Ian Stevens
@ianstev91.bsky.social
Former teacher and lawyer, Liberal, pro-Europe.🇪🇺
Reposted by Ian Stevens
I've always felt that Johnson and Farage put self-interest over the national interest - hence their dallying with Putin and his oligarchs. But directly colluding with a foreign government to take down the BBC feels like an act of supreme treachery
November 10, 2025 at 5:50 PM
I've always felt that Johnson and Farage put self-interest over the national interest - hence their dallying with Putin and his oligarchs. But directly colluding with a foreign government to take down the BBC feels like an act of supreme treachery
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Excellent analysis of this unfolding horror show
What you’re witnessing is a populist assault on the BBC.
This is not an institutional scandal in any meaningful sense of the word. It is an attack on public service broadcasting.
iandunt.substack.com/p/extra-edit...
This is not an institutional scandal in any meaningful sense of the word. It is an attack on public service broadcasting.
iandunt.substack.com/p/extra-edit...
November 10, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Excellent analysis of this unfolding horror show
Reposted by Ian Stevens
The rebellion was led by the politically-appointed members of the board. observer.co.uk/opinion-and-...
The Observer view: political interference at the BBC | The Observer
observer.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 11:47 AM
The rebellion was led by the politically-appointed members of the board. observer.co.uk/opinion-and-...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Glad that someone has finally taken responsibility for the appalling assault on democracy that was the Jan. 6 insurrection.
Slightly confused that it's the Director-General of the BBC, but what do I know?
Slightly confused that it's the Director-General of the BBC, but what do I know?
November 9, 2025 at 6:55 PM
Glad that someone has finally taken responsibility for the appalling assault on democracy that was the Jan. 6 insurrection.
Slightly confused that it's the Director-General of the BBC, but what do I know?
Slightly confused that it's the Director-General of the BBC, but what do I know?
Reposted by Ian Stevens
We are so far through the looking glass that the man who tried to overthrow an election becomes president, the people who attacked the Capitol are turned into martyrs, & it's the BBC that gets punished - cheered on by the worst news outlets in the UK & the two most dishonest politicians of our age.
It’s not at all clear to me how the BBC can do any kind of serious journalism if its top two bosses can be forced to quit over such an obviously confected scandal. There is no substantive error here. How can the BBC report on Trump, or Farage, or anyone else, in these circumstances?
November 9, 2025 at 9:08 PM
We are so far through the looking glass that the man who tried to overthrow an election becomes president, the people who attacked the Capitol are turned into martyrs, & it's the BBC that gets punished - cheered on by the worst news outlets in the UK & the two most dishonest politicians of our age.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
The attention the Tory party in the media and in the Commons are giving to this story is a reflection of just how far off the deep-end both have gone in recent times. Sure, they have a long-term vested interest in trying to undermine faith in the Beeb. But this is such a non-issue for most voters.
The BBC is apologising for its Panorama edit. It shouldn’t. First, the narrative is true: Donald Trump *did* incite the Capitol riot. Second, the apology won’t appease those attacking it. So why not at least stand for something?
Wrote this on it earlier this week:
inews.co.uk/news/world/b...
Wrote this on it earlier this week:
inews.co.uk/news/world/b...
The BBC was right about the Capitol riots. In a sane world, Trump would be in jail
The US President faced impeachment over the violence, and in a world where Republicans had more courage, he would have been found guilty
inews.co.uk
November 9, 2025 at 7:51 AM
The attention the Tory party in the media and in the Commons are giving to this story is a reflection of just how far off the deep-end both have gone in recent times. Sure, they have a long-term vested interest in trying to undermine faith in the Beeb. But this is such a non-issue for most voters.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
It’s not entirely obvious now that Sue Gray’s departure was a net positive for the government…
November 8, 2025 at 1:31 PM
It’s not entirely obvious now that Sue Gray’s departure was a net positive for the government…
Reposted by Ian Stevens
This is an outstanding post on the criminal justice system. Do read.
New post just out:
Why the criminal justice system should be top of No. 10's "shit list".
