Tag: united kingdom

Trump Sent A ‘Free Speech Squad’ To The UK To Investigate Erosion Of Rights

President Trump has dispatched a cadre of State Department officials to the UK to monitor and investigate the growing attacks on freedom of speech by the British government.

The Telegraph reports that “A five-person team from the US State Department spent days in the country,” and among a host of other issues they looked into a crack down on pro-life activists voicing, or in many cases silently expressing opposition to abortion clinics.

The report notes that Trump’s free speech squad, specifically from the US Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL), “met with five activists who had been arrested for silently protesting outside abortion clinics across Britain.”

The visit demonstrates that Trump is acutely aware of the threat to freedom that is growing in the UK and is willing to intervene in British affairs as required.

The activists, Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, Rose Docherty, Adam Smith-Connor, Livia Tossici-Bolt and Father Sean Gough, a Catholic priest, were all arrested for standing outside abortion clinics on public roads and silently praying.

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Green Agenda Has Cost British Households £220 Billion Since 2006: Study

British consumers have paid nearly £220 billion more on their energy prices over the past two decades as a result of Westminster’s radical green agenda schemes, a report from a leading energy consultancy firm has found.

The UK public has been “seduced by narratives that renewables are cheap,” however, according to a study conducted by Watt-Logic’s Kathryn Porter presented by Lord Offord, the Shadow Energy Minister in the House of Lords, has found that the opposite is true, with the green agenda not only siphoning off taxpayer cash subsidies but also driving up energy costs for consumers.

“That renewables are not cheap should be clear, based both on the evidence that after 35 years of subsidies, we are yet to see any benefits through lower bills,” the report found.

According to Porter’s calculations, if the British government had not embarked upon its so-called green energy transition programme, British households would have saved £218 billion since 2006.

The report found that the direct cost of net zero policies in 2023-24 accounted for £17 billion in additional costs on consumer energy bills, and it predicted that this would continue to rise to more than £20 billion in 2029-30.

Porter acknowledged that gas prices were impacted by the Ukraine War and broader Western conflict with Russia, however, she noted that this would not explain why energy prices have steadily risen for the two decades prior to the 2021-23 gas crisis in Europe.

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BBC’s ‘independent’ Russian partner begged UK govt for funds, files show

Leaked documents show the supposedly self-reliant anti-Kremlin outlet Mediazona asked the UK gov’t for £300,000. With foreign funding drying up, the “independent” news site now faces financial crisis.

Mediazona, the self-styled “independent” Russian outlet which partners with the BBC to track the deaths of Russian troops, requested hundreds of thousands of pounds directly from the British government, according to a tranche of leaked official documents.

Having mainly targeted Russians since its founding in 2014 by members of the Western-backed troupe of provocateurs known as Pussy Riot, Mediazona has largely remained off the radar of news consumers in the West. But that changed with the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine. Since the first day of the conflict, Mediazona has collaborated with the BBC Russian Service on a project tracking the deaths of Russian servicemen through open source methods. Mediazona describes “the work [as] meticulous and time-consuming,” requiring “relentless efforts of journalists.”

Who or what was footing the bill was left unmentioned in the description of the initiative, which was clearly designed to foment dissent and opposition to the proxy war among Russian citizens. Now, leaked documents reviewed by The Grayzone indicate that between 2020 and 2023, Mediazona was in line for vast, secret grants for anti-Kremlin agitation from the British Foreign Office, under the official auspices of London’s opaque “Global Britain Fund.”

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Outrage as British Trawler Detained by French Navy Days After PM Starmer Betrays Fishing Industry in His ‘Brexit Reset’

Failing British Prime Minister is under fire for his ‘Brexit Reset’ deal with the European Union, in which he basically sold out his Fishing Industries by allowing EU boats unfettered access to the UK’s waters for the next 12 years.

The situation became even more volatile after a British trawler was held in French custody yesterday (24) after it was allegedly caught operating without a license in the English Channel.

Daily Mail reported:

“The Lady T, which is based in Eastbourne, East Sussex, was being held in Boulogne-Sur-Mer on Saturday and now risks being confiscated. She was caught by the Pluvier, a French Navy ship, on Thursday, and the catamaran’s skipper now faces prosecution for fishing for whelks without a license.”

This comes days after Starmer closed a deal with the EU on fishing rights which is seen as hugely favoring the French.

The French Navy’s ‘public service patrol vessel’, the Pluvier, was inspecting in the French Exclusive Economic Zone.

French Maritime Authority spokesman: “’During this operation, which was part of the State’s maritime enforcement, a British fishing vessel was inspected by sailors from the Navy patrol vessel while fishing without a license in French waters.

‘As the offence was proved, the fishing vessel was diverted during the night of May 23rd to the port of Boulogne-Sur-Mer, following the instructions of the Delegate for the Sea and Coastline, acting on behalf of the Regional Prefect, who oversees the fisheries police, for the purpose of initiating prosecution under the authority of the Public Prosecutor.’”

