Politics

James Starkie: What lesson can be learnt from the Canadian right?

Published

4 weeks ago

25 March 2026

James Starkie: What lesson can be learnt from the Canadian right?

James Starkie is Founding Partner at communications consultancy 5654 & Co. He worked on Vote Leave in 2016 and was a Special Adviser in Government during Theresa May’s and Boris Johnson’s premierships.

Over the past few months more than one person has brought up the story of the Canadian right to me, specifically the rise of a party in the 90’s called Reform and the demise of their more longstanding party of the right, the Progressive Conservative’s.

It has been cited in various conversations, particularly ahead of the last Canadian election when the leader of the party created out of the merger of these two parties, Pierre Poilievre, went into the election as favourite but ended up losing, the election and his seat.

I was therefore interested to understand more about the history of the Canadian right, as well as what are the similarities and differences when it comes to UK politics given the rise of our own Reform Party. As well as speaking to several people who have worked in Canadian politics I found the book Full Circle: Death and Resurrection In Canadian Conservative Politics by Bob Plamondon incredibly insightful and a very good overview of the Canadian right and would highly recommend this book.

At this point I would also like to caveat this and set out my own view.

One of the differences, as a quick glance at Canadian politics will tell you, is that the history of the Canadian right is one of division and a terminal life in opposition. Whereas the British Conservatives can call themselves the party of Government in our sceptered Isle that role in Canada is occupied by the Liberal Party, which is a party of the centre left and one much more practical than our own Labour Party.

This is an important difference to me.

The Tories here in the UK have weathered many a storm and I personally believe they will endure, furthermore I do not therefore see a merger as inevitable, as some may do. This is not to ignore the challenges they face, nor ignore the reasons why some traditional Conservative voters may be unhappy or angry but rather to believe that trust can be rebuilt.

Division on the right is relatively new in the UK and historically the Tories have had to build out election winning coalitions from this point with little opposition to their right, combining traditional centre right voters with a broader coalition more often than not through hard economic competence and pragmatism.

In Canada meanwhile this has not been the case.

The rise of Reform in Canada arose around the end of a period of government for the Progressive Conservative’s [PC’s] although this was more in response to an anger over economic handling. Specifically the failure, in the eyes of Reform Canada founder, Preston Manning, to tackle the national debt.

Manning, seen as a charismatic populist leader, rode a wave of discontent among parts of the Canadian right hungry for real economic reform at a time when Mulroney’s PC government was failing to replicate major economic reforms of Reagan and Thatcher in the USA and UK respectively.

This was seen as a real missed opportunity and blew open a division in the PCs among the more economical liberal wing of the party, blue Conservatives, and those with a more social democratic bent, the red Conservatives.

This had been simmering for some time and as with any insurgent political movement, had hit upon the right time. Manning wrote in a thesis that ‘present national party leaders and federal politicians, especially those affiliated with the PC’s, should recognise that if the Canadian political situation continued to degenerate, and if the cause of conservatism continues to suffer and decline, not for the lack of merit or a willingness on the part of the Canadian people to support modern Conservative principles or policies, but rather because of unnecessary dissension among politicians and parties, the idea of establishing a wholly new political party committed to the social conservative positions will find an ever increasing number of advocates and supporters amongst concerned and aroused Canadian public.’

Written before the creation of the party, this is insightful as it lays the argument that Manning didn’t see the creation of a new party of the right desirable but rather necessary because of a lack of one in existence. That is the PC’s had become too much like the existing Liberal Party and therefore leaving a vacancy.

What’s more, and to some degree contradictory, according to the author of Full Circle: Death and Resurrection In Canadian Conservative Politics, Bob Plamadon, Manning though ‘did not accept that Reform was really another Conservative party, because he did not want to debate an inherent and obvious strategic floor flaw: that the Reform party was splitting voters with the Tories and thereby electing Liberals. This was to be a tension and live issue for the next decade.’

The Reform breakthrough came in the 1992 Canadian election, when from nowhere, they won 52 out of 295 seats leaving the Tories, who had been in Government, on just 2 seats. However while they improved on this performance in the subsequent election, gaining 60 seats and becoming the official opposition, the PCs came back winning 18 seats while also nearly matching the Reform vote share [19.3 per cent to 18.8 ]. The 2000 Federal elections saw this division repeat itself and, ultimately, led to the events under which the new Reform party, now called the Alliance, and the PC’s would join under Alliance leader Stephen Harper. Harper is the man who would go on to lead the right back into Government after more than a decade of Liberal power in 2006.

