Martin Rathfelder
@rathfelder.bsky.social
Retired Mancunian agitator. Patient representative/ public contributor in Manchester University. Unpaid advocate for disabled people. Wikipedian. Whalley Range Labour Party.
Perfection is the enemy of improvement!
Perfection is the enemy of improvement!
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
"If I talk about myself, it has been seven years since I last met my mother.
I always dream about reuniting with her and think about how and when it can happen. Under the new law, family reunions now seem impossible."
I always dream about reuniting with her and think about how and when it can happen. Under the new law, family reunions now seem impossible."
New changes in the immigration system: scapegoating asylum seekers?
New UK migration rules double settlement time, risking decades of family separation and leaving asylum seekers in prolonged fear and heartbreak
bylines.scot
November 30, 2025 at 11:58 AM
"If I talk about myself, it has been seven years since I last met my mother.
I always dream about reuniting with her and think about how and when it can happen. Under the new law, family reunions now seem impossible."
I always dream about reuniting with her and think about how and when it can happen. Under the new law, family reunions now seem impossible."
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Far Right Reform Supporters Advocating Murder Online. When Will They Be Proscribed As A Hate Group?
Far Right Reform Supporters Advocating Murder Online. When Will They Be Proscribed As A Hate Group? - Dorset Eye
A far-right group chat has surfaced where people, who openly espouse Reform UK, joke about asylum accommodation being burned down, talk casually about the mass slaughter of Muslims, swap Islamophobic…
dorseteye.com
November 30, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Far Right Reform Supporters Advocating Murder Online. When Will They Be Proscribed As A Hate Group?
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
David Davis said there wouldn't be a single downside to Brexit.
Yorkshire Bylines recorded >2,000 of them from 2021-4.
Yorkshire Bylines recorded >2,000 of them from 2021-4.
The Davis Downside Dossier
David Davis famously said there would be no downsides to Brexit only considerable upsides - so we started recording them.
yorkshirebylines.co.uk
November 30, 2025 at 10:26 AM
David Davis said there wouldn't be a single downside to Brexit.
Yorkshire Bylines recorded >2,000 of them from 2021-4.
Yorkshire Bylines recorded >2,000 of them from 2021-4.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1965: 20-1
CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1990: 75-1
CEO-to-worker pay ratio today: 280-to-1
Trickle-down economics was always a sham.
Nothing has ever trickled down.
CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1990: 75-1
CEO-to-worker pay ratio today: 280-to-1
Trickle-down economics was always a sham.
Nothing has ever trickled down.
November 29, 2025 at 11:01 PM
CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1965: 20-1
CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1990: 75-1
CEO-to-worker pay ratio today: 280-to-1
Trickle-down economics was always a sham.
Nothing has ever trickled down.
CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1990: 75-1
CEO-to-worker pay ratio today: 280-to-1
Trickle-down economics was always a sham.
Nothing has ever trickled down.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Surely the options should be Your Party, Our Party, His Party or Her Party?
The weekend gathering in Liverpool will see supporters choose between four options for a permanent party name: Your Party, Our Party, Popular Alliance, For the Many.
Which is their best choice of these four?
Which is their best choice of these four?
November 29, 2025 at 12:31 PM
Surely the options should be Your Party, Our Party, His Party or Her Party?
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
'We have historically high welfare spending.' No we don't.
'We have a historically high proportion of working-age people not actually working.' No we don't.
'The number of Britons emigrating is skyrocketing.' No it isn't.
'We have a historically high proportion of working-age people not actually working.' No we don't.
'The number of Britons emigrating is skyrocketing.' No it isn't.
November 29, 2025 at 5:08 PM
'We have historically high welfare spending.' No we don't.
'We have a historically high proportion of working-age people not actually working.' No we don't.
'The number of Britons emigrating is skyrocketing.' No it isn't.
'We have a historically high proportion of working-age people not actually working.' No we don't.
'The number of Britons emigrating is skyrocketing.' No it isn't.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
If you can’t pay the new High Value Council Tax Surcharge you will be able to defer it to death or when you sell bit.ly/4iw02ws but @HMRCgovuk could charge 8% interest until you do. The same rate the govt decided recently is too much for banks to pay on misselling compensation
Homeowners who can’t afford mansion tax could face 8% interest
The government will let payments be deferred, but this could be a money spinner for the Treasury if you have to pay interest
bit.ly
November 29, 2025 at 5:04 PM
If you can’t pay the new High Value Council Tax Surcharge you will be able to defer it to death or when you sell bit.ly/4iw02ws but @HMRCgovuk could charge 8% interest until you do. The same rate the govt decided recently is too much for banks to pay on misselling compensation
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Violence against healthcare facilities and workers is an increasingly reported tactic in modern warfare. Read Reuters’ investigation into paramilitary attacks that dismantled a Sudanese city’s healthcare system reut.rs/4pDdzEW
Hospital massacre caps a long series of attacks on healthcare in war-torn Sudan
Almost 500 patients, their relatives and others were killed at al-Fashir's last functioning hospital during the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces' recent takeover of the Sudanese city, the World Healt...
reut.rs
November 28, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Violence against healthcare facilities and workers is an increasingly reported tactic in modern warfare. Read Reuters’ investigation into paramilitary attacks that dismantled a Sudanese city’s healthcare system reut.rs/4pDdzEW
Even after the mansion tax is applied, the owner of a £5 million home in Westminster will pay proportionately less in property tax than the owner of a £210,000 Band B property in Sunderland.
