@gerardkroon.bsky.social
Born in The Netherlands, moved to the UK in 1996 after a year in Ghana.
Reposted
Crypto investor and former Tory donor Christopher Harborne has just given a record-breaking £9 million donation to Reform.
Nigel Farage has spent recent months publicly calling for deregulation of the crypto industry, telling an industry conference that "I am your champion"
Nigel Farage has spent recent months publicly calling for deregulation of the crypto industry, telling an industry conference that "I am your champion"
December 4, 2025 at 9:25 AM
Crypto investor and former Tory donor Christopher Harborne has just given a record-breaking £9 million donation to Reform.
Nigel Farage has spent recent months publicly calling for deregulation of the crypto industry, telling an industry conference that "I am your champion"
Nigel Farage has spent recent months publicly calling for deregulation of the crypto industry, telling an industry conference that "I am your champion"
Reposted
The ‘Labour’ government is throwing higher education under the bus to appease a few racists.
December 4, 2025 at 8:06 AM
The ‘Labour’ government is throwing higher education under the bus to appease a few racists.
Reposted
Meanwhile senior figures in government are still discussing fantasy options, showing a continued lack of knowledge of the EU. There's no option currently available to the UK where goods flow and people don't. All in all, a pretty dismal picture.
December 4, 2025 at 8:07 AM
Meanwhile senior figures in government are still discussing fantasy options, showing a continued lack of knowledge of the EU. There's no option currently available to the UK where goods flow and people don't. All in all, a pretty dismal picture.
Reposted
Doesn't say anything for the political instincts of Number 10 that they were surprised by a positive response to a positive EU agenda.
Doesn't say much for their diplomatic instincts that this came 12 months too late to make a difference to negotiations. www.politico.eu/article/brex...
Doesn't say much for their diplomatic instincts that this came 12 months too late to make a difference to negotiations. www.politico.eu/article/brex...
December 4, 2025 at 8:00 AM
Doesn't say anything for the political instincts of Number 10 that they were surprised by a positive response to a positive EU agenda.
Doesn't say much for their diplomatic instincts that this came 12 months too late to make a difference to negotiations. www.politico.eu/article/brex...
Doesn't say much for their diplomatic instincts that this came 12 months too late to make a difference to negotiations. www.politico.eu/article/brex...
Reposted
My latest: in which I visit Oxfordshire's 'Rubbish Mountain', buy a Twirl in the country's most violent Sainsbury's, and explore the absolutely dismal response of the Environment Agency.
Rubbish Mountain
A gigantic pile of rubbish was dumped in a field in Oxfordshire. The response sums up everything wrong with British bureaucracy.
martinrobbins.substack.com
December 2, 2025 at 10:31 AM
My latest: in which I visit Oxfordshire's 'Rubbish Mountain', buy a Twirl in the country's most violent Sainsbury's, and explore the absolutely dismal response of the Environment Agency.
Reposted
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
Every sympathy for University of Essex (and pressures facing them) but this is very bad news for Southend.
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Essex university to cut 400 jobs as overseas student numbers plummet
Roles to be lost are part of wave of redundancy programmes across UK’s higher education sector
giftarticle.ft.com
December 3, 2025 at 8:14 AM
If it were steel works we would have a government bailout plan, yet losing thousands of jobs at unis is met with a shrug. & unlike steelworks universities were profitable when they had foreign students.
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
You are killing the golden goose… one of our best exports…
HOW IS THIS HELPING GROWTH?!
Reposted
It's all bad but hadn't seen the bit where Farage says:
"The European Union is the prototype for the New World Order."
That is a seriously, deeply problematic term that taps into Illuminati and antisemitic conspiracy theories.
How the fuck did this man direct the course of our politics?
"The European Union is the prototype for the New World Order."
That is a seriously, deeply problematic term that taps into Illuminati and antisemitic conspiracy theories.
How the fuck did this man direct the course of our politics?
We kept the receipts. These comments, taken together, paint a picture of the man he is today.
December 3, 2025 at 8:01 AM
It's all bad but hadn't seen the bit where Farage says:
"The European Union is the prototype for the New World Order."
That is a seriously, deeply problematic term that taps into Illuminati and antisemitic conspiracy theories.
How the fuck did this man direct the course of our politics?
"The European Union is the prototype for the New World Order."
That is a seriously, deeply problematic term that taps into Illuminati and antisemitic conspiracy theories.
How the fuck did this man direct the course of our politics?
Reposted
So much for all that bleating about being misled by the Treasury from the BBC's political editor Chris Mason .....
www.ft.com/content/48c2...
www.ft.com/content/48c2...
