Rob Dannatt

Anyone think this will get even a fraction of the publicity of the original allegation?

Let me explain what just happened 👇 5 minutes before the President announced a halt to attacks on Iran… someone placed a $1.5 BILLION bet on stocks going up and dumped $192 million in oil. 5 minutes… These trades were 4 to 6 times larger than anything else in the entire market. Whoever did this wasn’t guessing. You don’t risk $1.5 billion on a hunch. There was zero public indication this announcement was coming. No leaks. No press. Nothing. The only people who knew were in the room when the decision was made. Someone in that room picked up a phone. And within minutes they made more money than most Americans will earn in a thousand lifetimes. In a single trade. On a war that cost you $4+ a gallon gas and $16 billion in tax dollars. American citizens funded this war. Politicians are profiting from it. This is not the first time. Every major announcement from this administration has had massive suspicious trades right before it dropped. Tariff reversals. Policy shifts. War decisions. This is the most blatant insider trading operation in the history of American politics. It’s not even close. And it’s happening over and over in broad daylight. You would go to federal prison for trading on a tip from your cousin. These people are front running war decisions with billion dollar bets and nobody will ever ask a single question. Nobody will be investigated. Nobody will be charged. By tomorrow this will be buried under the next satisfying headline. Just like last time. And the time before that. The game is rigged. And they’re not even trying to hide it anymore…

@dad_climate @MartinSLewis Would love to swap. But requires homes to be properly insulated and in a lot of cases requires re-plumbing and all new radiators installing. Unfortunately not an easy straight swap for a lot of people 😩

@MartinSLewis It's a good time to get a heat pump. Can't be done overnight of course and some people won't be able to top up the grant - but many could.

HOME HEATING OIL & LPG CRISIS This is a short summary of issues identified from 1,000s responses we (MSE) have had to build a dossier to send to govt... 1. SHARP PRICE INCREASES. A typical pattern is prices increasing from 55p to 65p per litre to £1.20 to £1.45 per litre or £1.60+ per litre if a delivery is needed quickly. - Prices have surged leaving some households unable to afford essential heating - Reports of supply shortages, with some firms not quoting at all for bulk deliveries, stating “no stock” or “no oil available” - Households told only smaller boxes are available for £3.15 per litre around 5x the normal bulk delivery price. - Some considering or actually switching off heating to preserve what little oil they had left - Severe emotional and financial strain especially for older, disabled and low‑income households 2: UNFAIR PRACTICES. Orders not being fulfilled as expected, even when placed earlier or already paid for. - Firms cancelling already‑placed orders, even fully paid ones or demanding more money - Re‑quotes after cancellation massively increase the price, leaving households financially exposed - New ‘price‑on‑delivery‑day’ policies remove price certainty and shift all risk onto consumers, who have no idea of cost - People running out of oil, including medically vulnerable users, feel forced to accept inflated prices - Problems with refunds and additional surcharges on refunds 3: LACK OF REGULATION- "IT'S THE WILD WEST" There is widespread anger that heating‑oil is an “unregulated, unprotected” market. - People feel abandoned, heating oil & LPG users have no regulator, no affordability support, and no safety net. - People are confused about their rights and whether many current practices are even legal We will be sending a larger version today to the top of the Department for Energy and working on a full portfolio of problems and case studies to send in a week on top to the CMA and Energy Committee.

"It breaks my heart": UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher says "we're seeing staggering amounts of money, reportedly a billion dollars a day” being spent on the Middle East war, rather than addressing the world’s “huge humanitarian caseload.”

