Mandelson was partying in nightclubs in St Petersburg and regularly in Moscow.
How did our intelligence services fail to pick this up? Or were their reports and investigations suppressed?
How did our intelligence services fail to pick this up? Or were their reports and investigations suppressed?
February 8, 2026 at 12:25 PM
Epstein was in and out of Russia every few months according to his travel documents, but Mandelson was partying in nightclubs in St Petersburg and regularly in Moscow.
How did our intelligence services fail to pick this up? Or were their reports and investigations suppressed?
How did our intelligence services fail to pick this up? Or were their reports and investigations suppressed?
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
I deleted my post from before…
I thought it was fake
So I went to WH Smith and here it is
An unbelievable attempt to sanitise this man and normalise what’s he’s done.
I thought it was fake
So I went to WH Smith and here it is
An unbelievable attempt to sanitise this man and normalise what’s he’s done.
February 7, 2026 at 10:19 AM
I deleted my post from before…
I thought it was fake
So I went to WH Smith and here it is
An unbelievable attempt to sanitise this man and normalise what’s he’s done.
I thought it was fake
So I went to WH Smith and here it is
An unbelievable attempt to sanitise this man and normalise what’s he’s done.
These are the stories the elite don’t want to come out. No wonder Washington Post fired most of its staff this week….
Senior Russian officials and business figures cultivated relationships with Jeffrey Epstein, according to newly released documents by the Justice Department.
Epstein also made repeated efforts to arrange a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
Epstein also made repeated efforts to arrange a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
Epstein built ties to Russians and sought to meet Putin, files show
Justice Department files show that Jeffrey Epstein sought help from a Russian official after claiming a woman from Moscow was blackmailing “powerful businessmen” in New York.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 7, 2026 at 3:48 PM
These are the stories the elite don’t want to come out. No wonder Washington Post fired most of its staff this week….
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
"Which theatre of war were you deployed to, grandpa?"
"The movie theatre. It was hell."
"The movie theatre. It was hell."
Acive duty military are being ordered to buy a ticket to Melania and watch it, whether they want to, or not. www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/mil...
Military Pressured to See ‘Melania’ Against Their Will
A military group has evidence of troops being ordered into theater—the movie theater.
www.thedailybeast.com
February 7, 2026 at 3:47 PM
"Which theatre of war were you deployed to, grandpa?"
"The movie theatre. It was hell."
"The movie theatre. It was hell."
I’m not saying civil servants or career diplomats are perfect- there’s certainly been the odd scandal or two - but, honestly, it’s infuriating when politicians blame “bureaucrats” for alleged failings, when they have people like this. Civil servants are rarely as bad as the politicians above them!
New on FT website:
Downing Street has refused to say whether Sir Keir Starmer knew Palantir was a client of Peter Mandelson’s lobbying firm when they both visited the company in Washington last February — ahead of it winning a £240mn UK government contract.
www.ft.com/content/5bba...
Downing Street has refused to say whether Sir Keir Starmer knew Palantir was a client of Peter Mandelson’s lobbying firm when they both visited the company in Washington last February — ahead of it winning a £240mn UK government contract.
www.ft.com/content/5bba...
Starmer faces questions over visit to Palantir office alongside Mandelson
Former ambassador was also shareholder in lobbying group that counted US tech firm as a client
www.ft.com
February 7, 2026 at 3:47 PM
I’m not saying civil servants or career diplomats are perfect- there’s certainly been the odd scandal or two - but, honestly, it’s infuriating when politicians blame “bureaucrats” for alleged failings, when they have people like this. Civil servants are rarely as bad as the politicians above them!
Options include more transparency on party financing, ending revolving door, putting political roles and ministerial codes on statutory footing with independent oversight, reform Hse of Lords, and many more - drawn from cross-party Commission on Political Power commissionpoliticalpower.uk
February 7, 2026 at 1:47 PM
Options include more transparency on party financing, ending revolving door, putting political roles and ministerial codes on statutory footing with independent oversight, reform Hse of Lords, and many more - drawn from cross-party Commission on Political Power commissionpoliticalpower.uk
There’s a typo; it shd read “Mandelson’s disgrace raises far bigger questions than Starmer’s judgement. The shame is on all of Westminster’s political classes, who have shown themselves repeatedly willing to turn a blind eye to ethical lapses within their midst, when it has suited them politically.
February 7, 2026 at 1:20 PM
There’s a typo; it shd read “Mandelson’s disgrace raises far bigger questions than Starmer’s judgement. The shame is on all of Westminster’s political classes, who have shown themselves repeatedly willing to turn a blind eye to ethical lapses within their midst, when it has suited them politically.
