The Mirror Crack'd

What are the odds on that? From Partygate to Fluttergate. Yes, shock horror, hold the front page! Tory insiders in Downing Street are seemingly at it again. Not partying while folk die in droves on this occasion but placing bets on the basis of privileged information while their boss, the self-proclaimed champion of standards in public office, is fighting a crucial election campaign. Not a good look I think you'll agree. Specifically, some of his inner circle have (allegedly) been beating a path to William Hill (other gambling outlets are available) to wager on a July election. Sunak says he's "incredibly angry", although whether at the substance of the allegations or their public revelation is unclear. "Integrity, professionalism and accountability"? I wouldn't bet on it. What he meant to say was... Much hilarity this morning watching James (not so) Cleverly, trying to brush aside an aide's unguarded comment on the Rwanda deportation scheme. James S

The current UK general election campaign has exposed something of an identity crisis within the Labour Party: is it, or is it not, a socialist party? On the campaign trail recently the leader of the party, Sir Keir Starmer, unequivocally described himself as a socialist. His shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, on the other hand, said she was a social democrat and on the Politics Live Election 2024 programme on BBC2 today Labour Peeress, Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, stated that Labour is a social democratic party. So who's right. The terms democratic socialism and social democracy are not interchangeable and should not be used as such. The strands carry different emphases within the 'broad church' of socialism, mainly around their willingness (or otherwise) to embrace, or at least tolerate, capitalism. The high-profile breakaway from Labour to form the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1981, which in turn led to the formation of the Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) in 1988, demonstr

The success of the right in the recent European elections suggests a weariness with liberal democracy, but what's the alternative? Not a very palatable one, I suggest, but there can be little doubt that the post-War western model of democracy is a busted flush. Small wonder, then, that illiberal democracy, or outright autocracy and demagoguery, seems to be becoming the norm worldwide. 2024 has been hailed as the year of elections. As Time puts it: "Globally, more voters than ever in history will head to the polls as at least 64 countries (plus the European Union) - representing a combined population of about 49% of the people in the world -  are meant to hold national elections, the results of which, for many, will prove consequential for years to come." The notion of illiberal democracy, as advocated by the rightwing prime minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán, is gaining ground, but whether it can even be described as a type of democracy is open to question. It may preserve

Only just into the second full week of a six-week general election campaign and already the campaigning seems to have trickled into the sand. Maybe this is down to the hiatus before finalising the official candidates' lists while awaiting publication of party manifestos (the excitement never starts) or, more likely, that parties (perhaps with the honourable exception of the Greens) seem bereft of any new policy offers. Those they have managed to cobble together, like the Tories' National Service dog-whistle nonsense, have fallen flat as a fart. Meanwhile, Sir Ed Davey for the Lib Dems has been gamely falling into water, admittedly in a worthy effort to highlight illegal sewage discharges into our waterways, but such images run the risk of becoming hostages to fortune. Falling over on the beach at Brighton did for Neil Kinnock's chances in 1992 when a clip was featured mercilessly in the opening sequence of the satirical puppet show, 'Spitting Image'.  Rishi Sunak

Your post is in the Czech News agency, Reuters, reports that the owner of Royal Mail has agreed to a £3.57billion takeover by Czech billionaire, Daniel Kretinsky.  Founded by Henry VIII in 1513 purely for royal mail, it was opened up to public use by Charles I in 1635 and sold off in a government asset strip - sorry, privatisation - in 2013, when the Post Office was also split off as a separate entity - and that ended well didn't it? Just ask Paula Vennells. On second thoughts, don't bother - she was paid over 5 million quid of public money not to know what was going on. Fit to bust Meanwhile, City AM reports that Thames Water, the embattled (f)utilities outfit currently losing more than 600million litres of water per day and pumping more than 72billion litres of untreated sewage into the Thames since 2020, has won an innovation award run by the regulator, Of(t)wat. Thames Water will receive £16.9million “to examine how technologies like robotics and trenchless repair methods

Finally, the long-awaited announcement has been made; Rishi Sunak has called the General Election for 4th July.  We now have a distinct possibility of bringing fourteen years of Tory (mis)rule to an end - bring it on! It's been an agonisingly long time coming but we are closer to it now than for a very long time. Not that it's a done deal, of course, a lot could still go awry (think 1992) but we can only hope - and vote - for it.  As 'Things can only get better' blared out from a protester's sound system beyond the gates of Downing Street, almost drowning out Sunak at his podium, the torrential rain did likewise. Talk about a damp squib - Sunak looked more like a drowned rat. If it was an augury, it was certainly an ominous one. Though he looked like a man who has lost the will to go on Sunak said he would fight for every vote. He will need to. We are now into the long campaign.  Believe me, it will feel v-e-r-y long.