No part of the public sector is more broken or brings with it greater political risk. As we saw these past two weeks.
It desperately needs a new approach.
(£/free trial)
open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/f...
Why the criminal justice system should be top of No. 10's "shit list".
No part of the public sector is more broken or brings with it greater political risk. As we saw these past two weeks.
It desperately needs a new approach.
(£/free trial)
open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/f...
Flashing Red
Why the criminal justice system should be top of No. 10's "shit list"
open.substack.com
November 8, 2025 at 9:22 AM
This is an outstanding post on the criminal justice system. Do read.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Davey says his party would “work with government " to move away from current electoral system. Starmer supported electoral reform during his bid to become Labour leader in 2020 but has since dropped his pledge & did not include it in party's election manifesto
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Ed Davey wants to 'work with government' on electoral reform
The Liberal Democrat leader backs replacing first-past-the-post with proportional representation.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 7, 2025 at 7:02 AM
Davey says his party would “work with government " to move away from current electoral system. Starmer supported electoral reform during his bid to become Labour leader in 2020 but has since dropped his pledge & did not include it in party's election manifesto
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
New, by me
The real problem which blights our prison and punishment system
The way we think about custodial sentences is what needs to change
Reflections on the wrongful prison release news
Substack: emptycity.substack.com/p/the-real-p...
Personal blog: davidallengreen.com/2025/11/the-...
The real problem which blights our prison and punishment system
The way we think about custodial sentences is what needs to change
Reflections on the wrongful prison release news
Substack: emptycity.substack.com/p/the-real-p...
Personal blog: davidallengreen.com/2025/11/the-...
The real problem which blights our prison and punishment system
7th November 2025 The way we think about custodial sentences is what needs to change * Today’s news is about prisons: * Let us take a step back. There is a serious addiction problem which blights o…
davidallengreen.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:59 AM
New, by me
The real problem which blights our prison and punishment system
The way we think about custodial sentences is what needs to change
Reflections on the wrongful prison release news
Substack: emptycity.substack.com/p/the-real-p...
Personal blog: davidallengreen.com/2025/11/the-...
The real problem which blights our prison and punishment system
The way we think about custodial sentences is what needs to change
Reflections on the wrongful prison release news
Substack: emptycity.substack.com/p/the-real-p...
Personal blog: davidallengreen.com/2025/11/the-...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Not just the Labour party, who are drifting aimlessly. The Tories too are willingly being pulled in Reform's wake without resistance, and even the Lib Dems - who are, rightly, more confident in their overall position - could be a lot more vocal in leading opinion.
The lesson that politicians can lead public opinion seemingly needs to be re-learned by the Labour Party. It does also mean they need to develop an idea of *where* they want to lead public opinion, which is probably a bigger challenge
November 5, 2025 at 11:04 AM
Not just the Labour party, who are drifting aimlessly. The Tories too are willingly being pulled in Reform's wake without resistance, and even the Lib Dems - who are, rightly, more confident in their overall position - could be a lot more vocal in leading opinion.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
If parties want credit for telling hard truths, they need to tell them when they're genuinely hard.
If Labour had told the truth about taxes & the costs of Brexit before the election, its majority would be smaller.
But it would have more real power & the public would put more faith in its judgment
If Labour had told the truth about taxes & the costs of Brexit before the election, its majority would be smaller.
But it would have more real power & the public would put more faith in its judgment
She is telling an accurate story of recent history - the triple punch of austerity, Brexit and covid. It's spot on. But it is terribly strange to say it now in government when you were not prepared to say it in opposition.
November 4, 2025 at 9:49 AM
If parties want credit for telling hard truths, they need to tell them when they're genuinely hard.
If Labour had told the truth about taxes & the costs of Brexit before the election, its majority would be smaller.
But it would have more real power & the public would put more faith in its judgment
If Labour had told the truth about taxes & the costs of Brexit before the election, its majority would be smaller.
