[The Weeping Angel]

"The real issues", no doubt. Unlike the violence against women and girls strategy that's actually happening.

Could have something to do with who I'm following I suppose.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Oh no, Pippa. They didn't get fed up with (among others) your paper running "number 10 refuses to deny" headlines all the time, did they?

[The Weeping Angel]

Oh no, Pippa. They didn't get fed up with (among others) your paper running "number 10 refuses to deny" headlines all the time, did they?

To be replaced by televised briefings.

[mattomac]

There is a perfect example of a story that will get more comments because of who it affects.

Considering they don’t report whatever Labour says anyhow and Ed Miliband has now been sacked at least 15 times I’m not sure why they care? They will print what they want to print.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Government in more transparency shock horror, cry the secretive, anonymous-briefing lobby journalists...

[Boiler]

There was definitely some wailing and gnashing of teeth about this on PM last night.

[Tubby Isaacs]

They really won't like this. They'll doubtless do the same stuff except phone up the press office instead.

"Hello, you've got a new prisons policy coming up.."
"Yep"
"Can you tell me what's in it?"
"You can wait a couple of days, can't you?"
"Well, just tell me, does it involve (something a bit controversial)?"
"Wait a couple of days"
You can't even tell me if it involves the return of birching?"
"Nice try, but I already told you, wait a couple of days"

GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO RULE OUT THE RETURN OF BIRCHING!

Closely followed by Johnny Columnist: "WHAT SORT OF LABOUR GOVERNMENT CONSIDERS BRINGING BACK BIRCHING?'
And Sally Columnist: "LABOUR CHASING REFORM BY CONSIDERING BIRCHING IS A TERRIBLE MISTAKE'

[Tubby Isaacs]

And then Polly Toynbee (who to her credit tries to be balanced): "LABOUR HAVE SOME VERY GOOD POLICIES BUT THEY'RE GETTING OVERSHADOWED BY THE ROW OVER BIRCHING".

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Many years ago the Star ran a story claiming that Hitler was a woman (I know... it was the Star...).
They contacted a famous historian, I think Hugh Trevor-Roper.

Star: "Professor, do you think Hitler might have been a woman?"
H T-R "Umm... well anything's possible, but..."

Headline: 'Hitler might have been a woman says top history boffin!'

So it goes.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Then George Monbiot- "WELCOME TO THE CRAZY WORLD OF LABOUR: WHERE BIRCHING IS TAKEN MORE SERIOUSLY THAN (insert something nice that the government didn't commit to at one precise moment, but which ends up happening anyway)"

[Tubby Isaacs]

They've appointed a career diplomat to replace Mandelson as US ambassador. Mandelson seems to have done a reasonable job, but he was a very bad appointment, with his baggage and with the more general feeling that politics is a bunch of mates who keep giving each other jobs. The idea that a career diplomat couldn't have done what he did was always nonsense.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Investigation into current politics in "doesn't look at something from 9 years ago" shock.

People who say this stuff aren't always so keen for the Indy Ref to be investigated.

This was retweeted by an American I follow. It's noticeable how many of those are convinced the UK government are terrible.

[Tubby Isaacs]

There's a not insignificant group of people, particularly on Bluesky who still can't process that we lost the Referendum. Leave had big cards- more charismatic frontmen, "everything's shit", immigrants, massive media support, being able to argue for contradictory things at once. Lots of us knew we were fucked before we knew about Russian propaganda.