Paul Linford
@paulhtfp.bsky.social
Publisher of journalism website http://holdthefrontpage.co.uk
and former Westminster political hack. Rejoiner and Centrist Dad. All views my own.
and former Westminster political hack. Rejoiner and Centrist Dad. All views my own.
Yes the current system is messy, but there are literally no votes in this, just an awful lot of grief. The political strategising in Number 10 seems seriously awry.
December 17, 2024 at 11:54 AM
Yes the current system is messy, but there are literally no votes in this, just an awful lot of grief. The political strategising in Number 10 seems seriously awry.
Whether the sale goes through or not there has clearly been a massive breakdown in trust between management and editorial staff on The Guardian and it is hard to see how that can be repaired.
December 10, 2024 at 5:18 PM
Whether the sale goes through or not there has clearly been a massive breakdown in trust between management and editorial staff on The Guardian and it is hard to see how that can be repaired.
Primarily yes, but with a bit of an undercurrent of anti-Christian sentiment.
December 6, 2024 at 2:58 PM
Primarily yes, but with a bit of an undercurrent of anti-Christian sentiment.
By all means hold his feet to the fire on his policies but I do hope we will never become the kind of country where people are barred from holding public office because of their religious affiliations. We saw this with the rather ugly treatment of Kate Forbes in the previous SNP leadership vote.
December 6, 2024 at 2:51 PM
By all means hold his feet to the fire on his policies but I do hope we will never become the kind of country where people are barred from holding public office because of their religious affiliations. We saw this with the rather ugly treatment of Kate Forbes in the previous SNP leadership vote.
You're probably right, but maybe Starmer wants to get away from these longwinded, mostly insincere thankyou letters that PMs are supposed to send resigning ministers.
November 29, 2024 at 1:43 PM
You're probably right, but maybe Starmer wants to get away from these longwinded, mostly insincere thankyou letters that PMs are supposed to send resigning ministers.
She was also trying to get the govt to commit to resurrecting the HS2 connection from Birmingham to Manchester, or a version of it. A great shame she has gone and I suspect the mobile phone 'story' is a mere pretext.
November 29, 2024 at 10:05 AM
She was also trying to get the govt to commit to resurrecting the HS2 connection from Birmingham to Manchester, or a version of it. A great shame she has gone and I suspect the mobile phone 'story' is a mere pretext.
As a long-standing Observer reader I am sympathetic to the cause but 'democracy dies behind paywalls' is a seriously bad slogan. Journalism has to be paid for and paywalled websites are just a digital incarnation of paid-for print titles.
November 28, 2024 at 4:59 PM
As a long-standing Observer reader I am sympathetic to the cause but 'democracy dies behind paywalls' is a seriously bad slogan. Journalism has to be paid for and paywalled websites are just a digital incarnation of paid-for print titles.
Correct. There should first be a Royal Commission, then if that recommends go ahead, it should be in Labour's next election manifesto so the electorate as a whole gets a say. Then if Labour is re-elected, govt legislation in the next Parliament.
November 27, 2024 at 8:48 AM
Correct. There should first be a Royal Commission, then if that recommends go ahead, it should be in Labour's next election manifesto so the electorate as a whole gets a say. Then if Labour is re-elected, govt legislation in the next Parliament.
Yes I think on the whole I agree with you. The current system is a mess, but any attempt to make sense of it is almost bound to end up making an even bigger mess.
November 25, 2024 at 11:11 AM
Yes I think on the whole I agree with you. The current system is a mess, but any attempt to make sense of it is almost bound to end up making an even bigger mess.
He wasn't entirely successful in the latter enterprise, mainly because 1) he didn't always get the backing from Blair, and 2) because the Regional Development Agencies he set up in 1999 were abolished by the Tories just 12 years later. But he deserves great credit for trying. RIP.
November 21, 2024 at 2:49 PM
He wasn't entirely successful in the latter enterprise, mainly because 1) he didn't always get the backing from Blair, and 2) because the Regional Development Agencies he set up in 1999 were abolished by the Tories just 12 years later. But he deserves great credit for trying. RIP.