Elliot Kane

Let's look at Reality. Firstly, please remember that it is both time- and space-bound. That river you see was a small stream long ago and may vanish hereafter. The boiling temperature of water depends on how far you are above sea level. Easy enough start, right?

@GBNEWS Who cares? This is typical crab bucket thinking: 'if we can't get out, you're not allowed to, either!' Even when escaping the bucket would be the best course for them, too.

Britain to be lumped with RUSSIA as Council of Europe warns leaving ECHR has 'consequences' gbnews.com/politics/polit…

@DanielJHannan I suspect he likes having a check list he can work his way down and has trouble when he needs to do things on the fly. An extremely methodical approach can make for a great lawyer, but a very bad Prime Minister.

It is hard to avoid the conclusion that, in Starmer’s mind, the office of PM is ceremonial, like that of a Japanese emperor. He sees his role as being to implement court judgments and reviews, and gulps in horror when there's no one to tell him what to do. youtube.com/watch?v=CBwyUy…

The EU re set continues as a big sell out by the PM. The EU cannot believe their luck, as they think of more ways to demand money from a weak government desperate to be friends. The PM fails to press any demands that could benefit the UK to avoid annoying them.

Which taxes will the Chancellor have to raise to pay all the extra money to the EU that the re set will cost? The cost of UK state borrowing has gone up again as the PM offers the EU more money we cannot afford for Erasmus, Ukraine loan and other EU needs.

@RiffologyPod Lovebites: Glory to The World: youtube.com/watch?v=-wJtD2…

If you could choose a band and a song to headline a festival, who and what would it be? Please share and follow us for daily album releases and more music content! #riffology #musicfestival #festivalheadliner #livemusic #favouriteband #songchoice

@afneil @TimesRadio Dragon seems to be docked for maintenance in Cyprus, though it 'could be deployed very quickly' apparently...

My monologue from today’s The Times at One with Andrew Neil @TimesRadio ROYAL NAVY RIP While US destroyers duke it out with Iranian navy fast boats over the Strait of Hormuz, we learned yesterday that the Royal Navy’s HMS Iron Duke, a Type 23 frigate, was being withdrawn from active service, despite a recent £100m five-year refit, which suggests that was largely a waste of money.  More important, it underlines the stark reality that we no longer have a functioning navy.  That’s right. The country of Rule Britannia, which once had the most powerful navy in the world, capable of protecting an empire which covered a quarter of the globe, no longer has a navy worthy of the name.   For the factual basis of what I’m about to say, I am indebted to Britsky, who posts important naval data on X and has become the reliable go-to source for information on our disappearing Navy.  HMS Iron Duke joins another ageing Type 23, HMS Richmond, in retirement. Leaving the Royal Navy with just five frigates to monitor Russian submarine activity in the North Atlantic and other Russian activity in the Channel.  Even that doesn’t reveal the full, desperate picture. Of the five frigates still supposedly available for service, one, HMS Kent, has been almost 750 days in refit and is not available for service. HMS Portland and HMS St Albans have also been laid up for some time.  Only HMS Somerset is currently deployed and HMS Sutherland could be, pretty quickly. So the Royal Navy can call on the immediate services of only two of the five frigates we have, all dating from the 1990s.  What about the more powerful Type 45 destroyers? Sad to relate the picture is even bleaker. There are only six. One, HMS Dragon, has been deployed to the East Mediterranean to protect Cyprus, though that took some time.  Another, HMS Daring, has been in refit for 3,260 days and still not available for duty. HMS Defender has been out of action for over 1,000 days, HMS Diamond for just under 700 days. HMS Dauntless is in maintenance. Other than Dragon, out of our six destroyers, only HMS Duncan could be deployed quickly.  What about our hugely expensive, powerful Astute class submarines? Better you don’t ask. We have only five — and only one, HMS Anson, is on active service somewhere in the Indian Ocean.  The other four — Astute, Ambush, Artful and Audacious — have been laid up for a total of 4,000 days. That’s right 4,000 days. HMS Ambush alone has been inactive for 1,400 days. It’s currently laid up on the River Clyde.  So the currently deployable, conventional Royal Navy, excluding the ancient, creaking subs carrying our nuclear deterrent, amounts to two frigates, two destroyers and one sub. That’s not a navy for a maritime nation. That’s a joke.  Yes, we have two big aircraft carriers too. They also seem to spend a lot of time in maintenance, which is where they are at the moment. But both could currently be deployed pretty quickly, which is an improvement. But we don’t have the frigates or destroyers to form a carrier fleet. So they can only be used in concert with better equipped allies.  We might be short of fighting ships. But we’re not short of admirals. We currently have around 30 rear admirals or above, which works out around four per deployable ship. That’s admirals. Not captains.  None, of course, of this bloated top brass has been held accountable for the near disappearance of our naval power. Nor have any Tory politicians who for 14 years presided over our navy’s degradation. Nor is the current Labour government in any apparent hurry to put matters right. Our airforce and army are in no great shapes either. But it is the state of our non-navy, an integral, vital part of our island history, which is the real national scandal.  And, as is so often the case in modern Britain, nobody is held to account. Nobody forced to carry the can. Nobody making it their mission to put it right. And that is the real national disgrace.

