@jacqmclean.bsky.social
Reposted
Have been thinking about “immigration has been tearing this country apart.” Surely I’m not the only person to think that it isn’t true, but inflamed rhetoric about immigration by politicians is what is tearing this country apart and so statements like that only makes it worse.
November 18, 2025 at 6:37 AM
Have been thinking about “immigration has been tearing this country apart.” Surely I’m not the only person to think that it isn’t true, but inflamed rhetoric about immigration by politicians is what is tearing this country apart and so statements like that only makes it worse.
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The Danish Social Democrats are currently on course for their worst election result since at least the Second World War, despite their brand of far-right accommodationism being touted as a blueprint for other centre-left parties.
November 18, 2025 at 11:58 AM
The Danish Social Democrats are currently on course for their worst election result since at least the Second World War, despite their brand of far-right accommodationism being touted as a blueprint for other centre-left parties.
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My greatest disappointment with Starmer is the continuation of this same old game. Half-arsed policy with focus on electoral dynamics over effectiveness. Underlying situation gets worse. Then you complain the border is out of control, when in fact it is your policymaking which has failed.
November 18, 2025 at 8:56 AM
My greatest disappointment with Starmer is the continuation of this same old game. Half-arsed policy with focus on electoral dynamics over effectiveness. Underlying situation gets worse. Then you complain the border is out of control, when in fact it is your policymaking which has failed.
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This is the cycle that fuels populist. It perpetuate policy failure while encouraging a narrative of scapegoating. The prime minister came to power promising to address it. Instead he now supports it.
November 18, 2025 at 8:58 AM
This is the cycle that fuels populist. It perpetuate policy failure while encouraging a narrative of scapegoating. The prime minister came to power promising to address it. Instead he now supports it.
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Even when Scotland is praised on the world stage the SNP gets no credit
Financial agencies applaud Scotland’s economy, but all we get is sneering. Govts need held to account but credit where credit is due
It shows how meaningless the quality of our debate has become
In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
Financial agencies applaud Scotland’s economy, but all we get is sneering. Govts need held to account but credit where credit is due
It shows how meaningless the quality of our debate has become
In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
Even when Scotland gets a global thumbs-up financially the SNP get zero credit
In Scotland, any news – even good news – is subjected to partisan point-scoring. It means we repeatedly fail to have the debates we really need,…
www.heraldscotland.com
November 14, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Even when Scotland is praised on the world stage the SNP gets no credit
Financial agencies applaud Scotland’s economy, but all we get is sneering. Govts need held to account but credit where credit is due
It shows how meaningless the quality of our debate has become
In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
Financial agencies applaud Scotland’s economy, but all we get is sneering. Govts need held to account but credit where credit is due
It shows how meaningless the quality of our debate has become
In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
Reposted
Asked about opposition to yesterdays announcement Reed says all Lab MPs were elected on the same manifesto
Where in the manifesto did it say Lab would deport more kids, seize refugees property & increase the time before they can apply for permanent settlement from 5 to 20 years?
Where in the manifesto did it say Lab would deport more kids, seize refugees property & increase the time before they can apply for permanent settlement from 5 to 20 years?
November 18, 2025 at 7:31 AM
Asked about opposition to yesterdays announcement Reed says all Lab MPs were elected on the same manifesto
Where in the manifesto did it say Lab would deport more kids, seize refugees property & increase the time before they can apply for permanent settlement from 5 to 20 years?
Where in the manifesto did it say Lab would deport more kids, seize refugees property & increase the time before they can apply for permanent settlement from 5 to 20 years?
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On asylum there seems to be no attempt to analyse different parts of the problem in a way that allows serious public discussion 🧵
November 17, 2025 at 3:08 PM
On asylum there seems to be no attempt to analyse different parts of the problem in a way that allows serious public discussion 🧵
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This is obviously not a comprehensive list and no doubt some people here will know many of the answers. But at the moment it feels like we are being fed folk tales in the place of facts.
