ALAN SIMPSON
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Governments fall more often from let-downs than lock-downs. That’s why Marcus Rashford’s ‘end child food-poverty’ campaign has thrown British politics into a tiz. Who would have thought a young, black footballer would provide the leadership politics seems to lack. Although Rashford consistently says “This is not about politics: it is about humanity,” everyone understands the…
Britain’s ‘4 week national lockdown’ will not halt the rate at which Tory pandemic planning falls apart. Privately, there are calls for a ‘Grand Coalition’, a Government of National Unity to save the country. For Labour (and Britain) it would be the Kiss of the Spider Woman; something to be avoided as much as Covid…
Are we the new Number 6? Don’t be under any illusions. This article offers no sanctuary for the advocates of ‘herd immunity’. As an answer to the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s a price too high. A colossal increase in death rates, and overwhelming the NHS, does not even bear thinking about. All the same, the growing…
The government’s educational omnishambles is stealing all the headlines at the moment. It pushes political incompetence to new limits. But behind the debacle lies a bigger crime. Boris Johnson is killing parliamentary democracy faster than the pandemic is killing people. And though Labour is immeasurably more virtuous, the Party struggles to lay a glove on…
Robin Hood Dies: the legend lives on As news hits the press about the imminent demise of Nottingham’s Robin Hood Energy company (RHE), I took a look at the plinth in front of St Mary’s church in the middle of Nottingham. The plinth offers a mythical version of Robin Hood’s demise; slowly being ‘bled’ to…
Tipping or turning: the choice is still ours We are in a bad place; a really bad place. The IMF predicts that the Covid pandemic will shrink the global economy by 5% this year, with a cumulative loss of around $9 trillion. Britain’s Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) records a ‘lockdown’ economic collapse of over…
Transformation Moment
My pamphlet 'Transformation Moment' is intended to support the case for a radical shift in energy thinking; as much about democracy as technology, and about 'systems' rather than just supply.
'We, the People - the Case for Radical Federalism' published today! This report is an innovative + fresh contribution to thinking and debate about future structure and constitution of the UK. Report is available now at
All is well. He’s just obtained his French passport. À bientôt.
Haven’t heard from Lexit in a while, hope he’s doing OK
This is heart-breaking, but the call to "get it sorted" is misplaced. It's not happening because of sortable glitches in Brexit but because what Brexit does by design is to erect barriers with the EU. Those who warned of the consequences were called fearmongers. Now it's too late https://t.co/4Kyuq1kZnY
Looking for a radical alternative to post-democratic cronyism or a Balkanised Britain? Here you go.
'We, the People - the Case for Radical Federalism' published today! This report is an innovative + fresh contribution to thinking and debate about future structure and constitution of the UK. Report is available now at https://t.co/oqY1dLEfRq
Great piece by @Lauratobin1 on @GMB summarising new attribution results from my colleagues Nikos Christidis and @StottPeter and datavis from @neilrkaye and @ed_hawkins. More details in our @carbonbrief article https://t.co/HggAoyjK5E
Met Office: A review of the UK’s climate in 2020 | Carbon Brief
2020 was the UK’s third warmest, sixth wettest and eighth sunniest year in the UK national series. 2020 is the only year that features in the Top 10...
www.carbonbrief.org
the stats that covid deniers should but probably won’t read
Brexit stops UK direct access to EU internal electricity market
UK traders now have to book transmission capacity to be able to trade with EU
Before Brexit, trading inside UK PX was automatically giving direct access to EU via all available capacity
Brexit : le grand retour en arrière du marché de l'électricité
SPéCIAL BREXIT Le Royaume-Uni est aussi sorti du marché unique de l'électricité. Un retour en arrière qui risque de désoptimiser les échan...
www.lesechos.fr
This is Johnson’s ‘Britannia Unchained’. Dumping garbage on the poor has become Britain’s new Development Programme.
'Loophole' will let UK continue to ship plastic waste to poorer countries
Post-Brexit regulation doesn’t match new EU rules to tackle ocean pollution, despite UK being Europe’s largest plastic waste producer
www.theguardian.com
#FreeSchoolMeals On the left £30 of food. On the right what private company Chartwells have supplied having been awarded a government contract to supply for £30 free school meals.
Utterly shameful profiteering off some of the country's most disadvantaged kids!
They need to ask whether someone, deemed unfit to hold a Twitter account, should be left in charge of the nuclear codes?
‘I can no longer call myself a ... Republican,’ Colin Powell says after Capitol riot https://t.co/bOVMHD8pH2