I wrote this yesterday - Starmer could still turn his premiership around, if he finally, FINALLY, finds the courage to address the grubby circs which allow people like Mandelson to rise so far. bylinetimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
'The Mandelson-Epstein Scandal Is an Opportunity for Starmer to Radically Reform Our Broken Politics'
The Prime Minister should use this moment to shine a light on the dark forces corrupting our democracy, argues former British diplomat Alexandra Hall Hall
bylinetimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 1:11 PM
I wrote this yesterday - Starmer could still turn his premiership around, if he finally, FINALLY, finds the courage to address the grubby circs which allow people like Mandelson to rise so far. bylinetimes.com/2026/02/07/t...
The entitlement is astonishing. Why should he be shielded?
BREAKING: Peter Mandelson just sent this secret notice to all UK media, demanding they leave him alone.
He uses IPSO clauses designed to support grieving families in a bid to stop scrutiny of his relationship with Epstein
We have published it in full.
www.thenational.scot/news/2583451...
He uses IPSO clauses designed to support grieving families in a bid to stop scrutiny of his relationship with Epstein
We have published it in full.
www.thenational.scot/news/2583451...
Peter Mandelson issues secret notice demanding press leave him alone – read in full
LATE on Friday evening, this notice was circulated from representatives of Peter Mandelson, via press regulator IPSO and the Press Association news…
www.thenational.scot
February 6, 2026 at 9:09 PM
The entitlement is astonishing. Why should he be shielded?
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
For years, I've criticised countries like Russia & Georgia that try to prevent foreign funding of civil society. Now I'm starting to wonder whether we need similar rules: to stop Russian influence operations, certainly, but also to stop the US boosting the far right in Europe. What times we live in!
Not to take away from a really important story, but what is important about it is tells is what the US new national security strategy means in practice:
US government to fund Maga-aligned think-tanks and charities in Europe
State department grants to spread ‘American values’ are part of Washington’s 250th anniversary celebrations
www.ft.com
February 6, 2026 at 4:13 PM
For years, I've criticised countries like Russia & Georgia that try to prevent foreign funding of civil society. Now I'm starting to wonder whether we need similar rules: to stop Russian influence operations, certainly, but also to stop the US boosting the far right in Europe. What times we live in!
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
We will not be intimidated into staying home. We will keep the late John Lewis in our hearts as we head to the polls to drive the likes of these ghouls out of power and out of office.
February 5, 2026 at 9:30 PM
We will not be intimidated into staying home. We will keep the late John Lewis in our hearts as we head to the polls to drive the likes of these ghouls out of power and out of office.
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
For those keeping score at home:
February 4, 2026 at 3:48 PM
For those keeping score at home:
Reposted by Alex Hall Hall
So, if you have information, reveal it. What a creep.
🔥 AUTHOR MICHAEL WOLFF: “This is the 3rd or 4th time Trump threatened to sue me… I believe if the 🇺🇸 public knew the real nature of Trump’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein they would turn away in revulsion and horror. So sue me.”
February 3, 2026 at 3:41 PM
So, if you have information, reveal it. What a creep.
And rename the House of Lords “The House of Scoundrels, Rogues, Thieves and Bounders.” (With apologies to the small number of members who are genuinely hardworking and honourable).
I’ve come to the conclusion that having a title these days is like being branded for life - it increasingly seems to be an indication of dishonour! Perhaps we should start giving all major criminals titles for life….
BREAKING: Lord Mandelson is to step down from the House of Lords immediately.
But he will keep his title as a peerage is bestowed for life - unless government changes the law.
But he will keep his title as a peerage is bestowed for life - unless government changes the law.
February 3, 2026 at 3:23 PM
And rename the House of Lords “The House of Scoundrels, Rogues, Thieves and Bounders.” (With apologies to the small number of members who are genuinely hardworking and honourable).
I’ve come to the conclusion that having a title these days is like being branded for life - it increasingly seems to be an indication of dishonour! Perhaps we should start giving all major criminals titles for life….
BREAKING: Lord Mandelson is to step down from the House of Lords immediately.
But he will keep his title as a peerage is bestowed for life - unless government changes the law.
But he will keep his title as a peerage is bestowed for life - unless government changes the law.
February 3, 2026 at 3:15 PM
I’ve come to the conclusion that having a title these days is like being branded for life - it increasingly seems to be an indication of dishonour! Perhaps we should start giving all major criminals titles for life….
This was exactly my reaction too
as someone who pushes hard against conspiratorial thinking in my professional and political life, it is deeply irritating when, on top of the untold human harms Epstein caused, it turns out he was at the center of at least half a dozen actual conspiracies
February 3, 2026 at 3:04 PM
This was exactly my reaction too