November 17, 2025 at 3:08 PM
This is obviously not a comprehensive list and no doubt some people here will know many of the answers. But at the moment it feels like we are being fed folk tales in the place of facts.
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There has been a bad imbalance in the political classes thinking about what control means + how it combines with decency and fairness.
Labour did eventually challenge the Idi Amin Memorial Tribute of the Tory deportation bill - but why does the PM now think deporting refugees is "border control"?
Labour did eventually challenge the Idi Amin Memorial Tribute of the Tory deportation bill - but why does the PM now think deporting refugees is "border control"?
Asked if Keir Starmer believes British people want to "see refugee children pulled out of school and deported after 10 years in this country”, his spokesman says that “what the British public wants and what this government was elected on a mandate to deliver was to secure our borders"
November 17, 2025 at 3:20 PM
There has been a bad imbalance in the political classes thinking about what control means + how it combines with decency and fairness.
Labour did eventually challenge the Idi Amin Memorial Tribute of the Tory deportation bill - but why does the PM now think deporting refugees is "border control"?
Labour did eventually challenge the Idi Amin Memorial Tribute of the Tory deportation bill - but why does the PM now think deporting refugees is "border control"?
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Prime Minister says he has a "devastatingly simple" argument: changing the rules will have a stronger deterrent effect
Clear evidence this 'devastastingly simple' argument is simplistic + wrong: why didn't these same two-tier rules (+ even banning all asylum claims in 2023) stop the boats?
Clear evidence this 'devastastingly simple' argument is simplistic + wrong: why didn't these same two-tier rules (+ even banning all asylum claims in 2023) stop the boats?
November 17, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Prime Minister says he has a "devastatingly simple" argument: changing the rules will have a stronger deterrent effect
Clear evidence this 'devastastingly simple' argument is simplistic + wrong: why didn't these same two-tier rules (+ even banning all asylum claims in 2023) stop the boats?
Clear evidence this 'devastastingly simple' argument is simplistic + wrong: why didn't these same two-tier rules (+ even banning all asylum claims in 2023) stop the boats?
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Labour now falling so deep into the anti-immigration hole that they're telling bare-faced lies we'd sooner associate with Reform or the Tories.
The Home Secretary says "we have become the destination of choice in Europe, clearly visible to every people smuggler and would-be illegal migrant across the world"
That is a factually untrue claim: the Home Office shows that the UK is fifth, getting 1/10 claims, while Germany gets 1/5 claims
That is a factually untrue claim: the Home Office shows that the UK is fifth, getting 1/10 claims, while Germany gets 1/5 claims
November 17, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Labour now falling so deep into the anti-immigration hole that they're telling bare-faced lies we'd sooner associate with Reform or the Tories.
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"Compared with other European countries, the UK received the fifth largest number of asylum seekers in the year ending March 2025, and the seventeenth largest intake when measured per head of population" - Home Office data
www.gov.uk/government/s...
www.gov.uk/government/s...
November 17, 2025 at 4:10 PM
"Compared with other European countries, the UK received the fifth largest number of asylum seekers in the year ending March 2025, and the seventeenth largest intake when measured per head of population" - Home Office data
www.gov.uk/government/s...
www.gov.uk/government/s...
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Why do they lie about something so easily verifiable?
The Home Secretary says "we have become the destination of choice in Europe, clearly visible to every people smuggler and would-be illegal migrant across the world"
That is a factually untrue claim: the Home Office shows that the UK is fifth, getting 1/10 claims, while Germany gets 1/5 claims
That is a factually untrue claim: the Home Office shows that the UK is fifth, getting 1/10 claims, while Germany gets 1/5 claims
November 17, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Why do they lie about something so easily verifiable?
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If this really is what is being proposed, I think adding the jewellery confiscation policy + the 20 year policy could kick off the kind of PLP revolt that (without rapid u-turn) could entirely destabilise a struggling government that risks falling over on every front
www.thesun.co.uk/news/3734007...
www.thesun.co.uk/news/3734007...