There are clear similarities to me in terms of the split on the right the Canadian’s experienced during this period and that which the UK is seeing now. Reform Canada picked up disaffected traditional Conservative voters, though these were very specifically located geographically in the west of the country. The PC’s struggled to cut through during this period and failed to recover from the 1992 election drubbing. However, even this party of the right that had experienced far more opposition than government historically could not be completely quashed. The ‘thin blue line’ of staunch PC voters refused to desert the party, and it was by no means inevitable that they had to join with Reform.

They also, largely, lacked quality leadership. Kim Campbel, who fought the disastrous 1992 election was ill-suited to leading a national party and almost certainly hastened the collapse in support. Meanwhile one of the last PC leaders was Joe Clark, who had failed at leading the party in the 80’s and likely didn’t demonstrate a party with fresh ideas by turning to a leader from two decades prior. Indeed this is where the admirable Stephen Harper stood out, the man who would eventually lead the right back into power. At heart a true Conservative, a deep thinker and man of principle he alone shows the importance of strong, principled and very clear leadership.

There are clearly reasons why you can compare the two situations however my own view is that there are fundamental differences in the situations. Many of the big issues in Canada differ from our own, the issue of free trade, particularly with the United States, how provinces with very specific identities are treated by the federal government as well as things like gun laws don’t apply here. Indeed geographic differences loom large and are crucial to gaining a majority in Canadian elections. What’s more, the Canadian Conservatives had nothing like the history their British counterparts do, and the Canadian right has been split far more often than it has been divided.

I would though recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about how the next few years of the British right might play out. It is a reminder that events and personalities often dictate what happens – making predictions a fools game.

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Politics

Loneliness Not Be As Bad For Dementia Risk As We Thought

Published

11 minutes ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Loneliness Not Be As Bad For Dementia Risk As We Thought

Experts think that having a close network of loved ones as we age might protect us from dementia risk.

But a new study has found that while loneliness can impair your memory as you age, that might not translate into full-blown dementia.

Published in Ageing and Mental Health, the research concluded that, “Loneliness is associated with lower initial memory performance in older adults but does not accelerate the decline in memory function over time”.

How does loneliness affect memory?

In this research, scientists looked at data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) programme.

This involved 10,217 individuals over 65. They were asked to self-report their levels of loneliness and were given memory tests over a six-year period.

“Participants with high loneliness at baseline demonstrated significantly lower immediate and delayed recall scores than those with low or average loneliness,” the research reads.

But years into the study, lonelier people didn’t see the memory decline you’d expect with something like dementia. The changes appeared to be more short-term than that.

Lead study author Dr Luis Carlos Venegas-Sanabria said, “The finding that loneliness significantly impacted memory, but not the speed of decline in memory over time was a surprising outcome.

“It suggests that loneliness may play a more prominent role in the initial state of memory than in its progressive decline.”

Calling the results of previous studies about dementia risk and loneliness “inconsistent,” the study said its results “could reinforce the idea that loneliness cannot necessarily be considered a risk factor for dementia”.

Loneliness is a growing problem

The researchers say that loneliness is a growing problem, affecting anywhere from 14-16% of older adults.

And while their study suggests it might not necessarily be a dementia risk, they add that it “underscores the importance of addressing loneliness as a significant factor in the context of cognitive performance in older adults”.

Though in this study, it didn’t appear to lead to longer-term decline, loneliness still affected the cognitive abilities of older people in the short term.

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Politics

Reform candidates are making promises they can’t keep

Published

20 minutes ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Nigel Farage and a hand with fingers crossed Reform

In the UK, it’s sadly common for politicians to make promises they have no intention of keeping. Usually, however, they at least promise things they could plausibly achieve. This is not the case with what some would-be Reform councillors are promising:

Local election leaflets based on pretty much everything that the local council doesn't do – who would have thought it,,,,, pic.twitter.com/U0Ndt64yWv
— dave lawrence (@dave43law) April 20, 2026

What can Reform do for you?

