1) Prune any rambling or climbing roses you haven’t already

2) Weed, weed, weed

3) Then, mulch

4) Fill in borders by planting wildflowers

5) Keep aphid populations in check

6) Repair frost damage and bare patches

7) Speaking of frost, prepare your plants for some icy conditions

8) Add new pond plants, and divide those which have become overgrown

9) Begin feeding citrus plants

1) The sit-to-stand test

2) The grip strength test

3) Standing on one leg, nicknamed the “flamingo” test

4) The gait speed test

5) The NHS heart age test

6) Check your instinctive response to questions like “Which country was the first to allow women to vote?” or “What does the word ‘dinosaur’ mean?”

4 min read15 min

Even while staying out, the UK cannot avoid the consequences of the Iran war. Economic pain is rapidly approaching, and a long-threatened era of energy scarcity has begun.  

As a government advisor during the financial crash, I was sceptical when Gordon Brown convened G20 world leaders. But he proved the doubters wrong and emerged with a framework for action and an even worse catastrophe averted.

The energy crisis sparked by Donald Trump’s war threatens a crisis as big as the financial crash, and which requires a response of equal magnitude. This is not simply a temporary price spike. Gulf energy underpins the world economy, with Qatar supplying a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas and a fifth of all oil and gas passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

For the second time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, global dependency on vulnerable fossil fuel supply chains has been brutally exposed. Even if the war stopped tomorrow, experts warn it could take years for things to stabilise. We are entering a new era of global energy insecurity that threatens living standards, economic stability and national security. Hostile powers that control fossil fuels understand the power they hold; economic hardship and public resentment provide ideal conditions for extremist politics to flourish.

The Prime Minister’s announcement that the UK is convening 35 nations to discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz is a good step forward. But this crisis is global, and Britain must respond globally.

We need an International Energy Summit, convened by Britain with the same boldness as Brown’s summit in 2009. The UK has the credibility to lead the response to this crisis, with deep energy expertise and renewable energy potential. We are also living proof of the stakes, with limited gas storage, declining domestic fossil fuel production and a population that has already endured one energy price shock in recent memory.

We could be convening major global players to secure agreement to stabilise energy markets, safeguard supply chains, coordinate reserves and speed up the shift to renewables. We could also be securing consensus that energy security is global security, and the alternative is a ‘Hunger Games’ world of resource conflict, scarcity and coercion.

We cannot have a dangerous race-to-the-bottom. If the wealthiest countries pay to hoard fossil fuels, we will all pay the price. Our economy depends on supply chains that stretch across countries like Bangladesh, Vietnam and the Philippines. If energy prices push those economies into blackouts or recession, we will quickly feel it here too — through goods shortages, higher prices and economic disruption.

The UK must therefore adopt a war footing to protect the British people — not just immediately, but for the long term. The route to national resilience is reducing our exposure to fossil fuels, because homegrown power cannot be held hostage by dictators, petrostates or erratic American presidents. We must accelerate the move to clean power, with a modern energy system that is decentralised, efficient and flexible. Plug-in domestic solar panels should become as central to strengthening energy security as Anderson shelters were to the 1939-45 war effort, enabling ordinary people to contribute to our shared resilience while also cutting their bills.

But even if we generate more energy at home, Britain will not fully benefit until we break the link between the price of gas and energy bills. Right now, even as fossil fuel usage falls, our bills remain tied to the volatile price of gas, inflicting pain on ordinary billpayers. We must break that link so we can drive down energy costs for households and businesses.

The direction of travel is clear, but the government must be bolder. From our global convening power to tackling our domestic energy crisis, no option should be off the table – even those once dismissed as too radical. This is not simply about bills. It is about security, stability and the enduring necessity of global cooperation in an increasingly fractious world.

Polly Billington is Labour MP for East Thanet 

Labour has led every Welsh government since the start of devolution in 1999 (Alamy)

11 min read7 min

Elections across local councils in England, Holyrood in Scotland, and the Senedd in Wales are taking place on Thursday, 7 May 2026. 