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Calls for new Labour mayor to be sacked because he dressed up as Adolf Hitler for charity event

A newly appointed Labour mayor who dressed up as Adolf Hitler at a charity event is facing calls to resign. 

Photographs of Seve Gomez-Aspron MBE wearing a German Army uniform, complete with swastika, and a fake moustache, previously surfaced online in 2019 when he was serving as a councillor for St Helens. 

The series of snaps were taken at a fancy dress dinner in aid of Claire House Hospice, which supports seriously and terminally ill children, in 2009, when he was not yet a councillor.

Mr Gomez-Aspron said at the time the outfit was inspired by Mel Brooks‘ satirical comedy The Producers. He described the decision to wear it as ‘clumsy’.

But despite his apology, there is still much furor surrounding his recent appointment, with more than 1,000 people signing a petition for his removal as mayor. 

According to the Sun, 11 councillors also walked out in protest during his swearing in ceremony on May 14. 

‘He is reviled throughout St Helens for his inappropriate behaviour and attitude,’ a councillor told the newspaper.

‘Many feel that he is not fit for public office, never mind the prestigious role as mayor,’

The councillor told the Liverpool Echo the first time the photos went viral that they were taken in his early twenties, before he was a Labour Party member

He added at the time: ‘I have matured and learnt a lot since then, and it goes without saying that I would not do this now.

‘I know how this could be seen as insensitive and how it could cause hurt and offence.

‘That was not at all my intention and I sincerely apologise. I have part-Jewish ancestry and I recently visited Israel to commemorate those killed in the Holocaust and the war.’

But, for Mr Gomez-Aspron – who also once appeared on ITV’s Million Pound Drop where he scooped £100,000 with a pal – this scandal was not his first. 

Just last year the then deputy leader of St Helens Council was forced to apologise for ‘offensive’ comments made towards a councillor during a meeting about a proposed rise in council tax. 

Mr Gomez-Aspron described the councillor’s reasoning for voting against a 4.99% rise as ‘diatribe’ and claimed he has ‘not a clue what he is talking about’. 

He went on to describe the man and another councillor as the ‘Earlestown Brain Trust’, before correcting himself by saying ‘it was wrong to imply there was a brain’.

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Labour set to free killers and rapists earlier under new soft-justice masterplan branded ‘recipe for a crimewave’ by the Tories

Labour is set to free killers and rapists from jail earlier under a new soft-justice masterplan.

The Government’s sentencing review was last night savaged by victims and senior police officers, while the Tories dubbed it a ‘recipe for a crimewave’.

The plan contains a raft of measures to slash sentences served by prisoners – from shoplifters to killers – by up to a third. 

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who commissioned the review to free up space in overcrowded prisons, is poised to become the weakest law and order minister in history by allowing thousands more criminals a year to dodge jail completely.

Most of the plan has already been adopted in principle by Labour. Tory frontbencher Robert Jenrick blasted the measures as ‘a get-out-of-jail-free card for dangerous criminals’.

‘It’s a recipe for a crime wave,’ the Shadow Justice Secretary told MPs in the Commons. ‘The Labour Party are clearly ideologically opposed to prison.

‘The radical, terrible changes today may be cloaked in necessity, but the root of them is their ideology. And it’s the public who will pay the price for their weakness.’

The review said criminals convicted of serious violence or sex offences could win their freedom after serving half their jail term, rather than at the current three-quarters point – a one-third reduction.

This lower automatic release date would apply to offenders convicted of ‘rape, manslaughter, soliciting murder, attempted murder and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm’, the document said, providing they behaved well in jail.

Most other offenders would be released after serving just a third of their sentence if they demonstrated good behaviour.

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U.K. will roll out chemical castration for sex offenders

The British government is to roll out the use of medication to suppress the sex drive of sex offenders, as part of a package of measures to reduce the risk of reoffending and alleviate the pressures on the prison system, which is running out of space.

In a statement to Parliament Thursday following the release of an independent sentencing review, Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said so-called chemical castration would be used in 20 prisons in two regions and that she was considering making it mandatory.

“Of course, it is vital that this approach is taken alongside psychological interventions that target other causes of offending, like asserting power and control,” she said.

Though the review highlighted the treatment would not be relevant for some sex offenders such as rapists driven by power and control, rather than sexual preoccupation, Mahmood said studies show that chemical castration can lead to a 60 per cent reduction in reoffending.

It’s been used in Germany and Denmark on a voluntary basis, and in Poland as mandatory for some offenders.

The recommendation was part of a wide-ranging review led by former justice secretary, David Gauke. As well as looking at ways to cut reoffending, Gauke recommended reforms to overhaul the prisons system, which is running at near-capacity.

One of the first things Mahmood did as justice minister after Labour returned to power after 14 years last July was sanction an early-release program for prisoners to free up space. She says she inherited a judicial system that had been neglected for years by the previous Conservative government and set up the review as a means to stabilize it.

