Thomas Riley

@catturd2 Pretty sure most of this is a Russian disinformation campaign either directly or via manipulation.

- Pull out of NATO. - Close all bases and remove all military personal from the UK, Germany, Spain, and France. - Never protect these countries again. - Stop all trade with these countries. ZERO. - Refuse to share any military technologies and don't allow to them to buy any military equipment. Ever. - Don't share any intelligence with them. NONE. - Tell them they have to provide 100% of weapons and money to Ukraine. - Cut them off completely.

@DuncanBullivant @afneil @TiceRichard Cameron didn't finess anything the 2010 SDR destroyed the armed forces.

@afneil @TiceRichard No matter how much spit and blather comes out of Badenock at PMQs it is clear that what Blair started, Cameron finessed and Labour are normalising. Elements of our armed forces are Tier 1. World Class. But we have no serious deterrent to adventurer competitor nations. 5% now.

The current state of the Royal Navy: 2 aircraft carriers — neither operational. 6 Type 45 destroyers (our most powerful warships) — one operational (in Cyprus). 7 Type 23 frigates (less powerful, much older) — three operational 5 Astute class nuke-powered subs — one operational (in Arabian Sea?). Surely those responsible for this appalling state of unreadiness (a national embarrassment if ever there was one)— political, civilian and military — should be fired/charged. Their incompetence has effectively left us without a navy. Quite an achievement for an ancient island nation.

@afneil Not to mention we're selling supporting tankers because we can't pay their crews enough.

@TheNorfolkLion Lets face it the US wasn't there in 1914, 1939 and 1956 either, the idea that the UK can always rely on the US is ridiculous.

TRUMP: “I DON’T KNOW IF WE’LL BE THERE FOR THE UK ANYMORE” Donald Trump just questioned whether the US will still be there for the UK in the future: "We're always going to be there. Well, at least we were. I don't know about anymore, to be honest with you." Keir Starmer has destroyed the special relationship that Britain and America have shared for decades.

@Town5983 @DrChrisParry @PaulTaylorIeng @Keir_Starmer @JohnHealey_MP Did you miss that HMS Queen Elizabeth steamed 26000 miles, went halfway around the world and visited 40 countries in 2021?

@DrChrisParry @PaulTaylorIeng @Keir_Starmer @JohnHealey_MP Cameron trashed Ark Royal then spent ££billions on aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth that has never been operational since her propellers got tangled up! Then MoD wasted £5.5 billion on the useless Ajax tank. 🇬🇧

Top tip to @Keir_Starmer and @JohnHealey_MP This is an aircraft carrier that went from maintenance to deploying for war in 3 days. See how it’s done?

@DrChrisParry @Keir_Starmer @JohnHealey_MP Conservative defence review 1981. HMS Hermes to be decomissioned as surplus to requirements. HMS Invincible to be sold to Australia. 3 more carriers decomissioned by the conservative government in 2011. Plus the T45s problems not fixed in 14 years and no other ships built.

@davebucca @ToonDazza @Keir_Starmer The drone was launched by hezbollah, it would make no sense for israel to fire a drone at a UK miltiary base.

@ToonDazza @Keir_Starmer So what you are saying is our service men and fighters cannot protect themselves stop being a silly cunt.the only drone that reached the base was Israeli

The French aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle has arrived to protect the British Sovereign territory and Armed Forces base RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus. If that doesn’t make you feel embarrassed to be British then nothing will. Unforgivable @Keir_Starmer

@ToonDazza @Keir_Starmer To be fair you don't need an aircraft carrier to protect an Airbase, rather obviously. the real question is why isn't the airbase able to protect itself.

@Euro_toff @Alexarmstrong Regan didn't want to alienate the South American countries (although alot of them were actually not happy with Argentina anyway) chille obviously and Brazil. America has the monroe doctrine which whilst it didn't directly apply would have made it politically difficult.

@tgariley @Alexarmstrong And Regans excuse for not openly supporting Britain was?

When the Falkland Islands were attacked, Thatcher did not waver. Now the Greeks are sending warships to defend Cyprus, and indeed our sovereign bases and British personnel there. Perhaps we need someone to start Thatchers business that she never started: “Rent a spine”.

@Nassos83 @Euro_toff Not really Britain already had AIM-9Js, Britain stole AIM-9Ls from NATO stocks and then ordered replacements from the US....

@Euro_toff Thanks to the DoD and Caspar Weinberger the Brits got the AIM-9 Sidewinders for their harriers. And if things went really bad, he was also ready to offer a USMC aircraft carrier with a Harrier force.

@Euro_toff @Alexarmstrong Because Argentina had prepared to attack Chille in 1979 and was planning to attack them after the Falklands.

When the Malvinas were attacked Regan never allowed thatcher to launch a reply form any American Base ,nor did he directly involve Americans nor did he openly support her But she did have the support of the Chilean dictator Pinochet So don't even compare the events of almost 50 years ago at the height of the cold war Stupid boy

@_HenryBolton Funnily enough 6 destroyers can't do the job of 8, which were supposed to do the job of 12.... with better systems that were then never actually fitted. SDR does not include anything about land based ballistic missile defence, for cyprus, RN ships or the UK.

Had our government had its wits about it, we'd have parked two Type 45 destroyers off Cyprus as goalkeepers. HMS Duncan should have already sailed. HMS Dauntless must be made ready to sail and leave in 72 hours. Why has this not happened? Once again, weak and indecisive leadership. That's why.