Small boat migrants to have jewellery & assets seized to pay for accommodation
ILLEGAL migrants’ valuables such as jewellery and watches will be seized and sold to pay towards their accommodation costs, The Sun can reveal today. Necklaces and chains — but not wedding rings — …
www.thesun.co.uk
November 17, 2025 at 12:10 AM
If this really is what is being proposed, I think adding the jewellery confiscation policy + the 20 year policy could kick off the kind of PLP revolt that (without rapid u-turn) could entirely destabilise a struggling government that risks falling over on every front
www.thesun.co.uk/news/3734007...
www.thesun.co.uk/news/3734007...
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This does seem to be a relevant question. Reading the Sun and Guardina pieces side by side it is hard to believe they are describing the same policy. That kind of spin might have worked in 1990s but in a social media ecosystem where anger goes viral is is likely to generate own goals
And once again, I ask whether Ministers and No10 realise that the readership of one paper can in fact read the contents of another.
Dark forces are stirring up anger in the UK. My asylum reforms are our chance to stop them | Shabana Mahmood
I know some of these measures will face opposition. But a country without secure borders is less safe for those who look like me, says Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary
www.theguardian.com
November 17, 2025 at 8:41 AM
This does seem to be a relevant question. Reading the Sun and Guardina pieces side by side it is hard to believe they are describing the same policy. That kind of spin might have worked in 1990s but in a social media ecosystem where anger goes viral is is likely to generate own goals
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It's like people are ignorant of Pastor Niemoller's warning.
And interesting that both CON & Lab pull the same trick of having 2nd gen immigrants do their dirty work.
johnhuwevans.wordpress.com/2025/11/02/r...
And interesting that both CON & Lab pull the same trick of having 2nd gen immigrants do their dirty work.
johnhuwevans.wordpress.com/2025/11/02/r...
Right Wing Politics in the UK – 2025
By Cassander This essay will compare UK Conservatives, Reform & Labour with historical Fascism/Naziism, looking at Scapegoats and Warning signs. It’s just over ten pages. Reform PLC I had thoug…
johnhuwevans.wordpress.com
November 16, 2025 at 6:24 PM
It's like people are ignorant of Pastor Niemoller's warning.
And interesting that both CON & Lab pull the same trick of having 2nd gen immigrants do their dirty work.
johnhuwevans.wordpress.com/2025/11/02/r...
And interesting that both CON & Lab pull the same trick of having 2nd gen immigrants do their dirty work.
johnhuwevans.wordpress.com/2025/11/02/r...
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Labour's MP for Folkestone says the government has taken "the wrong turning" on its plans for asylum seekers.
"The rhetoric around these reforms encourages the same culture of divisiveness that sees racism and abuse growing in our communities."
"The rhetoric around these reforms encourages the same culture of divisiveness that sees racism and abuse growing in our communities."
November 16, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Labour's MP for Folkestone says the government has taken "the wrong turning" on its plans for asylum seekers.
"The rhetoric around these reforms encourages the same culture of divisiveness that sees racism and abuse growing in our communities."
"The rhetoric around these reforms encourages the same culture of divisiveness that sees racism and abuse growing in our communities."
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My granddad was a refugee, my wife, our close friends and those of our kids are either immigrants or the children of immigrants.
Do ministers ever think about the message their rhetoric on "handouts" and "golden tickets" for migrants sends about whether this is a government for people like us?
Do ministers ever think about the message their rhetoric on "handouts" and "golden tickets" for migrants sends about whether this is a government for people like us?
November 16, 2025 at 4:02 PM
My granddad was a refugee, my wife, our close friends and those of our kids are either immigrants or the children of immigrants.
Do ministers ever think about the message their rhetoric on "handouts" and "golden tickets" for migrants sends about whether this is a government for people like us?
Do ministers ever think about the message their rhetoric on "handouts" and "golden tickets" for migrants sends about whether this is a government for people like us?
