- “Ofcom backs down over GB News after losing Rees-Mogg battle” – The broadcasting regulator has dropped various sanctions it recorded against GB News after the channel’s High Court victory, reports the Telegraph.
- “Farage must step aside and let Rupert Lowe lead Reform” – The Reform party needs to democratise, and prioritise bringing talent with an eye to the next general election, says Ben Habib in the Telegraph.
- “Musk appears to endorse Rupert Lowe amid Reform civil war” – The world’s richest man fuels signals his support for the now-independent MP for Great Yarmouth in social media post, according to the Telegraph.
- “Reform would win local elections – but Angela Rayner cancelled them” – Polls suggest Reform would have done well in the local elections Angela Rayner has cancelled, reports the Telegraph.
- “Labour ‘on track to lose Runcorn by-election to Reform’” – An opinion poll predicts Nigel Farage’s party will win comfortably in the race to replace Mike Amesbury MP, says the Telegraph.
- “Antisemitism in UK ‘off the rails’, says director of US campuses film” – Reaction in America mirrors what has been happening in Britain for more than a decade, according to Wendy Sachs in the Times.
- “The eminent historian who believes ‘centrists’ are extremists” – Jonathan Clark, a professor in British and American history, has become an unlikely champion in the fight against politics-as-usual, according to the Telegraph.
- “‘Sneaky’ Green-led council installs LTNs at 3am under police protection” – The cover of darkness was used to install LTNs in Bristol despite the protest of local residents, reports the Telegraph.
- “Migrants face curbs on using ECHR to avoid deportation” – The Government is reviewing whether ‘right to family life’ is being applied sensibly after a number of criminals have been allowed to stay in UK, says the Telegraph.
- “BBC presenter apologises after calling Eddie Izzard ‘the man’” – Radio 4’s Anita Anand says she is “very very sorry” for ‘misgendering’ Eddie Izard, the male comedian, i.e. calling him by the pronoun that corresponds to his biological sex.
- “Tulip Siddiq ‘used fake signature to transfer flat to sister’” – Investigators into the Labour MP allege she illegally acquired a property in Dhaka’s Gulshan area, according to the Telegraph.
- “Benefits claimants with minor mental health problems to be rejected” – Starmer’s welfare reforms will make it harder to claim payments for conditions such as anxiety, reports the Telegraph.
- “Westminster’s Net Zero consensus is about to collapse and it’s not a moment too soon” – The cross-party green dogma that has been so costly and was imposed on taxpayers without a vote is about to collapse, writes Charles Moore in the Telegraph.
- “If Britain plunges into recession, shameless Rachel Reeves must resign” – Our lacklustre Chancellor can’t keep on blaming everyone for Britain’s economic slump but herself, says Camilla Tominey in the Telegraph.
- “Is Rachel Reeves about to cause a recession – or will it be Trump?” – The Chancellor appears to have identified a new culprit for Britain’s economic woes, but no one’s buying it, says Eir Nolsøe in the Telegraph.
- “Hapless Rachel Reeves is running out of hope” – With her fiscal headroom wiped out and a series of impossible choices ahead of her, it’s hard not the pity the unlucky Chancellor, writes Andrew Lilico in the Telegraph.
- “Starmer poised to relax ban on hybrids in electric car climbdown” – Following warnings from carmakers that a ban on new ‘wet’ cars being sold from 2030 could hurt investment in Britain’s automobile sector, the Prime Minister is poised to back down, according to the Telegraph.
- “Yvette Cooper accused of undermining UK-US special relationship in Apple spying row” – Critics have attacked the “cloak of secrecy” surrounding the Government’s order that Apple install a backdoor in iPhones so it can see private, encrypted data, reports the Telegraph.
- “We probably should have abolished NHS England” – The Shadow Justice Secretary says the Tories should have abolished NHS England during the 14 years in which they were in charge, according to the Telegraph.
- “Letby inquiry could be paused amid miscarriage of justice fears” – Lady Justice Thirlwall has asked barristers to address Lucy Letby amid growing unease about her convictions, reports the Telegraph.