November 28, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Even after the mansion tax is applied, the owner of a £5 million home in Westminster will pay proportionately less in property tax than the owner of a £210,000 Band B property in Sunderland.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
This looks like an excellent now book from an excellent author. John Lister on Wealth versus Health: Trump’s Global War on Health and Science bite-sizedbooks.com/shop/wealth-...
Wealth versus Health: Trump’s Global War on Health and Science | Bite-Sized
bite-sizedbooks.com
November 28, 2025 at 8:00 PM
This looks like an excellent now book from an excellent author. John Lister on Wealth versus Health: Trump’s Global War on Health and Science bite-sizedbooks.com/shop/wealth-...
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Good to hear a sensible decision not to have a prostate screening programme, which do more harm than good overall.
The high grade ones are very hard to pick up in time to make a difference; the low grade ones remain treatable & often don't need it; & the false positives cause needless procedures.
The high grade ones are very hard to pick up in time to make a difference; the low grade ones remain treatable & often don't need it; & the false positives cause needless procedures.
November 28, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Good to hear a sensible decision not to have a prostate screening programme, which do more harm than good overall.
The high grade ones are very hard to pick up in time to make a difference; the low grade ones remain treatable & often don't need it; & the false positives cause needless procedures.
The high grade ones are very hard to pick up in time to make a difference; the low grade ones remain treatable & often don't need it; & the false positives cause needless procedures.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
E-bikes are the real urban mobility revolution. Cities need to take them seriously.
E-bikes could cut carbon, congestion, and costs — if cities take them seriously
E-bike sales are booming, providing a clean form of transportation that also improves public health. Yet cities remain committed to cars.
grist.org
November 28, 2025 at 3:02 PM
E-bikes are the real urban mobility revolution. Cities need to take them seriously.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Reform Party chair banned from the road following drink driving conviction
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/tamesid...
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/tamesid...
Reform party chair banned from the road following drink driving conviction
The politician was driving over the legal alcohol limit
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Reform Party chair banned from the road following drink driving conviction
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/tamesid...
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/tamesid...
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
The #Budget this week contained many measures that we have been calling for:
• Rail fares frozen
• Fuel duty to rise
• A small per-mile charge for electric vehicles
• Private jets taxed more
• Funding for rail projects
More in our blog: bettertransport.org.uk/blog/rebalan...
• Rail fares frozen
• Fuel duty to rise
• A small per-mile charge for electric vehicles
• Private jets taxed more
• Funding for rail projects
More in our blog: bettertransport.org.uk/blog/rebalan...
Rebalancing transport costs: five good things in the Budget
The cost of different forms of transport, both on their own and relative to each other, has a critical influence on whether and how people travel. People on low incomes can't use public transport if i...
bettertransport.org.uk
November 28, 2025 at 3:15 PM
The #Budget this week contained many measures that we have been calling for:
• Rail fares frozen
• Fuel duty to rise
• A small per-mile charge for electric vehicles
• Private jets taxed more
• Funding for rail projects
More in our blog: bettertransport.org.uk/blog/rebalan...
• Rail fares frozen
• Fuel duty to rise
• A small per-mile charge for electric vehicles
• Private jets taxed more
• Funding for rail projects
More in our blog: bettertransport.org.uk/blog/rebalan...
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
All screening causes harm.
Some screening causes benefit.
You need studies and stats to tell you whether the benefit outweighs the harm.
Some screening causes benefit.
You need studies and stats to tell you whether the benefit outweighs the harm.
This is what happens when as a single condition health charity you’re overly focused on those who die of your condition and you don’t consider outcomes for those who don’t, or the opportunity costs involved for NHS. PCUK are particularly guilty but they’re not alone.
www.thetimes.com/article/4487...
www.thetimes.com/article/4487...
Start prostate cancer testing regardless of advice, Wes Streeting told
NHS advisers are expected to rule against a mass programme for the disease, which causes more than 12,000 deaths a year
www.thetimes.com
November 28, 2025 at 1:55 PM
All screening causes harm.
Some screening causes benefit.
You need studies and stats to tell you whether the benefit outweighs the harm.