Approximately 4,992 councillors will be elected across 136 councils, as well as 6 local authority mayors. Two new councils are also being elected in East and West Surrey, and all 32 London boroughs are holding elections.

The Labour Party is defending more than 2,000 seats, the Conservatives are defending more than 1,000, the Lib Dems around 600, the Greens nearly 200, and Reform around 70 seats. 

All seats in both Holyrood, the Scottish Parliament, and the Senedd, the Welsh Parliament, are also being contested.

The scale of these contests creates potential for huge political upheaval across all three nations.

The results are widely expected to further demonstrate the threat posed to the traditional two-party system, Labour and the Conservatives, by insurgent challengers.

Polling expert Lord Robert Hayward told reporters at a recent pre-elections briefing: “I have never known both major parties so uncertain about what they’re going to achieve anywhere in the country, because on one side, you’ve got the Conservatives being hit by Reform and a carryover from their unpopularity in 2024.

“On the Labour side, you’ve got a very unpopular government and an even more unpopular prime minister, and you’ve got the question of the Greens.”

There are suggestions that Keir Starmer’s position could come under renewed pressure if the Labour performance next month is as bad as many in the party fear.

With the elections just over a month away, what are the key contests to look out for?

WALES

The Senedd elections are likely to be the most disruptive set of elections this May, with Welsh Labour at risk of falling out of government in Wales since the start of devolution in 1999.

The Welsh voting system has also been reformed, and the Senedd’s expansion from 60 to 96 members could make the results even more complex and unpredictable, according to Lord Hayward.

Welsh voters will now cast their ballots under a proportional representation system, including 16 large multi-member constituencies.

Pollsters expect the contest in Wales to be particularly volatile, with polling mostly showing nationalist party Plaid Cymru in the lead, and Reform looking competitive with Labour for the second-largest party. 

If no party can form a majority, parties might enter negotiations for a coalition – but Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth has said he would prefer to form a minority government than enter a coalition with another party.

Key areas to watch:

Senedd constituencies in the South Wales Valleys, such as Pontypridd or Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, are traditional Labour heartlands that are now threatened by both Plaid Cymru and Reform UK.

In North Wales, seats such as Fflint Wrecsam and the Vale of Clwyd currently have a mix of Labour, Conservative, and Plaid Cymru – and could be an interesting case study of how far both the Labour and Tory local vote collapses.

Plaid Cymru already performs strongly in constituencies in the west of Wales, but these elections will be an interesting indication of whether Plaid can translate strong polling leads into further domination in their strongest areas. 

In Cardiff and other urban areas in the south-east of Wales, this election could signal to what extent the Greens can compete in the urban belt of the country, with some areas seeing a three-way fight between Labour, Plaid and the Greens.

SCOTLAND

In Scotland, the results are less likely to be as disruptive as in Wales, with the incumbent SNP government leading in the polls so far. While the SNP remains on course to emerge as the largest party, the key question is who will emerge as the main opposition, and how fragmented that opposition becomes between Labour, Reform, the Conservatives, and, to a more limited extent, the Green Party and the Lib Dems.

Reform UK is gaining strength in several areas across Scotland and will try to compete with Labour for second place overall.

Professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London, Tim Bale, told PoliticsHome: “The story there is the resilience of the SNP. We know Labour are going to do relatively badly. 

“It’s the fact that a party that’s been in government there for so long and lost out quite badly in 2024 at the general election seems to have renewed itself under its new leader, and looks set to carry on governing Scotland. That really is quite a remarkable achievement. There aren’t many places in the world where a party is so predominant.”

In February, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar called on Starmer to resign, in a bid to distance himself and Scottish Labour from the Westminster Labour government.

Like in Wales, the results in Scotland could be complicated by boundary changes and new constituencies and regions, which could produce surprising results and unexpectedly boost smaller parties like the Greens.