@SandyofSuffolk RNLI rescue people in trouble on the sea,they're pulling people out of the water who would otherwise drown and die.What happens to them when they get ashore isn't anything to do with the RNLI that's up to politicians.The stuff happening in the channel is a tiny part of their work

I understand there's a large protest outside the RNLI headquarters today. People are fed up with the lifeboats picking up illegal immigrants from the English Channel. Obviously if anybody is in difficulty at sea, drowning, in the water, they should rescued by the RNLI whatever their nationality or intent. But I think we've all seen the videos and reports of the RNLI going into French waters and taking people out of the dinghies when there's no imminent danger. This is what must be stopped. Neither Border Force nor the RNLI should be going into French waters and interventions should only be made when a dinghy is in a perilous position and at risk of sinking. Surely France has a rescue service? What are they doing? What do people think?

@d123456bb So what you're saying is you're going to increase costs of components for British industry to make anything? If Britain wants to be a world trading partner it needs to trade.

Reform UK will use Tariffs to make Britain a world trading player once again. The tariffs need to be as follows. United States - 10%. Commonwealth Countries - 10%. European Union - 25%. Russia - 50%. China - 50%. Rest of the World - 15%.

@jan_murray @jabberwock951 They're not able to say how long the wait will be, they don't keep extra appointments empty incase someone doesn't turn up, so it will either be when someone else doesn't turn up or at the end of the day or potentially in their lunch break. No point in giving a time that's wrong.

This response misses the point entirely. Saying you cannot scan a patient because they arrived late and have no capacity = fair enough. Expecting a patient to wait indefinitely and publicly humiliating them = not ok. Even if you’re ‘squeezing someone in’ they have a right to ask how long they might expect to wait - so they can make an informed decision about whether they can accept your offer to ‘squeeze them in’. Because they may be expected back at work or need to pick their kids up from school. In my case, my mother was ill and I’d promised to call in and check in on her. I also needed to get a blood test before I left the hospital . When I did get back to my mother, I realised she was in a bad way and took her to A & E - she had sepsis! A patient being at fault for missing an appointment/being late does not remove any of the kinds of work/caring obligations outlined above. Therefore an offer from a clinician/technician to squeeze a patient in does not render them available to wait indefinitely. Hence it is reasonable for them to ask ‘how long’ and be provided with a reasonable (and non-punitive) response.

Last week I walked out of an NHS hospital because staff were so rude to me. I’d made a genuine mistake - I missed an ultrasound that had been paired with a clinic appointment. For context: I’m currently a patient at four hospitals across four different trusts, juggling multiple issues, investigations and treatments (including breast cancer). I only realised I’d missed the scan when my consultant mentioned it. He sent me down to radiography, where I was told the sonographer would still do my scan. But when I asked about the possible wait (i.e. 1 hour, 2 hours, morning/afternoon?) ... I was told they couldn’t give any indication. I would simply have to wait until “patients who arrived on time for their appointment” had been seen. This was said - multiple times - in front of at least two other patients. Which is when I walked out (and yes, I have taken it up with PALS). Today, I’m due to start radiotherapy and got a call asking me to come in three hours earlier than my scheduled appointment. Initially I said no. I’d only just woken up: my mum was taken ill suddenly last week - so I’ve barely seen the outside of a hospital since. Plus my husband needs to drive me to radiotherapy appointments - which affects his work. But they kept pushing, so I agreed. And this whole sequence of events highlights something I’ve been reminded of, many times, in recent months: The NHS is not free. It’s free *at the point of care*. We all pay for it through our taxes. Yet as patients, we’re often treated as though it is free. And should therefore be grateful for any crumb of care - and as if we have no right to clarity, boundaries or basic respect (like being told roughly how long we’ll be waiting). Which is such a power imbalance. If staff are rude or dismissive, we’re expected to quietly accept it. If we question anything - even a total lack of information - we’re “difficult”. Last week’s incident reminded me of all the times I’ve been kept waiting in hospitals. For hours on end - without so much as an explanation. We're expected to just 'know' the pressures staff are under - and be endlessly understanding. Yet the moment I made a very human mistake, staff showed no empathy or understanding. Instead they attempted to publicly humiliate me. I don’t expect perfection. But I do expect to be treated like a human being - and not an inconvenience.

@markpoulter5 @Anisocyte @AriReddy The point is that doctors pay has been cut consistently until last year. Doctors didn't go on strike and had a decade of 1-2% pay rises whilst paying increasing costs. Doctors stopped striking because they were promised this would end.

@Anisocyte @AriReddy That's incorrect. 13 months after qualifying, they're taking home £54.4K the same as the maximum amount most physios, OTs, etc. can expect to be earning at the end of their career (top of Band 7 £54.7K). 3yrs later: almost double that (at which point only 5% of UK pop earn more).

The claim that “there’s no money for junior doctors” collapses the moment you do the arithmetic. Full restoration is ~£1.65bn a year. The way to fund it without austerity or tax hikes is right here ↓ (Back-of-envelope, but the logic holds.)

@Keir_Starmer Long term giving Turkey access to the Typhoons technology is only likely to cost British jobs.

I've just agreed a deal with Türkiye to secure 20,000 British jobs across the UK.

@10DowningStreet @Keir_Starmer @JohnHealey_MP These will be better jets than the RAF has. Similarly Turkey is developing its own jet and likely wants access to the technology.

Our £8 billion deal with Türkiye for 20 Typhoon fighter jets is a win for British workers. Delivering highly skilled, well-paid jobs for years to come. Driving renewal and opportunity across the country.

@Keir_Starmer And you won't be able to protest (tractor ban) or get a fair jury trial.

We will build a Britain where everyone can believe in the future again.

@10DowningStreet Unless you want a fair trial. Truly totalitarian behaviour, not what I'd expect from a labour government.

We will build a Britain for all.