@MartinSLewis @Ed_Miliband Example of costs quoted for heating oil in North of England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿: 20th Jan - 500 litres - £0.569 a litre (after VAT) - £284.50 🛢📉😌 5th Mar - 500 litres - £1.605 a litre (after VAT) - £802.49🛢📈🤯

Just got off the phone after @Ed_Miliband called to discuss in detail the problems people are facing with domestic energy bills and heating oil. Here's what I fed through - your feedback would be useful... 1. HEATING OIL: This is the most immediate concern as many, often in rural areas or N. Ireland, are refuelling their tanks. Prices have rocketed, a few even suggest they've nearly doubled in a week. My biggest concerns are... a) Those who can't afford the new price b) Lack of specific regulation as heating oil isn't covered by Ofgem (though that's a longer-term issue) c) Some have anecdotally reported existing booked-in orders being cancelled, and being asked to rebook at much higher prices. I want to firm up whether this is widespread... I'd like to hear specific examples of how much prices are rising, especially of point c) and will pass them through to the Department for Energy. 2. CONSUMER GAS & ELECTRICITY BILLS: This is less imminent, but a potential ticking cost time-bomb. I'm focused on the Eng, Scot & Welsh system here... - In the short term: Most bills are protected from the spike in wholesale energy prices as the Energy Price Cap is set based on a significant time-lag. In fact it is locked in to DROP 6.7% in April. Those not on the Price Cap are mainly on existing fixes (which, due to unprecedented prior policy changes, will see most suppliers cut existing fix rates on 1 April, typically by 7% to 9%) so are also price protected for now. One current concern is the lack of availability of cheap fixes. While that's frustrating, in the short term it means those whose existing fixes are ending, will just (hopefully temporarily) need to move on to the Price Cap. There are also a minority of homes who are immediately affected, eg, those on time-of-use tariffs. These include Octopus Agile & Tracker, which move half-hourly or daily with wholesale rates. These are sophisticated user tariffs, and if necessary people have the short term option to switch back to a Price Cap tariff (though do check for restrictions on how long before you can switch back). So while none of that is great, it isn't crisis point. - The end of May is likely crunch time: This is usually when the next Price Cap (July to Sept) is announced. It currently seems very likely it will rise, though just how much all depends on how long lived the current energy price spike is. Yet the key is whether wholesale rates have dropped back down or not by that point. If they have, while the Price Cap rise will annoy many, it won't be critical for most for two reasons i) The July to Sept Price Cap is usually the lowest use period. So, even if typical use rose £200/yr, in practice this'd just be, at a guess, an extra £30 to £40 paid over the period. If by then wholesale rates are down, a substantial cut would be expected for the next (Oct) Cap. ii) The rate new fixes are set at is based on wholesale rates, so if wholesale rates have dropped by then, the big push should be to get people off the Price Cap and onto fixes which could possibly look to be 20%+ cheaper, avoiding any price hike. That should then leave only those unwilling or unable to switch paying more - the latter is an issue the govt would need to concern itself with at that point. Yet if rates haven't dropped back down by May, and it looks like it'll stay high so the October Price Cap will rise too, and no cheap fixes are available, then things get into real problem territory. The government needs to be (and I suspect is starting to) planning now for that eventuality in case more hard-core intervention is needed. Martin PS I said I'd be off socials for the weekend, as normal, but thought this was worth coming back on for. I'm now resuming my weekend break from socials.

The home heating oil situation is terrible for many unlucky enough to be about to refill. The solutions of 'comparison' and 'collective buying' are weak at this time. The outrage is this is an unregulated, unprotected, market (we've long called for that to change). We are subserving many, especially those who live in rural communities.

On Iran, the FT gets it.

@MartinSLewis Heating oil 🔥 is the biggest issue at the moment! Example of costs quoted for me in North of England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿: 20th Jan - 500 litres - £0.569 a litre (after VAT) - £284.50 🛢📉😌 5th Mar - 500 litres - £1.605 a litre (after VAT) - £802.49🛢📈🤯

Many asking me should I ditch my current cheap fix that ends (say in 5 months) for one of the last cheap fixes still available. I'm afraid unlike getting off the Price Cap, to grab a cheaper fix now, I don't have an answer here. If the middle east conflict continues for a long time with consistently high energy prices that last until after your fix ends, then yes you'd likely want to ditch it now if you can get a longer cheaper fix. If it is a short lived thing that ends in a week or two then you'd want to stick on your cheap fix for now and then fix again cheaply when it ends. I have no idea which will be the case. So it all depends on how risk averse you are. Sorry I can't provide more guidance.