UK Politics: OBR says Reeves did not mislead public over Budget forecasts
Fiscal watchdog faces Treasury committee after accidental publication of key report prompted chair to resign
www.ft.com
December 2, 2025 at 12:19 PM
So much for all that bleating about being misled by the Treasury from the BBC's political editor Chris Mason .....
www.ft.com/content/48c2...
www.ft.com/content/48c2...
Reposted
This is the point where the anti-Reeves stories tip into madness. Criticise her performance all you like but what the hell is this?
December 2, 2025 at 9:57 PM
This is the point where the anti-Reeves stories tip into madness. Criticise her performance all you like but what the hell is this?
Reposted
👏 Keir Starmer PM: "How Brexit was sold and delivered was wrong. Wild promises were made to the British people and not fulfilled."
"The idea that leaving the EU was the answer to all our cares and concerns has clearly been proved wrong."
"The idea that leaving the EU was the answer to all our cares and concerns has clearly been proved wrong."
December 2, 2025 at 10:31 AM
👏 Keir Starmer PM: "How Brexit was sold and delivered was wrong. Wild promises were made to the British people and not fulfilled."
"The idea that leaving the EU was the answer to all our cares and concerns has clearly been proved wrong."
"The idea that leaving the EU was the answer to all our cares and concerns has clearly been proved wrong."
Reposted
We kept the receipts. These comments, taken together, paint a picture of the man he is today.
December 1, 2025 at 12:01 PM
We kept the receipts. These comments, taken together, paint a picture of the man he is today.
Reposted
Heard this one? The City of Barcelona traded 3 lanes of vehicle traffic for an exceptional 4.7km green pedestrian corridor in the heart of the Eixample grid. Businesses sued, & eventually won in court. Then they admitted that they actually like the change.
Streets for people are good for business.
Streets for people are good for business.
The Legal Attack on Superblock Barcelona - City Lab Barcelona
In this blog post, I attempt to unpack what this court ruling is about, the legal arguments, and who is behind it. Did the city really do something wrong? What will happen to the Consell de Cent proj...
citylabbcn.org
November 30, 2025 at 7:37 AM
Heard this one? The City of Barcelona traded 3 lanes of vehicle traffic for an exceptional 4.7km green pedestrian corridor in the heart of the Eixample grid. Businesses sued, & eventually won in court. Then they admitted that they actually like the change.
Streets for people are good for business.
Streets for people are good for business.
Reposted
It’s an indictment of our media that more time is being spent on whether Reeves lied about the need to raise taxes than on the actual substance of the policies announced on Wednesday.
November 30, 2025 at 9:15 AM
It’s an indictment of our media that more time is being spent on whether Reeves lied about the need to raise taxes than on the actual substance of the policies announced on Wednesday.
Reposted
“The most dishonest campaign in our history said it would save us £350 million a week, but Brexit actually cost us £250 million a day…That is why we have the highest taxes ever, that is why we have sky-high bills, that is why we have a cost of living crisis.”
www.libdems.org.uk/press/releas...
www.libdems.org.uk/press/releas...
Revealed: Brexit costing the UK £250m a day in lost tax revenue
The UK is losing £250m a day in lost tax revenue due to the economic impact of Brexit, House of Commons Library analysis commissioned by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.
www.libdems.org.uk
November 30, 2025 at 11:26 PM
“The most dishonest campaign in our history said it would save us £350 million a week, but Brexit actually cost us £250 million a day…That is why we have the highest taxes ever, that is why we have sky-high bills, that is why we have a cost of living crisis.”
www.libdems.org.uk/press/releas...
www.libdems.org.uk/press/releas...
Reposted
HM Treasury before the ref and the Tories own post ref DexEU department both produced analysis showing there was no version of Brexit which could have worked for the economy.
www.gov.uk/government/p...
www.gov.uk/government/p...
November 30, 2025 at 4:41 PM
HM Treasury before the ref and the Tories own post ref DexEU department both produced analysis showing there was no version of Brexit which could have worked for the economy.
www.gov.uk/government/p...
www.gov.uk/government/p...
Reposted
I feel like one of the most underrated explanations for what's happening right now in global politics is that almost everyone has lost their minds.
November 30, 2025 at 2:59 AM
I feel like one of the most underrated explanations for what's happening right now in global politics is that almost everyone has lost their minds.
Reposted
Corruption at Fifa used to be the shameless, amateurish activity of men who liked cigars, brandy and five-star hotels. Under Infantino it has been turbocharged with the grotesque aim of making Fifa's president a global statesman.
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
‘He massages Trump’s basest instincts’: why is Fifa’s Gianni Infantino cosying up to the US president?