Key areas to watch:

The constituencies in the capital, Edinburgh, are largely multi-party marginal seats dominated by Labour, SNP and the Conservative Party. Some of these constituencies were decided by narrow margins in 2021 – in some cases under two percentage points – making them among the most competitive seats in Scotland. These seats could be a key test of where the urban middle-class vote will go in Scotland amid high levels of dissatisfaction with the Labour government in Westminster.

In areas in the North East of Scotland, such as in Aberdeen, the contests have historically been SNP versus the Conservatives. However, with Labour having gained strength and Reform emerging in the polls, there are now likely to be multi-party contests here, with the cost of living and industrial energy policies being the top issues for voters. 

The west and central belt of Scotland, including Glasgow, is expected to see the traditional battle play out between the SNP and Labour.

ENGLISH LOCAL COUNCILS

Across England, the council elections are likely to expose the continued fragmentation of party politics.

All five main parties – Labour, the Conservatives, Reform UK, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens – could secure between 10 and 25 per cent of the national vote, making outcomes highly unpredictable under first past the post. The key question will be how far Labour and the Conservatives fall, and whether Reform and the Greens can convert rising support into gains.

Labour has the most to lose, defending more than 2,000 seats, many of them won in 2022, making the incumbents vulnerable. The Local Government Information Unit has predicted a “high churn” from these elections, with a significant turnover of councillors expected.

Professor Bale said Labour is likely to fare the worst, while the Conservatives are also expected to suffer losses. “But they are likely to be able to hide behind what happens to Labour,” he added.

Reform is expected to make gains, but its ability to take control of councils is uncertain, with tactical voting likely to play a significant role. Hayward said voters are increasingly asking campaigners on the doorstep which party is best placed to defeat Reform, with all parties deploying “bar chart” messaging on their campaign material.

There were signs of anti-Reform voting at recent by-elections in Caerphilly and Gorton & Denton.

“If ever you thought that bar charts were a unique operation of primarily the Liberal Democrats until a few months ago, I can guarantee that everybody going will be producing bar charts to say that they are in the best position to defeat Reform,” Hayward said.

However, boundary changes and disrupted election timetables may make it harder for voters to identify leading challengers. Smaller parties, including the Greens and Liberal Democrats, are likely to benefit from vote fragmentation, though the Lib Dems may struggle to translate this into large numbers of new councils.

National issues, particularly the cost of living and migration, are also expected to shape voting behaviour, though their impact remains uncertain. For Reform, the elections will be a key test of whether its polling strength can translate into meaningful local power.

For Labour, there is some hope that Starmer’s approach to the Iran war and refusal to agree to Donald Trump’s demands will give the party a boost on polling day.

Key areas to watch:

The county council contests will be a key test for the Conservative Party, with Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Hampshire, and East and West Sussex all considered core Tory heartlands. The Conservatives face a Reform UK insurgency, as well as the Lib Dems in the south. In 2025, the Tory vote in local councils collapsed, and the party will be nervous not to continue the same trend in 2026.

Hampshire stands out as a bellwether council up for election, as it has been Tory-controlled since 1997, and now the Tories face a squeeze from both Reform and the Lib Dems.

The all-out election in Milton Keynes is set to be a full reset due to boundary changes. With Labour having only recently gained full control of the council in 2024, the party needs only to lose a few seats to lose control again, with this contest potentially testing Labour’s durability in towns and suburban areas. 

Cambridge is an area where both the Greens and Lib Dems are competitive to challenge Labour’s very small majority on the council, making it likely it will flip to no overall control.

Councils in the north of England, such as Hartlepool, will act as the battleground over which Reform will try to win councils from Labour.

Multiple councils in the south-west of England are likely to be fragmented between Labour, Reform, the Lib Dems and the Green Party. 

Lord Hayward said it could be “particularly difficult” for the Lib Dems if they face a squeeze from the Green Party as the alternative progressive party to Labour and the Conservatives. 

Last month, PoliticsHome reported concern among Lib Dem figures that some MPs could switch to the Greens amid frustration with the party’s failure to capitalise on the success of the 2024 general election, when it returned a record number of MPs.