The full post is from the Facebook page Reform Are Not Your Friends. We’re going to have a look to see if we can confirm their analysis:

1⃣ “Put Londoners first for social housing”
Reality: That’s set by central government and the Mayor of London. Watford isn’t in London.

Just because Watford isn’t in London, that doesn’t mean they can’t prioritise Londoners. It would be a strange thing to do, obviously, but would it be any stranger than this?

NEW – Reform-led Nottinghamshire County Council are set to piss away £75k on flags while 22% of local children live in poverty
By @jjgjourno https://t.co/9QcUFD66yt
— Canary (@TheCanaryUK) October 24, 2025
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2⃣ “Oppose housing illegal immigrants in hotels”
Reality: This is controlled by the Home Office. Councils don’t decide asylum accommodation.

To be completely fair, councils can “oppose” local migrant hotels. Whether it will make any difference is another matter entirely.

There are good reasons to oppose the policy of boxing migrants in hotels (as opposed to allowing them to live and work in communities). Reform aren’t making that argument, though; they’re just punching down, because they’re bullies.

3⃣ “Support our struggling high streets”
Reality: This is one of the few things the council actually can influence. Local investment, planning, events.

Good on Reform for getting one right!

4⃣ “End ULEZ and the war on drivers”
Reality: The Ultra Low Emission Zone is run by the Mayor of London. Watford has no authority over it.

I.e. Reform have lost the war on drivers.

Embarrassing, honestly.

It’s also embarrassing that Reform is yet another party which refuses to acknowledge the benefits of cycling and mass public transport:

Even if you never use public transit, it helps make your drive easier. Buses & trains remove cars from the street. pic.twitter.com/p7t0XV23Tc
— Andy Boenau (@Boenau) April 13, 2026

If you’re a diehard motorist, you should want as many people on buses and bikes as possible.

Unless you’re actually a diehard ‘sitting in traffic’ person, obviously, in which case carry on.

5⃣ “Crack down on anti-social behaviour”
Reality: Policing is handled by Hertfordshire Constabulary. The council plays a supporting role at best.

Councils do cover things which fall under the blanket of ‘anti-social behaviour’ (graffiti, fly-tipping, etc). At the same time, candidate Mark Dixon doesn’t clarify how he’ll fix these issues; he just says he’ll magically save money elsewhere.

As we’ve seen with the Reform-run councils, these savings keep failing to materialise. In fact, Reform have actually increased spending in some instances – including on their own pay packets.

Absolute shower

All in all, it looks like Dixon doesn’t know what he’s running for. And as they say, where there is no vision, there is no gold.

Oh wait, actually, that’s wrong isn’t it; this is the actual phrase:

Yes it's real
And yes I'm crying pic.twitter.com/OFO9CxCODS
— dave lawrence (@dave43law) April 19, 2026

What’s going on with these Reform candidates?

Featured image via Virrage (via Canva)

By Willem Moore

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Politics

The BBC runs cover for Israel (again) over destruction of Christ statue in Lebanon

Published

25 minutes ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

An Israeli soldier takes a sledgehammer to the face of a crucified Jesus Christ statue, which is on the ground. Taken from a BBC News report

The BBC has, yet again, tried to provide cover for Israeli criminality and mitigate damage to its already appalling reputation.

Support among the misguided ‘Christian’ right for the US-Israel war on Iran had already been rocked by Trump’s self-indulgent post of himself as Jesus. Images of an Israeli soldier attacking a statue of the crucified Jesus during Israel’s illegal invasion of Lebanon are doing more damage still, so the BBC did its best to cover and fudge, as commentator Saul Staniforth noted.

#BBCNews: “Can I ask you specifically about this image thats come to light of an IDF soldier allegedly striking a statue of Jesus”
allegedly, adverb, used to convey that something is claimed to be the case or have taken place, although there is no proof.
There’s a photo! pic.twitter.com/n8vswBs4yb
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— Saul Staniforth (@SaulStaniforth) April 20, 2026

BBC journo: ‘allegedly’. Israel: ‘No, it’s real actually’

The presenter’s attempted obfuscation that the image only “allegedly” showed the attack was made even more ridiculous by the fact that the Israeli regime has already admitted it’s real. More ridiculous still by the fact that the correspondent mentioned this. But the BBC is no stranger to self-humiliation for propaganda purposes, particularly regarding Israel.