@MartinSLewis Quelle surprise that the vultures are circling. Any excuse to profiteer at our expense. 📈💷💰🤑

Planning to imminently FIX your energy bill? Don't dawdle. Firms are repricing upwards today & tomorrow on back of Iran. Cheapest still 14% under Price Cap but I doubt for long (it may rebound, but in v short term they're up). Whole of market comparison.. cheapenergyclub.com

Trump has attacked one country per month since winning the soccer peace prize

@AttilaStahlut @FPL_TomHadley You know Keheller would have saved those though 😉😂

@RobDannatt @FPL_TomHadley At least the own goal softens the blow! Got lucky 😂

Turns out you could pretty much take your pick and you’d be laughing

@AttilaStahlut @FPL_TomHadley Same. No beating this negative variance. 😫

@FPL_TomHadley This is killing me with Dubravka autosub for Kelleher 😢😭🥺

@mralistairgreen This would get a nice round of applause as an audience member soundbite on Question Time; accompanied by a smug reaction shot of Zia Yusuf.

Like most people I vote for the party that annoys the people I dislike the most at that time. My entire worldview is based on spite.

@SirGuyGuisborne @simongerman600 ... and no trains in Cyprus either! 🇨🇾🚫🚂

@simongerman600 My head has been blown apart by the fact that Iceland 🇮🇸 has no trains 🚂!!!!

This map by @mapsinterlude shows on which side trains ride across Europe. My German brain dislikes the fact that there are countries where trains and cars drive on different sides of the road. Source: mapsinterlude.wordpress.com

@FPL_Rockstar Based on how Brentford played last game, I'd think Dubravka would be fine

Don’t like the look of this 😬

I think that if you’re going to write a piece in the Times urging the government to use and boost more AI, the fact that you are paid by a major AI company should be in the first sentence, or at least first paragraph. I also think that the best scenario for AI is that it destroys millions of jobs with the prosperity, dignity and community that goes with them. The worst scenario is the destruction of the human race - a fear openly expressed by an increasing number of senior and experienced AI engineers who are leaving the industry. And somewhere in between a myriad of horrors such as yet more screen learning and screen addiction for our children. But I do see that it will make rich men even richer. And that’s the most important thing of course.

@LizWebsterSBF Also appeals to certain older voters who just want anyone younger than them to be miserable for some reason. What ever happened to wanting better for the generation that comes after you?

Nigel Farage wants an “attitudinal change” less work-life balance, no working from home, more grind. 🚨 But working from home isn’t a lifestyle demand, it’s a business decision. Employers choose it bc it: • saves money on office space • widens the talent pool • improves retention • raises productivity If WFH didn’t work, firms would drop it overnight. They haven’t bc the data says otherwise. Farage isn’t making an economic argument. He’s making a cultural grievance pitch bc he knows it winds up older voters who don’t get tech.

@Vetlecool @OfficialFPL Admin had Szoboszlai and trying to make himself feel better

@OfficialFPL How can he get bonus with a red. Makes no sense

Bonus points for Sunday's matches have arrived 👀 preml.ge/rln3e0pw #FPL

@FergusCraig I wondered which footballer had the MAGA1 personalised plate in the car park earlier. Mystery solved.

Leyton Orient programme and Will Forrester’s four-man dinner party choices are, from start to finish, a very particular flavour.

@FPLFocal Set and forget.

This FPL team belongs to Jack Hall, having one of the craziest seasons ever. Rank: 189 🌍 Chips used: None ❌ Transfers made: None ❌ Captain changes: None ❌