LONDON BOROUGHS

Labour could see its vote eroded in its traditional heartlands in the capital, with the insurgence of the Greens in inner London and Reform in the outer boroughs, while the Lib Dems are expected to hold onto their existing boroughs in south-west London.

Key areas to watch:

According to Lord Hayward, some of the key contests in London include:

• Reform target boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Havering, Barking & Dagenham
• Conservative target boroughs of Barnet, Wandsworth and Westminster
• Harrow and Hillingdon, which are being defended by the Tories
• Newham, Redbridge, Waltham Forest and Tower Hamlets are all boroughs where Gaza and the war in Iran might impact voting along international issues in the local elections
• Camden, Islington, Hackney, and perhaps Lambeth and Southwark are boroughs where the Green Party is likely to be competitive with Labour. 
• Kingston, Richmond, and Sutton are all boroughs which the Lib Dems are expected to hold

“Harrow is noticeable now, along with Westminster and Wandsworth, as being one of the very few places where it is purely Conservative versus Labour with a bit of others added on,” Lord Hayward said.

“They are very much the exception now as boroughs, in terms of competition.”

Camden would be a particularly symbolic victory for Zack Polanski’s Greens, as it contains Starmer’s constituency of Holborn and St Pancras.

In Redbridge, the pro-Gaza independents who nearly cost Health Secretary Wes Streeting his seat in the 2024 general election could also make inroads in the local elections. If Labour loses seats in Redbridge, it could cast doubt on Streeting’s suitability as a future leader if he is seen as unlikely to win his own seat at the next general election. 

However, Hayward predicted Labour losses in the capital would not amount to a “wipeout”.

“The problem that the two legacy parties actually face is that they genuinely don’t know how many people are going to vote for them,” he said, explaining that smaller parties this time around might encourage people to vote who have not previously voted in local elections. 

“Remember, the [Brexit] referendum in 2016 was effectively won by people who didn’t normally vote either.”

It is also possible that the Green Party and independent candidates could work together across London, as well as in other councils across the country – creating the potential for complex local coalitions in the aftermath of 7 May.

Trump has once again threatened to up the ante in his war on Iran. This time, he’s vowed to ‘reign down hell’ if Iran doesn’t re-open the Strait of Hormuz. The problem for Trump is that the constant escalations seem to have worked more in Iran’s favour than America’s:

Donald Trump has posted this on his Truth Social media account saying that Iran has “48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them” if they don’t make a deal and open the Strait of Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/Hz8WssiS64

— Mukhtar (@I_amMukhtar) April 4, 2026

Trump is flailing

Despite Trump claiming he gave Iran 10 days to make a deal, the hostilities have continued:

🗞️ U.S.-Israeli airstrikes hit Shahid Beheshti University in northern Tehran on April 3, targeting the Laser and Plasma Research Institute at its Velenjak campus, according to Iranian Red Crescent and university officials.

The research facility sustained significant damage,… https://t.co/nf0ovanGPN

Advertisement

— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) April 3, 2026

The big development of the past few days has been that Iran successfully shot down an American fighter jet:

🚨 BREAKING | An Iranian official told Drop Site News that a U.S. F-15 warplane struck by Iranian forces went down over southern Tehran Province, with intense fire reported at the crash site.

The official said the nature of the strike prevented the pilot[s] from ejecting before… https://t.co/iUKD0AqRQQ pic.twitter.com/BI4TzolmZY

— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) April 3, 2026

Advertisement

On 3 April, Drop Site reported on all the US aircraft incidents which had happened in the prior 24 hours:

▪️ One F-15E Strike Eagle (fighter-bomber): downed; 1 pilot rescued, 1 crew missing, search continues
▪️ Two HH-60W Jolly Green II (combat rescue helicopter) hit by Iran: all crew accounted for, both landed safely
▪️ One A-10 Warthog (close air support jet) crashed into Persian Gulf: pilot rescued
▪️ Another A-10 aircraft hit; made emergency landing with one engine disabled
▪️ F-16 (multirole fighter): declared emergency over Iraq; landed safely
▪️ KC-135 Stratotanker (refueling aircraft): declared emergency over Israel; landed safely
▪️ Iran also claimed it struck and downed another U.S. jet near Qeshm Island yesterday

As this has been going on, the Trump regime has been sacking senior military figures:

It’s likely that experienced generals are telling Hegseth his Iran war plans are unworkable, disastrous, and deadly.