The ‘Christian’ right, particularly but not exclusively in the US, supports Israel because of a twisted theology that claims Jesus can only return with ‘Israel’ back on land it has stolen from the Palestinians.

Israeli contempt for Christians is well established, such as their spitting on Christian pilgrims. Extremist Israeli ‘security’ minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, defended this practice as ‘tradition’.

The ‘Christian nationalist’ right has been happy to suck up this humiliation and ignore Israel’s slaughter of Christians and the destruction of churches in Gaza. However, images of Zionist US president, Donald Trump, depicting himself as Jesus as he does Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu’s war bidding — and now of an IOF soldier attacking a statue of the suffering Christ with a sledgehammer — threaten that Pavlovian support.

A worried Netanyahu condemned it and said the IOF is investigating — marking its own homework as ever while the scandal dies down.

Never fear, though. The BBC will always do its best to deflect and defuse for the occupiers.

Featured image via BBC News

By Skwawkbox

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Politics

HuffPost Headlines For April 20th

Published

39 minutes ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

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Politics

Olivia Colman has been recast in Heartstopper

Published

53 minutes ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Olivia Colman has been recast in Heartstopper

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Politics

Scottish Greens unveil plans on midwife training and household repair scheme

Published

1 hour ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Scottish Greens holding placards

The Scottish Greens have been laying out policy plans ahead of the Holyrood elections on 7 May. The party is hoping for a “breakthrough” result.

They’ve pledged action to make maternity care safer for women, babies and staff. The Greens would introduce earn-as-you-learn routes to bring more people into the midwife profession and ensure that financial barriers don’t put off those who want to train.

And as part of plans to cut the cost of living and protect the environment, the Scottish Greens will introduce a Scottish Repair Voucher scheme. This would allow people to get a discount on repairing household goods at participating manufacturers and retailers.

Safer maternity services

Earn-as-you-learn midwife training is part of a range of measures. These will also include minimum safe staffing levels on all maternity and labour wards.

The Scottish Greens say the changes are vital to ease pressure on overstretched maternity services. And they would ensure women and families get the safe, high-quality care they deserve throughout pregnancy, labour and the postnatal period.

Scottish Greens co-leader Gillian Mackay said:

Too many women and families are being let down by a maternity system that is under enormous strain while midwives are being asked to do more and more in overstretched services. That is not fair on them or on the people relying on their care.
For far too long, staff have been carrying the burden of workforce shortages, rising pressure and a system that is too often stretched beyond safe limits. That has real consequences for the quality of care, for staff wellbeing and for the confidence families should be able to have in maternity services.
Dignity, safety and making sure every family gets the care they deserve at one of the most important moments in their lives is crucial. Women should know that when they need care, the right staff will be there, with the time and capacity to support them properly.
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That is why the Scottish Greens are committed to introducing minimum safe staffing levels on all maternity and labour wards and expanding the midwife workforce by creating accessible earn-as-you-learn routes into midwifery.
Because, if we are serious about fixing the staffing crisis, we need to remove the barriers that prevent more people from taking up training in the profession in the first place.
On 7 May, people have a chance to vote for the Scottish Greens who will demand better for women’s health, better for maternity care and better for the staff who keep these services going.

Greens to introduce Scottish Repair Voucher scheme

A coalition of charities and waste management groups launched the UK’s first repair voucher pilot scheme in North London in 2025. It allowed residents to get up to 50% off the cost of repairs at participating businesses.

Similar schemes have already proven successful in other European countries, including Austria, France and Germany.

This is part of a package of measures that the party is proposing to reduce waste and save people money. This would include a requirement on some product manufacturers to take back used products, such as mattresses and textiles, at the end of their life.

Mackay said:

If we’re serious about tackling the cost-of-living crisis and the climate crisis, then we have to make it cheaper and easier for people to do the right thing. Our repair voucher scheme will make it cheaper to repair the things we already own rather than buying them again as new.
It is a simple and straightforward way of putting money back into people’s pockets. By covering part of the cost of fixing everyday items, we can help households to stretch their budgets and avoid unnecessary big purchases.
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The benefits are wider, as it will also help us to cut waste while supporting local repair businesses. It’s a win for households struggling with the cost of living, and a win for the small businesses rooted in our communities.
These kinds of schemes are already common across Europe and are already helping to support people through the cost of living crisis while reducing waste and protecting our planet. It’s time to do the same in Scotland.