But it would have more real power & the public would put more faith in its judgment
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Amid many a silly “free speech” panic, here is a genuinely chilling case …
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
China intimidated UK university to ditch human rights research, documents show
Sheffield Hallam University apologises to Professor Laura Murphy for restricting her academic freedom.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 3, 2025 at 8:04 AM
Amid many a silly “free speech” panic, here is a genuinely chilling case …
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Sheffield Hallam professor accuses the institution of negotiating “directly with a foreign intelligence service to trade my academic freedom for access to the Chinese student market”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Lord Heseltine on charlatan Farage
November 1, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Lord Heseltine on charlatan Farage
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Immigration, indecency, and incompetence. New post on my Brexit & Brexitism Blog. The ever-more indecent terms of the immigration 'debate' are another failure of Brexit, which links to the ever-more obvious incompetence of Reform in local government: chrisgreybrexitblog.blogspot.com/2025/10/immi...
October 31, 2025 at 7:39 AM
Immigration, indecency, and incompetence. New post on my Brexit & Brexitism Blog. The ever-more indecent terms of the immigration 'debate' are another failure of Brexit, which links to the ever-more obvious incompetence of Reform in local government: chrisgreybrexitblog.blogspot.com/2025/10/immi...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
More information coming out now on this. Looks like a Cabinet Office scheme led by Georgia Gould… planned savings of £10m-£30m a year (back up lower Premier League full-back price) don’t really seem worth the candle if this the result IMO.
October 31, 2025 at 8:05 AM
More information coming out now on this. Looks like a Cabinet Office scheme led by Georgia Gould… planned savings of £10m-£30m a year (back up lower Premier League full-back price) don’t really seem worth the candle if this the result IMO.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
This is farcical. Katie Lam didn't speak "imprecisely". She accurately stated the Conservative party's existing policy, which they tried to pass as a Bill in Parliament earlier this year, and which Badenoch's spokesman defended himself just last week.
October 30, 2025 at 12:04 PM
This is farcical. Katie Lam didn't speak "imprecisely". She accurately stated the Conservative party's existing policy, which they tried to pass as a Bill in Parliament earlier this year, and which Badenoch's spokesman defended himself just last week.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
"To say 'Zelenskyy is no friend of the working class' is an insulting, facile distraction from the fact that Sultana refuses to support the Ukrainian people’s fight for existence."
Proper cold fury and moral clarity from @paulmason.bsky.social on Sultana.
open.substack.com/pub/htsf/p/c...
Proper cold fury and moral clarity from @paulmason.bsky.social on Sultana.
open.substack.com/pub/htsf/p/c...
Coventry South needs a by-election soon
Zarah Sultana has no mandate for disarming the people of Britain and betraying Ukraine
open.substack.com
October 28, 2025 at 3:06 PM
"To say 'Zelenskyy is no friend of the working class' is an insulting, facile distraction from the fact that Sultana refuses to support the Ukrainian people’s fight for existence."
Proper cold fury and moral clarity from @paulmason.bsky.social on Sultana.
open.substack.com/pub/htsf/p/c...
Proper cold fury and moral clarity from @paulmason.bsky.social on Sultana.
open.substack.com/pub/htsf/p/c...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
A strategy based on 'well, what if everything political science tells us, everything economics tells us and everything history tells us is wrong?' is ending in a predictable fashion.
It's increasingly obvious that Labour's strategy - call it Starmerism, Blue Labour, whatever - has got it badly wrong. It has alienated the party's core vote while failing to win over those leaning to Reform. There was no shortage of people warning them they were getting it wrong either.
Three years ago, Labour was polling in the 50s.
October 28, 2025 at 12:07 PM
A strategy based on 'well, what if everything political science tells us, everything economics tells us and everything history tells us is wrong?' is ending in a predictable fashion.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
www.facebook.com/share/p/19C1...
My friend Mark Mardell was chucked off his Turkish Airlines flight at the weekend because he had Parkinson’s and his son had asked for assistance for him. (He’s written about it as a public post on Facebook but the link is proving hard to share outside,)
My friend Mark Mardell was chucked off his Turkish Airlines flight at the weekend because he had Parkinson’s and his son had asked for assistance for him. (He’s written about it as a public post on Facebook but the link is proving hard to share outside,)
October 27, 2025 at 6:00 AM
www.facebook.com/share/p/19C1...