- “The trans row engulfing the Met Police” – A female officer is taking the force to court after it sent staff to “a celebration of the transgender community”, says the Telegraph.
- “The liberal elites are hypocrites in demanding our museums stop displaying mummies” – The Egyptian dead aren’t complaining about their quarters at the British Museum – so why should a group of woke MPs whinge about it?, asks Judith Woods in the Telegraph.
- “Insiders spill on Rachel Zegler’s fears if ‘woke’ Snow White flops” – After years of being embroiled in controversy, we are just days away from the release of Disney’s live-action Snow White… and main star Rachel is said to be feeling the pressure, according to the Mail.
- “Rangers fans unfurl ‘keep woke foreign ideologies out’ banner” – In Thursday night’s Champions League battle, Rangers’ fans unfurled a banner that made their feelings about the imposition of woke dogma on football fans abundantly clear, according to the Telegraph.
- “I’m sorry, but ADHD has become a scam that is wildly overdiagnosed” – It’s the new joke, isn’t it? Hands up anyone who doesn’t have ADHD! Or, am I the only person here who doesn’t have ADHD? And the joke is all the more exquisite in London, says Melanie McDonagh in the Standard.
- “Exclusive: No charges for east London Imam’s ‘destroy Jewish homes’ sermon” – A Met Police spokesperson says it is for Parliament to determine where the line is drawn, not the police, reports the Jewish Chronicle.
- “University ‘snooped’ on academics in hunt for chief’s affair leak” – Senior officials at Buckingham University are accused of using Stasi-era surveillance tactics when trawling through staff emails, according to the Telegraph.
- “Civil Servant used home working to get paid for three full-time jobs” – A Cabinet Office report, revealing that one senior Civil Servant was pulling down a salary for three different jobs white ‘working from home’ has increased the pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to reform the rules governing Whitehall staff.
- “Katherine Ryan claims audiences have have ‘turned their back on woke’” – The outspoken Canadian comedian, 41, claims we’ve reached ‘peak woke’ and it’s all downhill from her for the radical progressive Left, says the Mail.
- “Have we reached peak woke?” – Like a dying religion, the woke mind virus is certainly in retreat, but some disciples are still clinging on, writes yours truly in the Standard.
- “Angry mums slam Snow White star’s claim Disney original is ‘sexist’” – Mothers were left outraged after learning the iconic ‘Someday My Prince Will Come’ song has not been included in the remake amid a backlash over star Rachel Zegler’s comments about the tale’s storyline, reports the Mail.
- “What will Disney ruin next? The beloved films set for a modern reboot” – The Daily Mail takes a look at some of the much-loved classics in consideration for a Disney remake. Who could be next in line for a barrage of criticism?
- “Competence Is controversial” – Read Thomas Chasterton Williams’ in-depth profile of Katharyn Birbalsingh, the headmistress of Michael Community School.
- “The return of the McCarthyite chill” – Trump and Vance say they are for free speech. Yeah, right, says Andrew Sullivan on his Substack.
- “Waitrose wine expert claims he was suspended for sharing Telegraph cartoon” – Reform supporter Ben Woods says Waitrose, where he’d worked fro 25 years, targeted him after a social media post of his was promoted by Elon Musk, reports the Telegraph.
- “The end of fracking is madness that will harm Britain” – Politicians must set aside misguided ideology and recognise reality of energy challenges, says Francis Elgan in the Telegraph.
- “Donald Trump issues chilling new ‘World War 3’ nuclear warning” – President Trump issued a stark warning on Friday, although he also said ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine are progressing, says the Mail.
- “SpaceX launches relief mission for stranded NASA astronauts” – The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully took off on Friday night from NASA’s Kennedy.
- “This is the land of lost content” – Peter Hitchens recites AE Housman on Question Time and says he feels sorry for those who don’t know the music and literature of their country.
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Interestingly enough on this subject I have just had an eye consultation refused this morning at my local NHS clinic in St Albans because I declined the offer of wearing a mask in the facility. I had a very repetitive conversation with the medical care professional there who explained how good they were at keeping everyone ‘safe’.