Featured image via the Canary

By The Canary

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Politics

UK commitment to war and capitalism could make 250k people jobless in 2027

Published

1 hour ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Trump Starmer Iran

A global accounting giant and an economic forecasting firm say the war in Iran could see 250,000 people lose their jobs in 2027. The math is simple: the ruling class wages war and makes money, and workers carry the costs. Professional services giant Deloitte and economic forecasters at EY Item Club delivered their warning on 20 April.

Iran: economic blowback

The Guardian reported:

The EY Item Club also expects unemployment to hit 5.8% by the middle of 2027, up from the current five-year high of 5.2%, with almost 250,000 more people losing their jobs because of the crisis in the Middle East.

Adding:

If the forecast is correct, that would increase the number of jobseekers from 1.87 million now to more than 2.1 million.

Meanwhile, EY Item Club economist Matt Swannell said:

Spiralling energy costs and disruption to supply chains will push the UK to the brink of a technical recession in the middle of this year.
Consumers’ spending power will be squeezed, while more expensive financing arrangements and a less certain global economic backdrop will pour cold water on companies’ investment plans.

Deloitte’s head economist Ian Stewart told the Guardian:

Finance leaders are coping with high levels of external uncertainty and their focus is on managing risks from geopolitics, rising energy prices and higher financing costs,” said Ian Stewart, the chief economist at Deloitte UK.

‘Cost control’ = job cuts

The newspaper reported:

When asked about the consequences of adverse geopolitical developments over the next three years, the top three concerns among CFOs were energy costs (61%), inflation and interest rates (61%) and an increase in cyber-attacks (60%).

Stewart said:

Rarely in the last 16 years have UK CFOs been more focused on cost control than today.

He said the current “challenging environment”:

is prompting CFOs to scale back expectations for margins and sharpen their focus on cost reduction and cash conservation.

Adding:

The immediate priority for finance leaders is to strengthen balance sheets in the face of external headwinds.

Let’s translate this into plain English…

The foreign policy decisions – notably around Iran – of Trump and Starmer are coming home to roost. And the victims of any downturn aren’t going to be millionaires and billionaires. Hard-pressed workers will be hit to “strengthen balance sheets” in the “face” of “external headwinds”. That is to say, their jobs could be cut to keep the bank accounts of the wealthy swollen.

Any sensible political party would push against this. But none of the big parties is likely to…

People say British mainstream politicians are impossible to tell apart. That charge is essentially true. The fact is they all align on having an aggressive foreign policy and a commitment to free market capitalism.

Some would say foreign policy doesn’t figure in domestic elections – especially council elections. But these are not normal times. Faced with rising fascism, there are few electoral alternatives to the brutal free market capitalism and forever wars which produce it. Yet they do exist. Local council elections are on 7 May 2026. You can find out about eligibility, ID requirements and register to vote here.

Featured image via the Canary

By Joe Glenton

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Politics

How UK Fliers Can Prep For EES, From Jet 2, TUI, easyJet

Published

2 hours ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

How UK Fliers Can Prep For EES, From Jet 2, TUI, easyJet

The EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) has fully kicked into place for UK passengers after its October rollout.

It’s a biometric system (including a photo and/or fingerprints) that registers non-EU nationals every time they make a short stay in Schengen countries.

The EU’s site says it’s designed to eventually replace passport stamps and offer a more “efficient” version of EU check-ins. But so far, there have been early hiccups: EES has been blamed for border delays that left passengers behind and “hours-long queues”.

In response, airlines like TUI, Jet2, and easyJet have shared advice.

Which countries are affected by the EES system?

The Schengen countries involved are:

Austria,
Belgium,
Bulgaria,
Croatia,
Czechia,
Denmark,
Estonia,
Finland,
France,
Germany,
Greece,
Hungary,
Iceland,
Italy,
Latvia,
Liechtenstein,
Lithuania,
Luxembourg,
Malta,
Netherlands,
Norway,
Poland,
Portugal,
Romania,
Slovakia,
Slovenia,
Spain,
Sweden, and
Switzerland.

The Republic of Ireland and Cyprus are excluded from EES systems as they’re not Schengen countries.

What advice have airlines given to UK travellers for EES checkins?