For a man who insists football isn’t political, the Fifa boss is putting a lot of effort into into courting the most divisive politician on Earth
www.theguardian.com
December 1, 2025 at 8:34 AM
Corruption at Fifa used to be the shameless, amateurish activity of men who liked cigars, brandy and five-star hotels. Under Infantino it has been turbocharged with the grotesque aim of making Fifa's president a global statesman.
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
www.theguardian.com/football/202...
Reposted
What we're seeing is exactly what we saw in the late 1940s, the late 1960s and the mid- to late 1970s: a concerted and hysterical campaign to delegitimise a Labour government, and indeed the very idea of Labour governments at all.
December 1, 2025 at 8:44 AM
What we're seeing is exactly what we saw in the late 1940s, the late 1960s and the mid- to late 1970s: a concerted and hysterical campaign to delegitimise a Labour government, and indeed the very idea of Labour governments at all.
Reposted
British businessman Philip Hutchinson has appeared in Russian state media championing attempt by Moscow to exploit divisions in the West
Join me in Russia with anti-woke visa, urges former Tory candidate
British businessman Philip Hutchinson has appeared in Russian state media championing attempt by Moscow to exploit divisions in the West
www.thetimes.com
December 1, 2025 at 8:16 AM
British businessman Philip Hutchinson has appeared in Russian state media championing attempt by Moscow to exploit divisions in the West
Reposted
Russia's "political scientist" Sorokin explains how the Russian government first had to paint Ukraine's population as "nazis" as an excuse to then persecute.
December 1, 2025 at 8:11 AM
Russia's "political scientist" Sorokin explains how the Russian government first had to paint Ukraine's population as "nazis" as an excuse to then persecute.
Reposted
This is the most alarming story I’ve read today. Giving up the fight before it’s started
November 30, 2025 at 9:57 AM
This is the most alarming story I’ve read today. Giving up the fight before it’s started
Reposted
"If the government is to have any hope of getting itself back into the driver’s seat of our political moment, of getting its future back, it must start arguing in terms of a bold and coherent vision for the future."
@mbarnfield.bsky.social on the budget and the government's empty long-termism
@mbarnfield.bsky.social on the budget and the government's empty long-termism
This Labour government lacks a future
You might be forgiven for thinking that the Labour government is focused on the future. Since before his government’s first Budget, the Prime Minister has repeatedly asked the British public to stomac...
renewal.org.uk
November 28, 2025 at 3:40 PM
"If the government is to have any hope of getting itself back into the driver’s seat of our political moment, of getting its future back, it must start arguing in terms of a bold and coherent vision for the future."
@mbarnfield.bsky.social on the budget and the government's empty long-termism
@mbarnfield.bsky.social on the budget and the government's empty long-termism
Reposted
Still reeling from the Stanford report on Brexit. Reduced GDP by up to 8% and investment by as much as 18%. The UK Treasury would have £40 billion more each year if Britain had remained in the EU. Devastating self-immolation.
The Economic Impact of Brexit
Other
siepr.stanford.edu
November 24, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Still reeling from the Stanford report on Brexit. Reduced GDP by up to 8% and investment by as much as 18%. The UK Treasury would have £40 billion more each year if Britain had remained in the EU. Devastating self-immolation.
Reposted
And again I wonder why a super expert like Portes is not on BBC4 today instead of a guy making a case about low taxes
Fewer workers. Fewer international students. More people leaving.
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
UK net migration falls sharply with drop in arrivals for work and study
Provisional figures for net migration to the UK show levels dropped to 204,000 in the year to June 2025.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 7:33 AM
And again I wonder why a super expert like Portes is not on BBC4 today instead of a guy making a case about low taxes
Reposted
As Trump and Putin work to crush Ukraine and destabilise Europe and Farage’s ally gets sentenced to 10yrs for taking Russian bribes, it’s a good time to revisit this excellent report on how the British rightwing has betrayed us all.
Brexit was their weapon of choice.
bylinetimes.com/2022/03/08/p...
Brexit was their weapon of choice.
bylinetimes.com/2022/03/08/p...
Putin’s Plot Against ‘Great’ Britain – And How He Got Away With It
Peter Jukes tracks Vladimir Putin’s long war against the West and the allies he has found in the pro-Brexit establishment in the plot to derail Britain
bylinetimes.com
November 23, 2025 at 9:31 AM
As Trump and Putin work to crush Ukraine and destabilise Europe and Farage’s ally gets sentenced to 10yrs for taking Russian bribes, it’s a good time to revisit this excellent report on how the British rightwing has betrayed us all.
Brexit was their weapon of choice.
bylinetimes.com/2022/03/08/p...
Brexit was their weapon of choice.
bylinetimes.com/2022/03/08/p...