I failed to succumb to her less than compelling persuasion and left as neither of us was going to give way.
I’ve emailed the NHS outfit that manages this service to seek confirmation on whether we have a de facto refusal of treatment and access to services if a face mask is not worn. I asked for a one word answer. I will await a reply.
Based on my experience and speaking to doctors and nurses I know over the years, I am pretty certain that people who work in the NHS don’t like the patients. That is of course not true of every doctor and nurse nor of every patient, but for the most part, the staff find interaction with patients not very pleasant and something they can’t wait to get over and done with.
This impression is somewhat validated by the experience of the last 2+ years. Every opportunity that has presented itself to push patients away has been taken, be it cancelling service, online consultations, barring visitors.
It also explains partly why the NHS has legions of staff doing all sorts of jobs that in aggregate make up the service to patients. Think of a typical visit to the NHS. You’ll see a chain of people, none of who spend more than a few minutes with you at most before you get passed on to someone else. Everyone is very rushed and simply have to get on to something else (rarely another patient, but rather writing something down, looking something up, checking something).
I see masks as part of that effort do push patients away. Masks create a barrier between people and for doctors and nurses, they serve to put distance between themselves and their patients. A doctor I know confessed as much to me, saying that she didn’t mind the masks and in some ways was grateful for them as it saved her having to put on an empathic expression when she was tired or low on energy – which is most of the time.
If they could anaesthetise us at the door, wheel us in, carry out a diagnosis without our participation, treat us, attach a set of follow up instructions for us read, then wheel us back out and wake us up, that is exactly what they would do.
And they would claim it was the best thing for our safety.
Nurses used to train on the job, as such there was never any doubt in their minds about what the job was about.
These days, they have to “study” for ages and are perhaps then a little dismayed when expected to do the actual work. They are also, in my experience, looking to be promoted to one of the endless “management” or “consultant” positions; they have been patronised by their “education”.
My qualification required to register with the NMC was a three year DipHE of which 50% was in practice and 50% in university. In the good old days, when my father trained, it was two years for SEN and 3 years for SRN. Yes the training was ward based, but there were classroom sessions as well. The other difference was that student nurses were included in the numbers as they were employed by the hospital.
Personally, I don’t think that there would have been a difference for me whichever training scheme was used, I was 50 when I qualified after a previous career as a systems/software engineer.
However, and it’s probably truer now that it’s all degree only, it is a means to obtaining a degree.
To fulfill the role of nurse practitioner I needed courses at level 7 post graduate level.
Your inalienable right to refuse to consent to a NPI as stated in Article 6 of the UNESCO Universal Declaration of Bioethics & Human Rights has been breached. It states that not giving consent to an intervention, which masking is, does & should not be detrimental to an individual’s right to receive medical care.
Stating that one is exempt, as you lawfully are exempt just by deciding not to submit to wearing a muzzle, is a route which is unchallengeable & they have no right to question the reason for the exemption.
I hope that you receive a reply.
Correct. That is why it was possible, right from the start, to download all the graphics for creating “exemption” badges from a gov.uk website. Not well advertised, but it’s up to us to use it if required. Soon after the scam started, there were some cases (in the legal definition) in which damages claims were made against organisations that refused to provide services on those grounds. The Discrimination Act 2018, and the Equality Act 2010 were also useful. The ones I read about appeared to have settled outside court, but cash changed hands on account of that.
Along the lines of selective publication, the bureaucrats kept quiet about the fact that there was never a requirement for a third party to grant exemption. Unilateral declaration, and printing out the bits and pieces published (quietly) by themselves, was what I did, almost two years ago.
P.S. This was the original source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own It says that it is “withdrawn”, but that’s no surprise. What I have attached above was a DHSC publication back in August 2020.
Well done for not giving way, Savage. Horrible times indeed. Yes, do please let us know the response.
WTF a downvote???