“If our prisons collapse, courts are forced to suspend trials,” she said. “The police must halt their arrests, crime goes unpunished, criminals run amok and chaos reigns. We face the breakdown of law and order in this country.”

The review recommended that criminals could be released from prison earlier than currently, while judges could be given more flexibility to impose punishments such as driving bans. It also recommended that sentences of less than 12 months would also be scrapped, apart from exceptional circumstances such as domestic abuse cases. It also called for the immediate deportation for foreign nationals handed a three-year sentence or less.

The review called for higher investment in the probation service to allow officers to spend more time with offenders for their rehabilitation and extra funding for the many more being tagged in the community.

Mahmood responded by giving a 700 million-pound (US$930 million) a year for probation within years.

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The UK’s Digital ID Era Starts This Summer

A sweeping transformation of the UK’s identity systems is underway, with the government poised to launch a digital identity wallet this summer. Beginning with a digital version of the Veteran card and expanding to include driving licenses later this year, the initiative is designed to eventually consolidate all government-issued credentials into a single, centralized app by 2027.

While pitched as a modernization effort, this dramatic shift toward a digital-first ID system has sparked serious concerns about surveillance, data security, and individual autonomy in an increasingly watchful society.

To enroll in the system, users will be expected to provide personal documentation.

The Gov.uk Wallet, as it is known, represents a fundamental redesign of the relationship between the state and its citizens.

This overhaul comes at a time when nearly 50 million people across the UK could be affected by the new digital infrastructure. While specific instructions on how to apply for or access the wallet have yet to be detailed, the direction is clear: the UK is moving toward a society where physical IDs may soon be relics of the past.

The government frames the change as part of its larger digitization strategy, yet the scale and permanence of eventual biometric data collection call into question the long-term implications for individual freedoms.

The introduction of digital driving licenses has also been tied to broader regulatory reforms, including newly proposed rules for e-scooter purchases. Buyers will need to provide license details as a form of identity verification, reinforcing the idea that access to everyday services will increasingly hinge on digital ID systems. This entrenchment of digital identity into daily life carries substantial consequences: it embeds surveillance mechanisms into transportation, access to benefits, and public services in ways that may be difficult to reverse.

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Inside The Secret Illegal Antifa Headquarters

From Portland to Washington, D.C., and across Europe, the far-left extremist movement known as Antifa has unleashed years of orchestrated chaos driven by a radical, anti-capitalist agenda aimed at destabilizing the West. Now, for the first time, explosive undercover footage reveals life inside an illegal Antifa headquarters. 

YouTuber The Urban Legend has released 30 minutes of explosive footage captured inside a secret and illegal Antifa headquarters in Manchester, United Kingdom.

The video reveals what appears to be a fully operational base—complete with stockpiles of food, racks of clothing, a sleeping area, and what looks like a makeshift revolutionary workshop for rioters. The footage offers a rare and disturbing glimpse into the behind-the-scenes of the revolutionary movement that has fueled unrest across the West. 

We grabbed a series of screenshots from the video, including text on the wall that said: “Give Trans Girls Guns.” 

Additional graffiti included slogans like “Protect Trans Kids” and “Punch Nazis”—language that, while politically charged, raises serious concerns due to its potential to incite violence. 

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Jailed wife of ex-Tory councillor loses sentence appeal over Southport tweet

A childminder who was jailed for 31 months after calling for hotels housing asylum seekers to be set on fire after the Southport attacks has lost an appeal against her sentence at the court of appeal.

Lucy Connolly, who is married to a former Conservative councillor, said in an X post in July last year: “Mass deportation now, set fire to all the fucking hotels full of the bastards for all I care … if that makes me racist so be it.”

The post came after three girls were killed in a knife attack at a holiday club in Southport on 29 July, sparking nationwide unrest. It was viewed 310,000 times in three and a half hours before Connolly deleted it.

In a written judgment published on Tuesday, the appeal court judge Lord Justice Holroyde said: “There is no arguable basis on which it could be said that the sentence imposed by the judge was manifestly excessive. The application for leave to appeal against sentence therefore fails and is refused.”

He said the principal ground for appeal “was substantially based on a version of events put forward by the applicant which we have rejected”.

The former childminder was sentenced at Birmingham crown court last October after pleading guilty to a charge of inciting racial hatred.

She is married to Raymond Connolly, who was a Tory councillor for West Northamptonshire but lost his seat in May this year.

The court heard that the day before Connolly was arrested, she sent a WhatsApp message saying the “raging tweet about burning down hotels has bit me on the arse lol”. She also said she would “play the mental health card” if arrested, and would deny responsibility for the post if asked.

Naeem Valli, prosecuting, said Connolly, who had no previous conviction, also sent a message saying she intended to work her notice period as a childminder “on the sly” despite being deregistered.

She sent another tweet commenting on a sword attack that read: “I bet my house it was one of these boat invaders.”

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