News Round-Up

• “Labour’s new handouts to remove ‘barriers’ to apprenticeships” – Thousands of families will be paid up to £4,500 to compensate them for benefits lost when a teenager takes up an apprenticeship, reports the Mail.
• “Boomers brace for Burnham’s almighty cash grab” – Britain’s baby boomers desperately need the social care revolution that Andy Burnham has promised – but they may not like how he ends up funding it, writes Melissa Lawford in the Telegraph.
• “PM should call an election if he thinks we want the death tax” – In the Mail, Robert Jenrick says that if Burnham believes voters have changed their minds on a death tax to fund social care, he should put that to the test at the ballot box.
• “Labour’s Left warns they could revive revolt against benefits cuts” – Andy Burnham has been warned by Labour’s Left that they could revive their rebellion against “punitive” benefits cuts, reports the Mail.
• “New Chancellor John Healey drafts in top Remainer as Chief of Staff” – Will Straw, son of former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw and a prominent Remainer, is set to become the most senior adviser to Chancellor John Healey, says the Mail.
• “Year Six spelling tests ‘too obscure’, says Education Secretary” – Lucy Powell could change the Year Six spelling, punctuation and grammar tests after she branded the spelling exam too “obscure”, according to Guido.
• “Andy Burnham insists ‘the plan is working’ on stopping small boats” – The PM claims his Government’s “very rigorous” approach is bringing down illegal Channel crossings, despite nearly 900 migrants arriving in a single week, says the Mail.
• “Lord Hermer ‘was weak and naive’ on Fordingbridge rape statement” – Three senior judges have accused Lord Hermer of bowing to political pressure when he criticised the sentences handed out to two rapists, reports the Times.
• “Philp accuses French of firing warning shots in Channel” – Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has accused the French military of “intimidation” after one of its warships opened fire close to the Tory MP in the English Channel, says GB News.
• “The raves where Greens club together to out-boogie the billionaires” – The Greens are trying to turn raves into political fundraisers – but a guillotine T-shirt row has taken the shine off the party’s “joy and music” message, writes Lucy Bannerman in the Times.
• “Cabinet minister rebukes Polanski over Farage ‘guillotine’ post” – Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden has criticised Zack Polanski for his Instagram post jokoing about ‘plans’ for Nigel Farage’s death, reports the Mail.
• “Britain is an integration success story but for how much longer?” – Britain’s pragmatic approach to identity has helped people from all backgrounds thrive – but that it is now under threat, writes Tony Sewell in the Telegraph.
• “Khan’s fare-dodging farce shows cost of going soft on crime” – The failure to curb everyday crime is eating away at the capital’s quality of life, says Ben Marlow in the Telegraph.
• “‘I’ve been a builder for 50 years – health and safety has ruined productivity’” – In the Telegraph, builder Mark Lenihan reveals how planning red tape and rampant smartphone use on construction sites are leaving Britain mired in a chronic housing shortage.
• “Millionaires’ highway to hell: hundreds of luxury homes in ashes” – Hundreds of luxury properties have been reduced to ash as Bordeaux’s devastating mega-fire rages on, reports James Fielding in the Mail.
• “Poland’s new firearms bill sparks human rights concerns” – A new Polish bill that would allow troops to open fire on migrants crossing the border if soldiers feel under threat has human rights activists clutching their pearls, according to the BBC.
• “Football must be saved from megalomaniac Infantino” – FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s efforts to sell shares in the World Cup should be the final straw for the sport’s long-suffering fans, says Oliver Brown in the Telegraph.
• “Trump dealt major blow in explosive $10 billion BBC lawsuit” – Donald Trump has been ordered to hand over secret financial records in the latest twist in his high-stakes lawsuit with the BBC, reports the Mail.
• “Boss behind ‘woke’ Cracker Barrel logo gets indefinite security” – The outgoing boss of Cracker Barrel will be given personal security protection indefinitely after she leaves, in the wake of a backlash over the restaurant chain’s “woke” logo redesign. says the NY Post.
• “Huge crowds gather in Iranian city as two men are executed” – Two men have been publicly executed in the Iranian city of Isfahan for participating in January’s anti-regime demonstrations, according to the Mail.
• “Many feared dead after Japan shopping centre collapses” – Two people are feared dead and dozens are missing or injured after a 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu, reports ITV News.
• “Fauci’s diary: a fascination with fame” – On the Focal Points Substack, John Leake examines Anthony Fauci’s diary and its acute preoccupation with fame.
• “Finding the missing flour” – The Government’s modelling of flour consumption contains a massive error that has gone unaccounted for, claims HART on its Substack.
• “E-bike handlebars are riddled with faecal matter, study finds” – Experts from Initial Washroom Hygiene have found that e-bike handlebars are riddled with dangerous germs, including faecal matter, reports the Mail.
