James Meikle

Best in the world and it ain’t even close 🐐

The full leaked quotes by the new UK ambassador to Washington Christian Turner to school kids are NUTS - and reckless? ❌It includes saying the PM's future looked "quite touch and go" in February ❌Keir Starmer is a "stubborn guy" ❌Speculating that Labour - if it does badly next week " will be able to go over that threshold (of 80 MPs) and remove him" ❌And on Mandelson affair speculated: "The vetting thing’s a bit of a red herring”. “The problem was he had a bunch of associations that were embarrassing to him and the government that had not been revealed. And, arguably, once they were uncovered, the prime minister moved to sack him.”

Lovely. Thank you for sharing this moment of joy.

Big news! China’s CO2 emissions declined last year, while India’s did not increase, reports the International Energy Agency. So much for the endlessly trotted-out argument that we should not go for net zero because they are doing nothing. iea.org/news/global-en…

The last time Spurs won a league game England were 3-0 down in the Ashes

The BBC website is leading on an opinion piece. I’m not a Labour supporter, just a retired journalist. This is a contentious decision given the privileged position of our national broadcaster during an election campaign.

KASPAROV: Trump keeps ignoring American public opinion to support Ukraine. It’s tragic that United States openly siding with Russia. Look at United Nations. It’s shame beyond imagination. America never votes with Ukraine and European allies. It always sides with Russia, Belarus, Nicaragua, and North Korea. America’s reputation has been damaged so badly that I’m not sure the next president alone will be able to recover it. It will probably take a long time before people restore their confidence in America — country that was beacon of hope and garden of democracy in the days when I grew up as a kid on other side of Iron Curtain in Soviet Union.

Sad news. Another British manufacturing icon bites the dust: Denby Pottery. For decades, British manufacturing has been in decline. It used to be the envy of the world. Cheap foreign imports, high production costs and lack of government support towards ‘made in Britain’ isn’t just destroying British manufacturing, it’s also destroying communities built around these industries. When British made businesses die, part of our economic and industrial spirit dies with it. It’s time for the government to actually do something about this.

In the last 24H, Trump: - Attacked Prince Harry - Suggested the USA could review the UK's sovereignty over the Falkland Islands - Threatened to impose huge tariffs over Britain's digital services tax If your friend behaved like that, you wouldn't claim a "special relationship".

When you study literature, you look for motive. Motive is a big deal. When you're a serious commentator looking at a plot - eg to install a seriously unsuitable person as US ambassador, you don't study motive. You deep dive into who should have said what to whom in a corridor.

"Only very sick kids should die from measles" No, Secretary Kennedy NO child should die from measles. Because there's a vaccine to prevent it.

'iternative process' ... 'audit trails' ... 'four distinct processes' ... 'highly secure portal' ... thank god I've never worked in govt. SPEAK ENGLISH

Absolutely horrific night in Ukraine last night - 44 ballistic missiles and 659 drones fired from Russia. Deaths in Kyiv, Odessa and Dnipro. Not even bothering to hide the fact that it is residential areas under attack. Barely on the news outside Ukraine. And @JDVance says he is proud that USA has pulled its support so the aggressor can keep aggressing. Disgusting. But Europe has to do even more now

Ahead of the coming local, mayoral and devolved elections, what do Britons say are the top issues in their local area? Top 10 1 Roads (potholes, parking, etc): 37% 2 Economy, cost of living: 35% 3 GPs/hospitals: 29% 4 Immigration: 19% 5 Crime: 18% =6 State of high street / town centre: 14% =6 NHS dentists: 14% 8 Council tax: 13% 9 Fuel prices: 12% 10 Housing/planning: 11% Results link in replies

We don’t appreciate Harry Kane, our great ambassador of the game, enough There are no paragons in elite sport, but for over a decade Harry Kane has led by example with modesty, hard work and bags of goals. We mock his virtues when we should cherish them, writes @_PaulHayward bit.ly/483KImT

"Plans for more brutal job cuts are wrong, damaging and will cause uncertainty and distress for workers at the BBC," said Laura Davison, NUJ general secretary. "The BBC belongs to all of us and we need to fight for it." nuj.org.uk/resource/nuj-s…

Today is a beautiful day! The UK has officially signed its return to Erasmus+. British students will once again study across Europe, feeling closer to our shared continent A wonderful victory for all who believe in the bond between the UK and EU Erasmus+ welcomes the UK home

Obscene thing to say. If you must, say, “I’m sorry but Ukraine is not our problem; we have bigger issues to deal with; Europe should step up”. But to say you’re proud of starving a country of help in the face of lethal aggression? Just don’t understand this man’s morality.

Ukraine is victim of an unprovoked invasion by a barbaric totalitarian killing machine. And the VP of the USA says he’s proud not to be helping it. Immoral, callous charlatan. Let’s hope we never hear of him again after 2028.

Popesplaining!