Nick Whelan

@forres83278 @BrianLeishmanMP Quite the leap. Brian consistently stands up for his constituency over the gov line. Tried and tested.

@BrianLeishmanMP Talking of puppets your strings are pulled from 400 miles away.

This is most welcome. Especially if, and it’s a massive if, SNP backbenchers actually hold their own party to account and break their habit of being nothing more than voting fodder and cheerleaders for whatever awful positions and decisions their leadership take.

After John Swinney ran an election campaign on the slogan 'It's Scotland's Energy' he's appointed a cabinet which doesn't have a cabinet secretary for energy. It does have a position responsible for sacking public sector workers though.

@GerryHassan Why did this happen? And why hasn’t it happened again?

Winston Churchill was UK PM for nine years. But in all three UK general elections against Labour's Clement Attlee he never once won the popular vote. Labour won all three in votes: 1945, 1950, 1951.

@RyanThomas_Q @benhoobs Suits Polanski to have voters feeling the threat of reform and using by-election to ‘prove Labour can’t beat them’

@benhoobs Paper candidate only I imagine

You would think in this sort of seat Polanski would put aside party politics for the hope of a government he aligns more closely with.

Good day for everyone to hang out their dirty washing. Farage and his questionable millions and a party leader who doesn’t exercise his career defining fundamental right.

@DeanMThomson Strange choice for Burnham no? Perhaps the only MP willing to give up knowing he had no chance at the next general anyway?

Reform UK secured 31.8% in Makerfield in 2024 GE. Here just a few local-election results 2026 which fall inside Makerfield constituency boundaries. Read this list, and tell me again Burnham will retain Makerfield constituency for Labour (majority 5,399) Ashton-in-Makerfield South: Reform 46.4, Labour 32.5 🔻 11.2 (Reform gain from Labour) Bryn with Ashton-in-Makerfield North: Reform 52.2, Labour 24.1 🔻 1.4 (Reform gain from independent) Abram: Reform 56.1, Labour 24.2 🔻32.9% (Reform gain from Labour) Hindley: Reform 52.3, Labour 21.4 🔻 22.8 (Reform gain from Labour) Hindley Green (nearly all inside Makerfield): Reform 52.3, Labour 32.7 🔻 14.2 (Reform gain from Labour) Orrell: Reform 39.9, Labour24.2 🔻20.3 (Reform gain from Labour) Winstanley: Reform 49.7 (+31.5, Reform had previously ran here), Labour 31 🔻26.3 (Reform gain from Labour) Worsley Mesnes: Reform 50.9, Labour 25.2 🔻 21.2 (Reform gain from Labour)

BREAKING: Reform UK leader Nigel Farage bought £1.4m house in cash shortly after receiving £5m personal gift from crypto-billionaire Christopher Harborne. Reform says the "offer and process" of buying the property commenced before gift. Intriguing story by @AliFortescue

@BenInRushcliffe Actually couldn’t make it up. A solid, difficult to defend, potential fraud to the tune of millions of pounds and Streeting decides today is the day to ‘beat reform’.

Nigel Farage can't believe his luck....

@MrReeceballa He doesn’t have them. Even if he does, so what. He would never win amongst his own sect of membership, let alone the entire membership. Anybody who thinks otherwise is simply stirring the pot.

If Streeting doesn’t make a move today, is it safe to assume that he doesn’t actually have 81 MPs willing to back him despite what his team is saying?

@DPJHodges @DeanMThomson 🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱

All eyes on Streeting. I’m being told to watch the cabinet.

@JAHeale At least Prigozhin got on with it.

Labour source suggests Streeting will look like the “Prigozhin of the PLP” if he doesn’t go ahead

@Channel4News @krishgm He’s not gonna give you a job mate

Labour MP calls Wes Streeting a ‘once in a generational talent’ channel4.com/news/labour-mp…

@algorecrave Nah his performance was solid today.

someone stop this please

@Scott_Wortley The statistical chance of Andy Burnham appearing for a photo op outside of PieBobs bakery has just increased significantly. #BurnhamforBobs

Onwards Andy, to ARBROATH!

@Needmorethan280 @RossMcCaff He’d be annihilated in Aberdeen. Probably split the SNP vote and let Tory/Reform in. Arbroath Broughty Ferry slightly more likely, but again I don’t think he’d fair well in the working class areas. As much as the bubble see him as some sort of working class hero, I’m doubtful.

bear in mind there are two by-elections in Scotland and if Streeting's team are smart they will be pointing that out

@RossMcCaff Couple of Dundee council by-elections went very south very very quickly from what appeared to be a decent shot around this time. Had some of the local CLP tell me it was like someone flicked a light switch from one day to the next.

Its incredibly under discussed how much the freebies thing did for Starmer btw. No second chance at a first impression and within mere days he looked just as bad as the Tories. Fatal

@aodanhill Do you think it’s a cause or a symptom of our system these days? Hyper speed changing of focus from the media, sensationalism at its highest over stories that 5-10 years ago would have been very minor, and a different right wing willing to step on boundaries?

Starmer would be at least +5 in the polls if he actually made a point of bragging about his accomplishments. He's led a fairly conventional centre-left government with a list of progressive policy implemented. Instead he acts as if he hasn't done anything.

It’s like the bit in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy where George Smiley is shown all the photos of the glory days at the circus.

@conor_matchett @Scott_Wortley Perhaps it wasn’t what they all heard on the doors?

Honestly surprises me that in a moment of great peril for the Prime Minister, a man Anas Sarwar says he thinks should quit, there is/was not a unified move from the Scottish Labour caucus calling for him to resign. That would have really been a moment

@robertreid_ Actually blows my mind the greens are even having a stab at this.

“Were you daft enough not to take 30 seconds in the polling booth to check whether you’d voted for the correct party? If so, get in touch!”