• “Free as a bird. Then you’re cuffed. The result of Met’s new live facial recognition cameras” – The Met is using live facial recognition technology to identify and arrest hundreds of wanted suspects across the capital, writes Steve Boggan in the Mail.
• “Net Zero ‘will cost households £1,400 a year by 2030’” – Britain’s energy network will cost consumers £40 billion a year by the end of the decade, reports the Times.
• “Grid bosses tried to water down rules before blackout scare” – NESO reduced the number of shock absorbers used to stabilise the grid in the period leading up to a near-blackout event, says the Telegraph.
• “Have the events of June 23rd exposed failures in Ofgem’s approach to regulation?” – On her Watt-Logic blog, Kathryn Porter argues that Ofgem is putting itself at risk of breaching its own statutory duties by refusing to launch an independent review of the energy security failures of June 23rd.
• “National Grid operator uses fax machines, fails to file crucial risk reports, Ofgem report claims” – According to an Ofgem report, the National Grid operator is still using fax machines and has failed to file crucial risk reports, says This Is Money.
• “Badenoch must reverse course on Net Zero before she destroys the Conservatives” – Kemi Badenoch’s so-called ‘green purge’ is a threat to the future of the Conservative Party and must be urgently reversed, according to Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in the Telegraph.
• “Why warnings over gas storage could push up energy bills this winter” – Warnings over inadequate gas storage levels are set to push energy bills even higher this winter, says This Is Money.
• “Fourth 35°C heatwave hits sun-scorched Britain amid wildfire fears” – Britain has entered its fourth heatwave of the year, with temperatures predicted to soar to 35°C today and fears of wildfires breaking out in drought-hit regions, reports the Mail.
• “No, it’s not ‘climate change’ burning Europe: it’s the fuel” – Why do these big fires near urban interfaces only happen in nations with overwhelming green policies? wonders Monica Showalter in the American Thinker.
• “Are the recent Northwest wildfires a sign of global warming? The science says no” – A detailed US meteorological analysis finds no credible evidence linking the recent spate of Northwest wildfires to climate change, reveals the Cliff Mass Weather Blog.
• “Climate change is real, but it is an unfortunate fact that renewables are useless” – The claim that a green energy revolution is underway simply does not stack up, says John Constable in the Telegraph.
• “Be honest, Popular Mechanics, air conditioning saves lives with no threat of doom” – In ClimateRealism, H. Sterling Burnett takes aim at Popular Mechanics’ claim that air conditioning could “doom us all”.
• “Comments on golden eagle errors in Wyoming’s wildlife action plan” – At CFACT, David Wojick warns that Wyoming’s draft State Wildlife Action Plan contains serious errors that leave golden eagles dangerously exposed to being killed by wind turbines.
• “Sea views get blocked after council swapped petrol strimmers for goats” – According to the Mail, sea views at one of Britain’s biggest holiday resorts have been blocked by foliage and overgrown hedges after a council’s green initiative led to petrol strimmers being swapped for mountain goats.
• “Sackman calls for Barnet Council to remove Union Jack flags” – Finchley and Golders Green MP Sarah Sackman has called for Barnet Council to remove Union Jack flags that have been hoisted on numerous public lamp posts, claiming they’re “unsettling, intimidating and othering”, according to Jewish News.
• “Sexual misconduct ‘normalised’ at Oxbridge” – An Oxbridge college provost says sexual misconduct has been normalised within the institution and has announced sweeping new measures to tackle harassment and bullying by academics, says the Telegraph.
• “Cambridge diversity poster boy ‘must face plagiarism inquiry’” – Cambridge University is facing calls to commission an independent inquiry into plagiarism claims surrounding one of its most high-profile professors, reports the Telegraph.
• “Woke privilege still reigns at Cambridge University” – In Spiked, Joanna Williams argues that the fawning over Jason Arday reveals how DEI continues to warp even Britain’s most august institutions.
• “Palestine-obsessed LGBT activists must confront Islamist ideology” – Julie Bindel writes in the Mail that LGBT activists who wave the Palestinian flag must reckon with an Islamist ideology that mandates death for homosexuality across much of the Muslim world.
• “Boy George’s new pro-Israel song might not be his best, but it is his bravest” – Released exclusively on social media, Boy George’s new song ‘We Will Dance Again’ is a protest anthem for the ages, says Neil McCormick in the Telegraph.
• “What Elon gets wrong about England: we were never a nation of hobbits” – In UnHerd, Mary Harrington claims that Elon Musk’s vision of England fundamentally misreads the country’s character and history.
• “Why tyrants hate jokes” – On his Substack, Andrew Doyle says that from Caesar to Stalin, rulers have exposed their true character by the way they respond to mockery.
• “New FSU member testimonial: Nick Buckley MBE” – Charity boss Nick Buckley faced losing his MBE over a handful of social media posts. The Free Speech Union stepped in – and he kept it. Watch his testimonial.

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