peter shallcross

This is such a beautiful film - a gorgeous cinema treat for all butterfly lovers but everyone else as well. From April 19… I massively recommend it! ⁦@MatthewOates76⁩ theguardian.com/film/2026/mar/…

Russia: Kremlin propaganda is openly criticizing and questioning the regime. Example: Thousands of cows on private farms in Novosibirsk are being killed by government reps in hazmat suits, some in the dead of night, and all carcasses taken away for burning. No explanation.

Rounding the corner on this quiet lane in the morning sunshine, I must admit that I had to stop and rub my eyes a little. The verges shimmered, that lovely golden light picking out the trees and the grasses and the curving way ahead - and above it all, a floating farm?! You never know what you'll find in the Peak District countryside! 📍 Peak District, England

Huge congratulations to Peter Eastmond & the team @Rothamsted for bringing the first ever officially recognised precision-bred plant to the UK. Part of the @bofinfarmers @probityproject_ this barley can now be grown on any commercial farm in England gov.uk/government/col…

How long do you really want to live, though?

Then tucked away, his own TB eradication board statement with the actual data…..

JUST IN: China condemned the US-Israeli strikes on Iran within hours. Thirteen days later, Beijing has not once named Iran as the attacker of the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, or Saudi Arabia. Read that asymmetry carefully. It is the most expensive silence in geopolitics. Mao Ning called the US-Israeli strikes a “grave violation of sovereignty” that “tramples on the UN Charter.” Wang Yi told Lavrov the killing of Khamenei was “unacceptable.” China “firmly opposes and strongly condemns.” Unambiguous. Repeated daily. When asked about Iran’s strikes on Gulf states, the same spokesperson offered: “Any attack against innocent civilians and non-military targets should be condemned.” No country named. No aggressor identified. Passive voice where active voice was deployed hours earlier. On March 11, the UN Security Council voted on a resolution condemning Iran’s attacks on seven sovereign nations. One hundred and thirty-five countries co-sponsored it. Thirteen of fifteen Council members voted yes. China abstained. Not vetoed. Abstained. Declined to condemn Iran for striking the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan even as 174 ballistic missiles and 689 drones hit Emirati territory in the first 72 hours. Even as a Shahed drone struck near the Fairmont on Palm Jumeirah. Even as fires erupted at Jebel Ali Port. Even as Dubai International Airport sustained damage. Even as Ras Laffan went offline. Even as Kuwait’s airport terminal was hit. Even as Bahrain’s Bapco refinery declared force majeure. The silence is the sound of 11.7 million barrels of Iranian crude transiting Hormuz to China since February 28 while the rest of the world’s shipping is locked out by insurance collapse. China imports 80 to 90 percent of Iran’s crude exports. That revenue funds the IRGC. The IRGC’s autonomous commands protect China-bound shadow fleet tankers broadcasting “CHINA OWNER” on AIS transponders while firing on everything else. China’s teapot refineries process that crude at $9 to $12 per barrel below Brent while Japan, South Korea, and India pay crisis premiums for alternatives they can barely access. Beijing does not need to condemn Iran’s strikes because Iran’s strikes benefit China. Every P&I cancellation that locks a Japanese tanker out of Hormuz is a competitive advantage for Chinese refineries. Every day Ras Laffan stays offline is a day China’s LNG competitors pay $25 per MMBtu while China draws from a 120-day strategic buffer. Every tower burning in Dubai is a reason for capital to flow east. The condemnation of US strikes positions China as defender of sovereignty. The abstention protects the revenue stream that funds the war machine that keeps Hormuz closed to China’s competitors. Both serve the same function. This is not neutrality. This is the most profitable non-participation in a conflict since Switzerland in 1939. And like Switzerland then, the neutrality is funded by the proceeds of the conflict it claims to stand above. China called for peace within hours. China’s tankers are the only ones moving through the war zone. And the IRGC commands that fire on everyone else protect those tankers because they carry the money that keeps the commands alive. The silence is not silence. It is strategy. And yesterday, at the United Nations, 135 nations saw it clearly enough to co-sponsor the resolution that China would not sign. open.substack.com/pub/shanakaans…

@adriawildlife @BSBIbotany @WildSheffield Interesting. I cut my garden meadow in early September, but do so severely, purposely leaving bare ground. And that also seems to have encouraged their spread

@RhonddaBryant @biztradegovuk Stop treating British farmers like fools and be honest. Your US trade deal benefits the US far more, and will see minimal beef exports to the US. We've seen Vivergo close as a direct consequence.

Soon the whales will have nothing to eat and food chains will collapse due to Chinese fleets inability to have any self control

Chinese vessel Fu Yuan Yu 9199, largest krill trawler in Antarctica right now is pumping up krill 24/7 from one of Earth’s most fragile regions. They even use drones All this to make fish feed for aquaculture & then spin it into a 'China is a sustainability champion' propaganda

📣 There's just a few days left to respond to Defra's animal health and welfare consultation, which closes on March 5. NFU members can respond at ow.ly/HPbZ50YnCIl. Our livestock board chair Mark tells us why it's so important.

Man, what a no brainer.

In 1976, Joe Cocker performed as SNL's musical guest but surprised the live audience when John Belushi came out to duet as his famous SNL impersonation of him 🔥😂 so good

Farmers can only accept the SoS’s offer of partnership at face value & embrace the hand offered. But; we’ve heard the same words from each of her 8 predecessors in the last decade & every single one of them has let us down. A big job of work to rebuild trust & relationships.

ICYMI 📺| NFU Midlands Regional Board Chair Jane Bassett was on @GBNews, highlighting the vital need for the government to recognise food security as national security. Watch at 31:07 👉 ow.ly/tzKS50Yl9lC

1990 SPP (standard pig price farmer receives) £1.38/kg Ave 🚜 cost ~£30k Ave farm worker salary ~£8k Retail to consumer ~£3.81/kg TODAY SPP £1.88/kg Ave 🚜 cost ~£125k Ave farm worker salary ~£30k Retail to consumer ~£9/kg Make it make sense @angelaeagle @EmmaforWycombe 1/2

1990 wheat was ~£110/tonne Ave tractor cost ~£30k Ave farm worker salary £8k +SUBSIDY TODAY wheat is £162/tonne Ave tractor cost ~ £125k Ave farm worker salary £30k NO SUBSIDY Doesn’t take a genius to work out farming, producing food is NON VIABLE @angelaeagle @EmmaforWycombe

Food still not even on the political agenda in the UK. The post-Brexit compact was that farmers would be paid to deliver environment, not food. Today, English farmers aren’t even being paid to do that. We’re nowhere on one of the biggest issues of our times. Tick tock.

Having worked in farming policy for nearly two decades, the criticism of DEFRA for "knowing nothing about farming" has been a constant. It's so odd that positive engagement by officials to learn more is getting flak. @JoeWStanley sets the record straight on a great initiative