That Starmer keeps Mahmood in post shows this is not just the actions of an inhumane Home Secretary, but a deeper rooted ideology of hostility and xenophobia within this government. No-one benefits from blocking Chevening scholars. This is cruelty for sake of it.
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
America and Israel are in essence waging chemical war in Iran, filling the air above its metropolis with toxic smoke after lighting its oil storage depots on fire.
How is anyone supposed to "rise up" when they can't breathe?
open.substack.com/pub/billmcki...
New footage shows firefighters are still working to damp down the remains of a fire which broke out in a vape shop adjacent to Glasgow Central railway station
The BBC report, a Gambian passer buy is the man folks were talking about who tried to put out the Glasgow Central fire, raising the alarm and getting stuck in with a hand held fire extinguisher. A very "Glasgow" response, I can see he will fit right in.
SCCS has written to Scotland's First Minister and party leaders calling for a moratorium on power-hungry hyperscale data centres until the full scale of their environmental impacts can be assessed.
Read more and see the letters here: www.stopclimatechaos.scot/first-minist...
Qatar intercepts 17 ballistic missiles - https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/qatar-intercepts-17-ballistic-missiles
NEW: The Israeli military unlawfully used white phosphorus over homes on March 3, 2026, in the Lebanese town of Yohmor.
The use of white phosphorus over residential areas is extremely alarming and will have dire consequences for civilians.
Read more: https://bit.ly/4bdqxDt
Oil prices wouldn't be all over the news today if more of our economy was powered by local, secure renewable energy.
This isn't an "energy crisis". It's a fossil fuel crisis.
44% of UK electricity came from renewables in 2025. More of that plus an electrified economy => no more oil shocks.
An illegal war by USA & Israel, propped up by missions from UK air bases.
Supported by Nigel Farage.
Over 1000 civilians dead & now the threat of global economic fallout. Trump's disaster makes us all less safe, less secure - and we will remember those who backed it.
Been looking forward to reading this one - UNHCR has today published their report "Asylum Interviews in the UK: Audit Findings and Recommendations". It's 92 pages so I am going to get stuck in and will write it up for later today.
www.unhcr.org/uk/publicati...
Is Glasgow losing the spaces that made it an arts powerhouse? | Glasgow | The Guardian
“If we truly believe culture matters, it needs to be reflected in the decisions we make, the spaces we protect and the budgets we commit.”
March 8, 2026 - Tehran at sunrise today. But the sun is hidden behind a sky filled with smoke. After a night of intensive strikes on oil facilities, thick black clouds now hang over the city, turning morning into something that feels like night.
LATEST: Most trains from Glasgow Central Station have been cancelled as firefighters continue to tackle nearby blaze 🚨
Israeli strike kills three Palestinians in Gaza City, medics say - https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/israeli-strike-kills-three-palestinians-gaza-city-medics-say
The Home Office is hiring staff from McDonalds and supermarkets to decide on refugee deportation cases. Staff know so little that some consult Lonely Planet guides to decide if a country is safe. Some can’t even find countries they’re returning people to on the map
Inside the UK’s asylum system
Thanks to @neilmackay.bsky.social for this feature on me and the book for this week's Long Read slot.
'Anywhere But Here' is out in paperback this week - and it's currently a steal at 99p on Kindle.
Great to speak to you, Neil.
This and more in the book. 'Anywhere But Here' is out this week in paperback and it's currently only 99p on Kindle!
‘They hire McDonalds staff to decide deportation cases’
I talk to Home Office insider turned whistleblower Nicola Kelly. She tells me how politicians deliberately broke the UK asylum system & why small boat arrivals are a reckoning with Britain for its colonial past
In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
Home Secretary sent 'bigger picture' jigsaw after asylum changes | The National
Well played @scotrefugeecouncil.bsky.social @sabirzazai.bsky.social
the law of passage
when you stop the boats
you stop the nurses*
* Overseas nurses down by 93%, overseas care workers by 97%.
8.III.26
BREAKING: An Iranian drone attack caused “material damage” to a desalination plant, Bahrain said. It is the first time an Arab country has reported Iran striking a desalination plant. Follow live updates.
🟨 Print Edition — Reform UK and a ‘British ICE’
Could a version of the Trump administration’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency come to the UK under Nigel Farage? Olly Haynes reports
🔴 NEW: More than 640,000 tonnes of sewage sludge have been spread on Scottish farmland in the past five years. Studies show the widely-used fertiliser can contain microplastics, forever chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Our latest: https://www.theferret.scot/tonnes-sewage-sludge-scotland-farmland/
4 deaths in the UAE now. Many more injuries. Nearly every victim is from the Middle East, South Asia or Africa.
Yet media coverage—esp British coverage—of Dubai continues to focus on “influencers” & wealthy Westerners, reproducing the very racism & classism it claims to oppose.
“Everything we can save is worth saving. Everything we can do is worth doing. We’ve already lost a lot, but we don’t have to lose everything. We don’t have to surrender.” 💯
- @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social
gift link: www.nytimes.com/2026/03/07/m...
Israel kills two in southern Lebanon, bombs Beirut suburbs - https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/israel-kills-two-southern-lebanon-bombs-beirut-suburbs
About 454,000 registered as displaced in Lebanon, minister says - https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/about-454000-registered-displaced-lebanon-minister-says
It’s extremely striking how unbothered news coverage is that this war is clearly illegal both domestically and internationally.