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Ultimately, what this is about is taking the issue of migration out of the hands of the courts, of the law, and putting it back in the hands of politicians, like before 1948. Is there ANYONE other than the irredeemably ignorant, or actively racist, who thinks this is a sound idea?
“Is it possible that you could have a life here, a job here, maybe kids going to school, a family here, then after 19 years if your country is then considered safe you get booted out and sent home?”
November 16, 2025 at 9:44 AM
Ultimately, what this is about is taking the issue of migration out of the hands of the courts, of the law, and putting it back in the hands of politicians, like before 1948. Is there ANYONE other than the irredeemably ignorant, or actively racist, who thinks this is a sound idea?
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Today is not the day to argue "oh so you want Reform to win then" as an argument for Labour's indefensible and inhumane anti-asylum policies. At least be honest and own that you're defending racist policies promoted with genuinely far right talking points. Don't try and pretend this is "progressive"
November 16, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Today is not the day to argue "oh so you want Reform to win then" as an argument for Labour's indefensible and inhumane anti-asylum policies. At least be honest and own that you're defending racist policies promoted with genuinely far right talking points. Don't try and pretend this is "progressive"
Reposted
Shabana Mahmood on the BBC this morning talking about desperate people fleeing war and persecution as being given a "golden ticket" and "handouts" and saying she's got a "moral mission" to take them away from them
Indistinguishable from the rhetoric of Reform www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/shabana-ma...
Indistinguishable from the rhetoric of Reform www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/shabana-ma...
Shabana Mahmood and the Politics of Extortion
Labour's strategy of telling its supporters to back Reform-style policies, or get a Reform Government, is the politics of the protection racket and it is not going to work
www.adambienkov.co.uk
November 16, 2025 at 9:25 AM
Shabana Mahmood on the BBC this morning talking about desperate people fleeing war and persecution as being given a "golden ticket" and "handouts" and saying she's got a "moral mission" to take them away from them
Indistinguishable from the rhetoric of Reform www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/shabana-ma...
Indistinguishable from the rhetoric of Reform www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/shabana-ma...
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This government has said the UK is "the destination of choice" for asylum seekers in Europe. That is simply untrue.
Now saying: claims in the UK are rising, while they are falling across Europe. Accurate of Germany (the destination of choice), of France (still more claims than UK), but not Spain
Now saying: claims in the UK are rising, while they are falling across Europe. Accurate of Germany (the destination of choice), of France (still more claims than UK), but not Spain
November 16, 2025 at 9:30 AM
This government has said the UK is "the destination of choice" for asylum seekers in Europe. That is simply untrue.
Now saying: claims in the UK are rising, while they are falling across Europe. Accurate of Germany (the destination of choice), of France (still more claims than UK), but not Spain
Now saying: claims in the UK are rising, while they are falling across Europe. Accurate of Germany (the destination of choice), of France (still more claims than UK), but not Spain
Reposted
Labour risks becoming an island of fuckwits
November 15, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Labour risks becoming an island of fuckwits
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The Labour leadership:
‘Sod the lessons of WWII, we’re going to treat refugees like shit, and if you don’t like it you can vote for a party who’ll treat them even worse. Oh, and don’t ask us to change the electoral system - we love being able to talk to you this way’.
Democracy at its finest.
‘Sod the lessons of WWII, we’re going to treat refugees like shit, and if you don’t like it you can vote for a party who’ll treat them even worse. Oh, and don’t ask us to change the electoral system - we love being able to talk to you this way’.
Democracy at its finest.
November 15, 2025 at 7:28 PM
The Labour leadership:
‘Sod the lessons of WWII, we’re going to treat refugees like shit, and if you don’t like it you can vote for a party who’ll treat them even worse. Oh, and don’t ask us to change the electoral system - we love being able to talk to you this way’.
Democracy at its finest.
‘Sod the lessons of WWII, we’re going to treat refugees like shit, and if you don’t like it you can vote for a party who’ll treat them even worse. Oh, and don’t ask us to change the electoral system - we love being able to talk to you this way’.
Democracy at its finest.