My friend Mark Mardell was chucked off his Turkish Airlines flight at the weekend because he had Parkinson’s and his son had asked for assistance for him. (He’s written about it as a public post on Facebook but the link is proving hard to share outside,)
My friend Mark Mardell was chucked off his Turkish Airlines flight at the weekend because he had Parkinson’s and his son had asked for assistance for him. (He’s written about it as a public post on Facebook but the link is proving hard to share outside,)
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Philp
1) Anyone who comes on a temp work visa should be required to leave.
2) Give out far fewer visas: a binding cap on incoming immigration.
3) Leave the ECHR
4) Apply threshold to ILR to those here
5) Those who have ILR should not be able to claim benefits
We would apply that retrospectively.
1) Anyone who comes on a temp work visa should be required to leave.
2) Give out far fewer visas: a binding cap on incoming immigration.
3) Leave the ECHR
4) Apply threshold to ILR to those here
5) Those who have ILR should not be able to claim benefits
We would apply that retrospectively.
October 26, 2025 at 12:42 PM
Reposted by Ian Stevens
I am wholly predisposed to enthusiastically endorse this sort of point. In that spirit, let me go further…Brexit was a profound system shock (and more so than people often think) because it occasioned a deep political crisis which still continues and is manifest in many different ways.
Always enjoy talking to Hannah on here, but this observation in particular is a real missing tooth of a “I really wish I’d thought of this and written it”, on how Brexit accelerated so many parliamentary careers.
Wheras for Badenoch ten more years would have either put paid to her via a dumb scandal or have seen here consigned to the fringe, and Starmer would have never risen beyond cabinet minister.
This is all still the echoing consequences of one bad vote in 2016.
This is all still the echoing consequences of one bad vote in 2016.
October 25, 2025 at 4:38 AM
I am wholly predisposed to enthusiastically endorse this sort of point. In that spirit, let me go further…Brexit was a profound system shock (and more so than people often think) because it occasioned a deep political crisis which still continues and is manifest in many different ways.
Reposted by Ian Stevens
The toxic Blue Labour cult that have convinced themselves from a distance that they understand the distant working classes are hammering their own party (and are oddly closely related to the 1980s Bennite faction that thought similar, and had a similar effect)
I wrote for @theipaper.com about the Caerphilly by election and why Reform is no longer Starmer's only problem
inews.co.uk/opinion/refo...
inews.co.uk/opinion/refo...
October 24, 2025 at 11:33 AM
The toxic Blue Labour cult that have convinced themselves from a distance that they understand the distant working classes are hammering their own party (and are oddly closely related to the 1980s Bennite faction that thought similar, and had a similar effect)
Reposted by Ian Stevens
Snap Caerphilly by-election analysis: Tactical voting can stop Reform. But Labour have to give tactical progressive voters reason enough to do that. It's not enough to just be a bit less dreadful. iandunt.substack.com/p/today-it-r...
Today, it rains only on you
No, you're not depressed. You're just British.
iandunt.substack.com
October 24, 2025 at 9:06 AM
Snap Caerphilly by-election analysis: Tactical voting can stop Reform. But Labour have to give tactical progressive voters reason enough to do that. It's not enough to just be a bit less dreadful. iandunt.substack.com/p/today-it-r...
Reposted by Ian Stevens
“Whether it’s Nigel [Farage] banging on about the [small] boats, or Robert Jenrick talking about Handsworth, [politicians] are stoking a fire ... I feel it’s doing more harm than good in terms of community relations.”
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Reform’s only Black branch chair quits over ‘harmful’ migration debate
Exclusive: Neville Watson leaves amid concerns about weaponisation of religion and erosion of community relations
www.theguardian.com
October 23, 2025 at 2:40 PM
“Whether it’s Nigel [Farage] banging on about the [small] boats, or Robert Jenrick talking about Handsworth, [politicians] are stoking a fire ... I feel it’s doing more harm than good in terms of community relations.”
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...