The advice so far includes:

British Airways

Their site reads, “You should allow extra time to register your biometric details, such as fingerprints and a photo, the first time you enter the EU. There is no cost for EES registration, and your digital record will last three years before you need to register again.”

And responding to an X post by a passenger, the company added: “We ask customers travelling on our European short-haul flights to be there two hours prior to departure. It would be three hours if you’re travelling on a long-haul flight and one if you’re travelling on a domestic flight within the UK.”

Hi there. We ask customers travelling on our European short haul flights to be there two hours prior to departure. It would be three hours if you’re travelling on a long haul flight and one if you’re travelling on a domestic flight within the UK. Corry
— British Airways (@British_Airways) April 16, 2026
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TUI

In a travel alert, they said: “At some airports, you might still find longer queues, particularly at busy travel periods.”

They added, “To help your journey run as smoothly as possible, please allow a little extra time when passing through border control. Keep any essential medication in your hand luggage in case of delays, and when departing the EU, head straight to passport control after dropping your bags to avoid hold‑ups. Bringing some extra water for comfort is also a good idea.”

Jet 2

The company shared, “There may be longer wait times at Border Control at some EU Airports, especially at busy times. Once you start your EES registration, it should take around 1-2 minutes per person to complete.

“There may be longer wait times than usual when you arrive in destination and before your flight back to the UK. Unfortunately, this is outside of our control. But remember, there’s nothing you can prep before you travel.”

The airline added, “You’ll also need to pass through EES when leaving the EU in the same way you do on arrival. Depending on how busy the airport is, this may result in longer wait times at passport control before boarding your flight to the UK. After checking in for your flight, please head straight to security and passport control in order to arrive at your gate in plenty of time.”

easyJet

The airline pointed out that while kids under 12 are exempt from fingerprinting, passengers “may experience longer waiting times on arrival, so allow extra time and factor this in when planning onward travel, including trains, taxis, or flight transfers”.

Plan your journey, arrive early, use Bag Drop as soon as possible if you’re availing of the service, get through security as fast as possible, and “be aware that there may be further checks at passport control after security and before reaching your gate,” they said.

Ryanair

They warned that queues might be longer as airports adjust to the system.

“Have your passport ready and follow EES signs,” they wrote.

“We recommend arriving at the airport with extra time to allow for these additional checks, especially during busy travel periods.”

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Politics

This Device Made Me Realise Just How Weak My Pelvic Floor Really Is

Published

2 hours ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

This Device Made Me Realise Just How Weak My Pelvic Floor Really Is

We hope you love the products we recommend! All of them were independently selected by our editors. Just so you know, HuffPost UK may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page if you decide to shop from them. Oh, and FYI — prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

Other than at the gym and when I have a UTI (which is, unfortunately, pretty often) my pelvic floor isn’t something I’ve ever given much thought to.

Admittedly, I pee probably 20 times a day (for real) but I’d always attributed that to the fact I drink a shit ton of water, tea, and coffee.

Whenever I see those ‘do your kegels with me’ videos on TikTok or Instagram reels, I’ll follow along (I’m fickle, after all). And by my judgement, it does seem like I know how to do a kegel.

But otherwise, I go about my life pretty much entirely ignorant of my pelvic floor health.

When I heard that Smile Makers Collection – the creators of some of my favourite sex toys like the Ballerina and Poet – was venturing into the wellness category with the launch of Pelvic Partner, I wasn’t exactly excited.

I mean, vibrators are one thing, but pelvic floor trainers are another thing – perhaps necessary, but they’re not going to give you any thrills. Or, so I thought.

When I received the Pelvic Partner, though, that changed everything I thought I knew about the pelvic floor.

What is the pelvic floor and how do you engage it?

If, like me, you’re wondering why the pelvic floor really matters, it might surprise you to learn that strengthening this group of hidden muscles can help prevent unwanted symptoms as you age.

The muscles surround the bladder, bowels, and reproductive organs, which means they can weaken as you age, during menopause, or during and after childbirth.

Weak pelvic floor muscles can result in incontinence, instability, lower back pain, and needing the toilet often, while having a pelvic floor that is too tight can also result in constipation, pain during sex, and erectile dysfunction.

To prevent your pelvic floor weakening as you age, the NHS recommends doing daily pelvic floor exercises. This involves squeezing your muscles to engage them for two seconds and releasing, and repeating 10 times.