Earlier this week I was refused a mammogram because I refused to wear a mask and I also refused to use hand sanitiser. When I pointed out that there was no mandate for hand sanitiser, I was met with stunned silence. My refusal to wear a mask was met with even more incomprehension.
So basically the people there felt that the risk to them of Covid (all ladies under 40, healthy) was greater than the risk of me having undiagnosed breast cancer – despite having a family history of that.
Thanks NHS.
I think they just wanted your compliance.
They all carry out normal unmasked lives on trains, in pubs and supermarkets.
It’s just that when you are in their little fiefdom, you do what they say. They don’t care about you, obviously. They care about themselves and their own authority.
Authority without responsibility; the happy hunting ground of incompetent bureaucrats to bully the people who pay their wages
What a surprise. Perhaps they have actually learnt about it all? I never used them anywhere during the last two years.
There was a fair bit of useful information, from the British Standards Institution, and others. In particular, much of the junk on sale had tiny labels that most people would not read, that said that they were NOT masks to any standard, so as to avoid being prosecuted under trading standards. Much of it was a con, and an opportunity to sell junk.
I have pointed out the very same label to many people wearing masks, they stare at me vacantly.
Lights on, nobody home.
I still remember the inscription on the set I bought when they were mandated. It said (in the kind of broken English one expects from the Chinese) Fashion mask. Not a medical mask. Use for dust protection, sun protection, fashion. Yet, there are still people clinging to them.
Here in Thailand we had the mask mandates lifted yesterday, HOORAY.
I chucked the remainig box of masks in the cupboard and checked the price I paid for them
50 ‘masks’ 40 baht = 95p sez it all really.
It’s really good to see Niall is still fighting.
When you see people still wearing masks you ask yourself “do the no wonder how all these unmasked people are not dropping dead?”
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Deserves to be mentioned here again (and it may be useful in such disputes): The Ebola stations set up during the most-recent Ebola epidemic represented a serious attempt at preventing viruses from escaping into the environment and infecting health workers or other patients. Despite all these efforts, some people still got infected. That so-called Sars-CoV2 infection prevention measures never even came remotely close to that is a conclusive proof that they’re nothing but theater and that neither actors nor directors of this penny dreadful drama take it seriously.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politician%27s_syllogism “Something must be done” etc. Many so-called experts were attempting to create an impression of competence; with some of us, it’s backfired.
Can nobody read, it says on the box that the masks are not intended to prevent infection??
Right. Something’s happened. I’ve just been to Tesco and a significant number of shoppers were masked. All varieties out in numbers, from the anxious elderly to the virtue-signalling young. What’s happened? How have they been nudged?
Nothing particularly unusual. Just another ONS junk estimate about rising levels of infection in healthy people. The only noteworthy thing about that is that Omicron variants have now supplanted Sars-CoV2 variants in official messaging and that the UKHSA is trying to pull a WHO by labelling some of them as variants of concern.
As I’ve already written in the past: Until the professional pandemic bullshitters have their microphones disconnected and other resources repurposed, we’re only out on bail and the nonsense can start over at any minute.
I have noticed recently that more and more adverts for NHS services are creeping in on tv and are showing people wearing masks.
Oh Lordy ! Will they ever leave us alone?
Well done Niall and those who have to put up with this nonsense. I’m retired but do my best to challenge maskers where possible. As ever, the NHS is a postcode lottery. I was refused access (without facecloth) to a gp surgery for stitches removal by a young nurse who claimed she was “vulnerable”. Not so far away the nurses at the Minor Injuries Unit were more accepting. We are living amongst the possessed – people who barely function because they see threats everywhere – but must keep chipping away and staying sane.
This kind of nonsense is still going on all over the world and much worse besides.. The basic problem is global leaders aided by the media can not admit that most of the rules and regulatons that were imposed on their societies have been utterly pointless. As a consequence Covid zealots (who were afforded unprecedented influence during the panicdemic) continue to persecute people by whatever means is available to them.They want lockdown or semi-lockdown to be made a permanent way of life. Why? Look at the Green movement. It is full of nutters too!
I believe the WHO do not regard masks as PPE either—this should further remove question one from the equation.