A barrel of oil in the Stone Age was worthless. A barrel of oil in an industrial civilization can heat homes, move trucks, and power factories. Nature gives us atoms, but it is humans who give those atoms value. humanprogress.org/the-most-impor…

The government needs to talk to the owners of Lindsey and Grangemouth oil refineries, undermined by government high tax and high energy cost policies. They were both important suppliers of jet fuel. Change policy to bring them back into use before they are demolished.

Indeed. 👇 And then they say we ‘select’ kids. We don’t. It would be illegal. What we do, on so many levels, is do what others will not do. We work hard. So do our kids. From September of year 7. That’s why our kids know more and are better people, and become adults one can admire and respect. That’s why 1000 ppl visit us every year- to see what seems to be a miracle. Sign up on the website for a visit! Michaela isn’t a miracle. It is simply the result of hard decisions and hard work. It is doing what’s right, even when difficult, especially when difficult. Those who hate us aren’t up to the task. Those of you who quietly listen, wondering what to think - ignore those who fail time and time again and refuse to learn from those who succeed. You don’t have to be like them. Think differently. Be the change you want to see in the world.

An interesting hotel facility at my next interesting destination…

@LordAshcroft Not sure whether to compliment their maker, or the shooting accuracy of the locals who mean they are required! :D

@JohnRentoul And the then-incumbent was prepared to step down without a fight. I don't see that happening with Starmer. Thoughts of country or even party aren't about to deter any of them, either. Interesting, but not in a good way.

This is completely different from 2006: then most Lab MPs and members agreed on who they wanted next

@JohnRentoul Apart from 'only protest legally' they all look pretty dubious, to me.

Really not sure about bullet 4 either

If the PM wants to give more help to Ukraine and boost UK defence exports he should offer a UK loan to buy the weapons Ukraine want from UK companies. Joining an EU scheme will cost us more and will do less good. How much will he pay the EU? How many orders will the UK get?

@DouglasCarswell AI are programmed to try to keep you engaged. They do that by trying to keep you happy and interested. Worth talking to AI about why AI do what they do, if you haven't already. Can be fascinating.

Claude really has a very human trait - if you happen to mention something, it's all he will think about.

@afneil I think it's become the latest excuse our politicians use when they do/don't want to do something. They can't blame the EU any more, so they need some other body to blame. Never mind that it's all smoke and mirrors.

This international law stuff bemuses me. Is China abiding by it? Is Russia? Don’t we have a long enough track record in human rights from Magna Carta onwards to decide our own standards. Especially since so many international law judges include those from Russia and China. Eg in the `Chagos Islands case.

@AlArabiya_Eng I wonder if the US and Iran are aware of their high esteem for France? Be interesting to know...

“We are trusted by the US but we are respected and trusted by the Iranians.” French President Emmanuel Macron says France is trusted by the US and respected by Iran, positioning itself to help facilitate the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. #Macron

@GBNEWS Those who try to trade liberty for safety frequently find they end up with neither.

'If you give up everything for safety, you end up having no safety whatsoever.' Stephen Pound says we 'give the bad people the victory' by changing our way of life out of fear. 📺 Freeview 236, Sky 512, Virgin 604 🇬🇧 Become a Friend of GB News: gbnews.com/support

First ep of Maul: Shadow Lord is up on the official Star Wars YT channel for free viewing. It's pretty good: youtube.com/watch?v=G33X8J…