Some screening causes benefit.
You need studies and stats to tell you whether the benefit outweighs the harm.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
“We need compassion, honesty and choice, not political or religious obstruction from those who never support the Bill in any circumstance.”
Sophie Blake and other terminally ill people call out a minority of Lords trying to delay and derail the assisted dying Bill.
www.express.co.uk/news/politic...
Sophie Blake and other terminally ill people call out a minority of Lords trying to delay and derail the assisted dying Bill.
www.express.co.uk/news/politic...
November 28, 2025 at 3:00 PM
“We need compassion, honesty and choice, not political or religious obstruction from those who never support the Bill in any circumstance.”
Sophie Blake and other terminally ill people call out a minority of Lords trying to delay and derail the assisted dying Bill.
www.express.co.uk/news/politic...
Sophie Blake and other terminally ill people call out a minority of Lords trying to delay and derail the assisted dying Bill.
www.express.co.uk/news/politic...
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
As Jesus once put it: "what shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and then have to pay the mansion tax?"
November 28, 2025 at 12:11 PM
As Jesus once put it: "what shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and then have to pay the mansion tax?"
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
This is the obvious way run a pay-per-mile tax. Get an annual bill, which I'd imagine you could pay in one go or spread over the following 12 months. 3p per mile would be around £300 a year for a typical driver.
Electric cars will need annual checks under Reeves’s new rules
Drivers of electric cars will be requested to go to MOT centres annually to have their mileage checked, even if their vehicle does not require an inspection, under changes announced by Rachel Reeves.
buff.ly/jiqzfyw
Drivers of electric cars will be requested to go to MOT centres annually to have their mileage checked, even if their vehicle does not require an inspection, under changes announced by Rachel Reeves.
buff.ly/jiqzfyw
November 28, 2025 at 1:07 PM
This is the obvious way run a pay-per-mile tax. Get an annual bill, which I'd imagine you could pay in one go or spread over the following 12 months. 3p per mile would be around £300 a year for a typical driver.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
once more I am begging everyone to do policy based on evidence, not on vibes from the loudest-shouting pressure groups. What the NHS is leaning towards - targeted screening for those most at risk - is the right way to do this. Blanket screening with an unreliable test causes harm.
🔺UPDATED: Start prostate cancer testing regardless of advice, Wes Streeting told
Start prostate cancer testing regardless of advice, Wes Streeting told
Start prostate cancer testing regardless of advice, Wes Streeting told
www.thetimes.com
November 28, 2025 at 12:30 PM
once more I am begging everyone to do policy based on evidence, not on vibes from the loudest-shouting pressure groups. What the NHS is leaning towards - targeted screening for those most at risk - is the right way to do this. Blanket screening with an unreliable test causes harm.
June 2025, around 21.3% of NHS staff in England reported a nationality other than British. That amounts to roughly 325,000 out of about 1.5 million staff.
November 28, 2025 at 11:06 AM
June 2025, around 21.3% of NHS staff in England reported a nationality other than British. That amounts to roughly 325,000 out of about 1.5 million staff.
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
In this map @eurostats shows us that the total fertility rate in the EU stood at 1.38 live births per woman in 2023. My beloved Tenerife recorded the lowest rate of the whole of Europe (0.79). Source: link.europa.eu/p8WYPC
November 28, 2025 at 10:55 AM
In this map @eurostats shows us that the total fertility rate in the EU stood at 1.38 live births per woman in 2023. My beloved Tenerife recorded the lowest rate of the whole of Europe (0.79). Source: link.europa.eu/p8WYPC
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
"It’s not just me that’s perhaps not being heard"
Andy Burnham ‘disappointed’ after ‘massively important’ taxi changes dropped
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 10:16 PM
"It’s not just me that’s perhaps not being heard"
Reposted by Martin Rathfelder
OBR commentary on the budget:
"The implementation of digital ID cards is provisionally forecast to cost £1.8 billion in total over the next three years".
Govt says the cost will be met from existing departmental budgets.
Which services will be cut? Will the budget overrun?
obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...
"The implementation of digital ID cards is provisionally forecast to cost £1.8 billion in total over the next three years".
Govt says the cost will be met from existing departmental budgets.
Which services will be cut? Will the budget overrun?
obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...
obr.uk
November 27, 2025 at 8:49 PM
OBR commentary on the budget:
"The implementation of digital ID cards is provisionally forecast to cost £1.8 billion in total over the next three years".
Govt says the cost will be met from existing departmental budgets.
Which services will be cut? Will the budget overrun?
obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...
"The implementation of digital ID cards is provisionally forecast to cost £1.8 billion in total over the next three years".
Govt says the cost will be met from existing departmental budgets.
Which services will be cut? Will the budget overrun?
obr.uk/docs/dlm_upl...