Nick Gray

Yes. I meant the switch/sympathy wasn’t from the state apparatus (the CJ system came down hard on people engaged in semi-organised disorder – as it does) but among a sympathetic right-wing commentariat and eventually, craven/opportunistic politicians.

Although… it’s difficult to argue that people had up for last year’s protests/disorder got of lightly.

Obviously, plenty of “respectable” commentors thought they ought to have done.

It often seems that plenty of left leaning people who broadly take a structural view of the world are quick to accept that fascists cause fascism.

TBF Manchester United have had a poor period by their standards but they're still football royalty with millions of fans all over the world.

Yeah. Clearly, Newcastle is a peripheral city and that might not appeal to some people, but having no executive team in place is probably rather more important.

As well as trains and motor cars, I understand it's also now possible to get to and from Newcastle in those magical flying machines that they have these days.

Transfer trouble and boardroom bother: vexed Newcastle face a puzzled future | Louise Taylor A summer without a sporting director and failure to keep Alexander Isak happy has left the club with an almost dysfunctional feel

Disappointing to read a north east based writer reprising the too far north thing.

Maybe it's a factor sometimes, but it's not something we heard much about over the past four years (until now). Have people only just worked out where Newcastle is?

Yes... soft power.

It doesn’t help that Manchester United, probably the biggest/most popular football club in the world, are in relatively reduced circumstances and competing with Newcastle for players – not many kids in other countries grew up dreaming of playing for the Toon.

Looks from the outside that, in terms of salaries they’re able to offer, Newcastle have been shopping in Selfridges food hall with Sainsbury’s money.

A couple of months ago NUFC had won something for the first time in decades, qualified for the champions league for the second time in three seasons, and were looking unequivocally on the up.

Within weeks, they’ve entered crisis mode without a ball being kicked.

Very on-brand.

It's here in the tweet so probably a thing they're pushing, I'm afraid.

Work gets underway on Mayor’s Metro ticket gate investment | nexus.org.uk A new £2.1m project to install the first new automatic ticket gates on the Tyne and Wear Metro in more than ten years is now underway, following investment by North East Mayor Kim McGuinness to make t...

As it is, gates have to be either staffed anyway or left open because not all tickets work on them (e.g tickets with QR codes bought on the bus/app).

I assume something is going to change, otherwise we're spending money on gates to just leave open [add your own natalie portman star wars meme]

TBH, I’m not sure about closing internships to the middle classes but I’m not well informed on what’s been tried already.

I remember arguing in local government for some kind of work experience scheme with the local schools/colleges rather waiting for people to approach us.

The X mob that were previously furious that labour ‘are no longer the party of the working class’ are now livid at any effort to broaden opportunity in the civil service.

I'm surprised that all these tribunes of the working class don't know what the Job Centre does.

Maybe it's because it's newfangled and online, and Rupert et al would understand better if we called it the labour exchange.

I've come on holiday to 2095...I'm on the look out for the TARDIS

Could have used less touristy photos.

This must be a parking nightmare.

Urbanism... featuring 'the reluctant urbanist' who needs fueling with stroopwafel

Like the green space/tramline combination.

Alexander Isak has had enough of living in a peripheral northern English city with longstanding socio-economic problems, so he wants to move to Liverpool.

Obviously it's all kicked off, the police have intelligence on who's present and have decided "get these muesli munchers out of the way asap"

I've seen the clips on X and the "antifa agitators" look not so much like the black block as they do people queuing for the vegan food stall at Sidmouth folk festival.

I expect Reform will simply continue to offer massive public spending cuts in the abstract, together with large public spending commitments.

I assume the Lib Dems will just take a policy officer from the corporate team to avoid any unpleasantness.

TBF, I don't remember the Newcastle lib Dems having a mate as their political officer, certainly not in opposition.

Not unusual in that the leader of the council might have a trusted person essentially acting as a Spad.

But this is likely to mean a fairly blatant external appointment followed by someone else losing their job when the leader's position doesn't look particularly rock solid.

"These proposals are all about spending some money so they can have a chum in their group"

True although, while this is a fun story, it's not totally unusual in local government (in my experience).

Looking to Teesside University's Beth Mead to turn this around.

That's my team Teesside contribution for this year's PDPR

Particularly when there's clearly that political element to it.

If it was like "unashamed excellence, UK plc, it's all going into the golden triangle and that's that, northern moaners" then we might not agree but we know the score.