Not sure how to tell you’re doing it right? The NHS describes the sensation as the same as when you’re stopping yourself from peeing and farting. So it’s about to get hot and sexy up in here.

How to use the Pelvic Partner

Thankfully, Pelvic Partner easy as to use (you’re not going to get me to do exercise any other way).

After charging it using the USB cable, you simply slather the surface in lube, pop it inside your vagina up until the ‘comfort line’ and bend the tail towards your belly button.

You then turn it on, using the button at the end of the tail, and switch between the eight ‘training programmes’ the toy is equipped with.

Just like you’d train at the gym, Smile Makers Collection recommends using the Partner three times a week for two to three sets, at 10-15 reps per session.

To start with, the brand suggests choosing a setting you can complete all your exercises with. Settings one and two are ‘gentle’ to teach you how to engage your pelvic floor; three and four are ‘building’; five and six are ‘strong’; and seven and eight are ‘advanced’.

Once you feel like it’s easy to complete your session, you can move up to the next setting. This would be easy, I thought.

My review of the Pelvic Partner

How I tested

About me: I’m a 26-year-old woman who doesn’t have children. I’ve been testing sex toys and sexual wellness products for around five years, both in this role and my previous role at Cosmopolitan, Women’s Health, and Men’s Health, as well as while running my podcast/magazine, Sextras.

I’ve been using Smile Makers Collection’s Pelvic Partner for three weeks, making sure to not testing any other pelvic floor products at the same time.

As someone who has never done pelvic floor exercises consistently, I made sure to stick to a regime of three times a week. I also followed the brand’s instructions of how to use the trainer to make sure I was getting the most out of it.

First impressions

First up, this little orange device has two bulbous spheres that are supposed to sit inside your vagina – and just from giving it a squeeze with my hands, it felt fantastic.

Covered in smooth silicone, the toy has a cushiony feel to it, which is unlike other internal sex toys and pelvic floor trainers I’ve tried. This also makes it slick enough for washing it to take seconds.

Upon turning it on, I could tell exactly how the toy would work. It’s loaded with 360 degrees of haptic squeeze sensors, which means it vibrates when you’re engaging your pelvic floor.

To make sure you know what setting you’re on, the trainer will buzz the same amount of times, making it extremely intuitive.

Even better, it doesn’t require an app, so I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about it storing any of my sensitive data.

Final verdict

As someone who has done mat Pilates at least once a week for the last few years, I have always believed myself to know where my pelvic floor muscles are, and how to engage them. I’ve also never had any serious health conditions linked to my pelvic floor, so I didn’t think I had any issues with strength down there.

The first time I tried this trainer, it became clear just how wrong I was. While its first two settings felt like light work – it immediately vibrated at even the slightest contraction on the first one – the move up to the third setting was significant.

While I could easily do 10 reps, it felt tricky (to say the least) to keep going after just one set. I just about managed two, and thought I’d move up to the fourth programme just to see if I could hack it. But no ball. No matter how hard I tried, I simply could not make the damn thing buzz.

Now, I’m not exactly a competitive person, which is why I’ve always been a begrudging exerciser. With this trainer, though, I started to feel myself become competitive the more I used it.

Determined to move up through the strengths, I committed to using it three times a week.

And in the span of a mere seven days, I was able to move up to the fourth setting with no problem at all.

I even think the trainer has helped with my posture and my workouts. At my weekly Pilates class, I have found myself engaging my core in a way I didn’t know I needed to previously.

Another welcome side effect is that my orgasms feel slightly stronger, or at least I’m more aware of my pelvic floor during penetration – and I’m excited to see how this builds as I work up through the programmes.

Overall, I’d rate the trainer five stars – both for design, ease of use, and results I didn’t know I needed.

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Politics

Mandelson process ‘beggars belief’: Keir Starmer’s statement to parliament in full

Published

2 hours ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Keir Starmer has said it “beggars belief” that he was not told the full story about Peter Mandelson’s vetting by Foreign Office officials.

The prime minister acknowledged that many MPs would find his remarks about the latest Mandelson revelations “to be incredible”.

The comments came as Starmer delivered a statement to the House of Commons updating MPs on the appointment of Mandelson as British ambassador to the United States.

Read the full statement below:

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