Matt Honeycombe-Foster

At some point last week, my mum decided to take her own life. I am pretty lost for words.

I will be away from journalism for a short while, focusing on my children. They bring me a lot of hope.

Thank you for all the kind messages, they mean a lot.

UK stonewalls questions on how often its post-Brexit eVisa system malfunctions One immigration lawyer said the Home Office’s “continued denial that there are problems” amounted to “gaslighting.”

The Home Office insists the transition to a digital-only system of immigration status is going smoothly. For @politico.eu I ask: if the department is so confident, why won't it publish evidence to back that up?
www.politico.eu/article/home...

It’s the British way

Lanyard class, organize!

It’s up to us to now.

“Lanyard class” is such a good insult.

Like sorry that I don’t use a rusted wrought iron key to open my Real Man Workplace lock

We're hiring! Am after a sharp, creative and collegiate news editor to join our U.K. team on a Sunday-Thursday pattern. Apply here:

jobs.mpleo.net/en/politico/...

We're hiring! Am after a sharp, creative and collegiate news editor to join our U.K. team on a Sunday-Thursday pattern. Apply here:

jobs.mpleo.net/en/politico/...

Astonishing story. Huge questions over the company culture that allowed this. www.ft.com/content/c0e6...

NANCY BY ERNIE BUSHMILLER NANCY : I ONLY HAVE ONE FIRECRACKER THIS YEAR, BUT I HAVE AN IDEA NANCY THROWS THE FIRECRACKER OFF A CLIFF A SIGN NEXT TO HER READS: ECHO VALLEY THE SINGLE FIRECRACKER SOUNDS LIKE A WHOLE BUNCH OF FIREWORKS BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG

Nancy By Ernie Bushmiller
July 4, 1945

Oh, Jeremy Corbyn? Presented by Rolls-Royce By ANDREW MCDONALD with BETHANY DAWSON PRESENTED BY Send tips here | Subscribe for free | Listen to Playbook and view in your browser Good Friday morning. This is Andrew Mc…

MP Zarah Sultana resigned from Labour with an X post announcing she would “co-lead the founding of a new party” with Jeremy Corbyn.

Curiously, Corbyn has yet to address what sounded like the quickest split in left-wing party political history.

London Playbook digs deeper 👇

Rest in peace, Gramps. We were so lucky to have you.

I’m hiring a reporter for London Centric, looking for someone smart who can use a phone, knock on doors and wants to cause trouble. Don’t care if you’ve got qualifications, just want evidence of caring about news. Initial six month contract, pay above national rates. www.londoncentric.media/p/jobs

Yeah it’s the one weekend where the world’s most boring people get to pretend to have a personality

Wes Streeting’s cunning plan Presented by Goldman Sachs By NOAH KEATE PRESENTED BY Send tips here | Subscribe for free | Listen to Sunday Crunch and view in your browser Good Sunday afternoon. This is Noah Keate, steering the …

Yours truly helmed the @politico.eu good ship Sunday Crunch for a second weekend in a row — covering Labour's 10-year plan for the NHS, the welfare rows showing no sign of ending and Keir Starmer's turbulent first year in No 10. Do have a read.

www.politico.eu/newsletter/s...

In the hours afterwards, Starmer notably didn’t join other European leaders in posting condemnation of the US president on social media. Instead, pictures of Starmer locked in a warm embrace with the Ukrainian president when he arrived outside Downing Street the following evening were seen around the world. “Normally, I would wait on the step to greet him,” Starmer says. “But I was really conscious that he’d left the White House on his own. That’s why I walked towards him and gave him a sort of hug. It’s also why I walked him out to the car at the end; I wanted him to know that you don’t leave my house on your own.”

One mystery of Keir Starmer is: why is a man who does things like this, who writes handwritten notes to people he worked with but didn't know well, or for people he met briefly in the CPS, quite *SO* bad at talking to and cultivating MPs?

Particularly bad idea since ministers at public events are incredibly dull.

The four words that strike dread when they appear on a conference agenda: “Keynote speech by minister”. Time for a coffee and to see who might be hanging around the corridors looking for a chat.

The government should not ban public servants from speaking in public | Institute for Government New guidance will damage the quality of government and public discourse.

No10 has issued odd internal guidance banning officials speaking at public events

It means more closed govt & worse policy decisions-the opposite of what ministers say they want

From @drhannahwhite.bsky.social & me @instituteforgovernment.org.uk

www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/gove...

X/Twitter - the people you want to avoid at Christmas dinner

Bluesky - the people you want to avoid at work drinks

I'm no expert - is this good?

Chatbots — LLMs — do not know facts and are not designed to be able to accurately answer factual questions. They are designed to find and mimic patterns of words, probabilistically. When they’re “right” it’s because correct things are often written down, so those patterns are frequent. That’s all.

Mark Rutte DOGEs NATO with dozens of job cuts Transatlantic military chief slashes roles and eliminates divisions as U.S. President Donald Trump’s reluctant commitment overshadows the alliance.

EXCLUSIVE: NATO chief Mark Rutte is axing dozens of job and two whole divisions in a major overhaul at the alliance’s Brussels HQ.

“He is basically DOGEing NATO,” an official told POLITICO, referring to Elon Musk’s efforts to trim the U.S. government.

Scoop here via @politico.eu👇 ow.ly/BUKB50WcfTo

Bought three now. All of them subject to a single speck and then a breakdown. Think I’d be happier with it being scratched

“sleepy Bath”

This is incredible. And what a pic

YouTube video by Rhemerty Leonard Cohen | Leaving The Table [Lyrics]

m.youtube.com/watch?v=aimk...

THIS NIGHTMARE
WILL BE
IN FULL COLOR

They Asked an A.I. Chatbot Questions. The Answers Sent Them Spiraling.

Don’t think I’ve ever muttered the words “fuck me sideways” quite so much reading a story as this one.

Great band, saw em at the Sheffield Octagon in 06