Simon Munk

Regardless of the rights & wrongs of attacking Iran's horrific leadership, you don't just unilaterally attack another country then out loud tell the world "rules of engagement" are "stupid", let alone your mandate is 'whatever we want to attack we do'. Fascists, basically & terrifying ones at that.

I broadly like these tests for how to hold & debate "legitimate concerns" around immigration. They nail 'how to have a sane discussion on a difficult topic'. But they not unreasonably miss proportionality & a wider debate on alternatives, eg taxing billionaires more instead of cutting immigration...

I'm not a fan of dismissing election observers although I'd like to know a lot more about this lot generally and I'd really like to know why they didn't raise concerns during the election period and indeed what they were recording as 'family voting'. Other than that, this thread is 👌👌👌

If ever you needed a front page to capture the crass yet also dangerous silliness of so much of our media, and the impact of right wing nationalism which has done so much harm through a history from which some seem so unable to learn

All for that question being asked of her!

First response from Starmer seems to view Green 'extremists' as same as Reform ones and 'both sides' both sides, leaving Labour the 'one true ring' on an ideological & fast-shrinking sliver of a platform. Looks a bit more 'moral' than I was expecting but even worse overall bsky.app/profile/psim...

Is it 'not a mistake'? I'd like to see a lot more to show exactly that for sure. Greens are definitely drawing in some less savoury activists, unsurprisingly, from far left but on other hand, Labour proscribed Palestine Action etc. Again, you're missing point I'm trying to make IMO by both sidesing.

Bang on assessment IMO. Comparing far right and far left as being effectively similar makes no sense in general terms, but specifically plays badly for Labour that has traditionally drawn from the left. Starmer risks standing on a vanishingly thin centre & looks weird for it. Play the policies, man.

This makes category error Starmer must most not make. Again, he's suggesting 'only' the one true ring can bind them all under Labour - it looks more than a bit deranged, but also it 'both sides' two very different sides, with very different motivations. He's saying 'hate' is bad, but so is 'hope'!

PS 4. My gosh this is unhinged as a response: bsky.app/profile/saul... Starmer suggesting that the extreme left *and* extreme right are both similarly trying to "tear" the country apart? Argue that far left politics & policy is idiotic all you like, but they're not generally racists & fascists...

Best get on with it then, hadn't they?

And tonally, all they've had is 'attack'. That's a massive and key difference not just for this by-election but for the whole of the UK. The Greens are managing to paint a progressive vision across policy areas currently. Labour look punch-drunk, dithery and mean without a coherent platform IMO.

Do I think it's appropriate to be on 5Pillars? No. Do I think some of Green leaflet/ video content was 'attack'? Yes. Do I think having a leaflet in Urdu in an area with a lot of Urdu speakers is bad? Not at all. But 'both sides'ing this rather misses a load of the point. For Labour this is BAU...

3. Also understand the press is never going to give any leader left of Genghis Khan any leeway - be squeaky clean, coherent, and never fail to put forward a clear vision of where you're going, and don't be afraid that the press may mock or disagree with it. It means their owners are scared. Good.

2. More, this IMO clearly demonstrates a 'hope not hate' successful strategy from Greens to not only counter Reform, but Labour too. And Labour desperately need to learn correct lessons from this defeat - be nicer, celebrate the bold wins and stop being sour-faced bean-counters, stop infighting...

Hannah Spencer's victory speech after Gorton and Denton byelection – video The Greens’ victory in a Labour stronghold was its first ever in a Westminster byelection and establishes the party as a serious political force and a credible anti-Reform alternative

I have thoughts re: www.theguardian.com/politics/vid... I mean, the repercussions from this will be massive, surely?
1. Labour's hatchet attacks on Greens (go look at the attack ads) & opposition to PR, internal infighting etc. just look increasingly a doomed attempt to hold a shrinking middle...

The culture war against trans people has unsurprisingly in US turned into criminalising them. Kansas has invalidated identity documents without time to replace them for trans people - driving licence, voting ID etc. This should be a real moment for anti-trans Brits to take a big step back...

I think this is one of the key reasons *why* some of the cycling there is so feral, as you put it. So many lights, very narrow tracks, traffic's nasty, everyone jumps lights in every direction to get away with it, at a guess. Part-pedestrianising Parliament Sq & widening tracks long overdue IMO.

Almost half of cyclists don't feel safe on London's roads, research finds The study also found that a little over a third – 36 per cent – of cyclists believe their local area has adequate infrastructure

"London is statistically very safe for cycling... but there’s still a way to go.

“We need more cycle tracks, junction redesigns, crossings, routes through LTNs and more besides if we want more Londoners to switch cars for cycling."

Our Head of Campaigns @psimonk.bsky.social quoted: bit.ly/4ryYy8i

Good to see. Looks like area could do with LTN at glance? And @ajdaovat.bsky.social did that letter also go to council leader @perayahmet.bsky.social? Really needs enthusiastic public support for action at leader level IMO. Is there anything I can do to help with @haringeycyclists.bsky.social also?

Is this real? If so, really really even more not impressed by her... bsky.app/profile/capo...

More, it's now visible how serial underfunding by government is hitting climate, active travel & other vital schemes, delaying action, all because we'd rather not upset poor drivers who can't read road signs & who think paying for a small fraction of their strain on the public purse is outrageous.

Lambeth seeks £116m Government bailout after reserves fall to £5m — but £129.6m gap still looms by 2030 Lambeth Council is relying on £116 million of government Exceptional Financial Support after its unallocated General Fund reserves fell to just £5 million — far below its own stated prudent target …

For Facebook & NextDoor folk who think clowncils are ripping off drivers, road rules & cameras are just to fleece motorists, I present Lambeth's finances: www.brixtonbuzz.com/2026/02/lamb...
London boroughs are underfunded & falling apart & you won't be fined if you don't do stupid stuff...

In the last few hours you've replied to several different posts on different topics all in an argumentative way. I'd suggest finding a better hobby. More, I'd strongly suggest endlessly arguing on your opinion without reading all the facts you're being presented on helmets etc. is just woeful.

Thirded @haringeygreens.bsky.social. Would be good to know what your collective stance is on active travel and LTNs specifically given what seems to be being circulated as it, which would be really worrying and retrograde if accurate. Also happy to chat as I would with all major Haringey parties.

From what I'm hearing this is only mention of LTNs in active travel pledges @haringeygreens.bsky.social? So, not doing any more then? Just weakening existing ones? Without evidence basis? If accurate, this is a woeful major fail in Green active travel policy production. @carolinerussell.bsky.social?

Have you signed our petition yet? lcc.org.uk/theft

From yesterday's launch, there's more media coverage with our Senior Policy Officer speaking to @zagdaily.com: zagdaily.com/trends/londo... and our Head of Campaigns @psimonk.bsky.social talking to @itvnews.bsky.social: www.itv.com/news/london/...

📣 NEWS: LCC report into cycle theft show’s lack of action by Mayor, TfL, and Met, is resulting in 40,000 bikes stolen in London every year…

BUT… our report also sets out recommendations on how to bring that number 📉

✍️ Read the report and sign our petition: bit.ly/3Onz7I5

Read and share all over..he nails it

I was so incensed by that I actually tweeted at him. Meant I went back to that horrible platform. What absolute scumbaggery. The simple reality is that violent action etc. is already dealable by criminal law. So the proscription stands or falls on whether PA were terrorists or not. Not, obviously.