Also, Hegseth is firing a ton of experienced generals right now. https://t.co/I2iKshfjNX

— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) April 3, 2026

Advertisement

The same day that Hegseth fires multiple senior army leaders, he announces that individuals “trusted” by the administration will be able to carry arms on base…

On the same day Trump is purging his cabinet…

This is like coup level shit. https://t.co/fopaihE4R3

— Adam Cochran (adamscochran.eth) (@adamscochran) April 3, 2026

It’s also reported that War Secretary Pete Hegseth may be paranoid about potential replacements:

Fox News: Multiple sources tell us the Hegseth firing of Army Chief of Staff Randy George has to do with Hegseth’s rivalry with Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, who is a close ally of JD Vance & was considered on the short list to replace Hegseth at one point pic.twitter.com/lmwqaPN5Sm

— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) April 4, 2026

The war on Iran has gone so poorly that it’s understandable the war secretary would now fear for his job. Things are so bad dire for Hegseth that Iran is actually mocking him:

An Iranian embassy trolling the Trump administration over Pete Hegseth’s purge of the US military mid-war https://t.co/IrgFxd0x7R

— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) April 3, 2026

It’s really not a strong look for a country to start sacking its military officials in the middle of an offensive. America isn’t a strong country, though, is it? It’s a weak country with a military industrial complex to serve.

Human suffering

While the actions of Trump and Hegseth are laughable and buffoonish, it’s important to remember that real people are suffering as a result of these childish men and their tantrums. It’s equally important for us here in Europe to keep up the pressure on our leaders.

This isn’t our war, and we must not allow our leaders to drag us into it.

Featured image via Pixabay (via Canva)

Every day, Reform’s battalion of local election candidates is looking worse and worse. Today, we learned that the party has welcomed a notorious ex-Tory councillor who voiced what can only be described as hardcore, Nazi-grade genocidal intent:

Reform claimed they have the most rigorous candidate vetting in the UK; yet a simple google search of Derek Bullock’s name brings up several news articles about Derek’s racist past.

So is Reform’s vetting process broken, or do they condone Derek Bullock’s call to violence?

— thelefttake (@thelefttake) April 4, 2026

‘Shoot them on the spot’

In March 2020, the Conservatives suspended Bolton councillor Derek Bullock. As the Manchester Evening News reported at the time:

It is alleged that Coun Derek Bullock, who represents Hulton ward on Bolton Council , posted an article from anti-Muslim activist Robert Spencer’s ‘JihadWatch’ on Facebook.

In response to an article about former party chair Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, he reportedly added: “She’s been a cuckoo in the nest!”

In another post, from February 2015, he is shown to have shared a Daily Mail article under the headline ‘Number of Muslim children in England and Wales doubles in a decade’, adding the comment ‘the clock is ticking’.

Despite this, Bullock was actually re-selected to run for the Tories in 2023 (although he was suspended, he remained a councillor). At the time, Labour MP Yasmin Qureshi said:

…culture of Islamophobia which has been found to exist throughout the party

Moreover, this decision shows a lack of commitment to integrity and calls into question his suitability for public office and ability to represent our multicultural town.

Advertisement

— Yasmin Qureshi MP (@YasminQureshiMP) April 5, 2023

In response to the backlash, the Tories re-suspended Bullock, with the Mirror reporting on this truly obscene post from him:

Following the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017, an account in Mr Bullock’s name commented on a news article: “Shoot the P***s on the spot.”

He’s clearly woken up to the fact that he’s not getting back into the Conservative Party. The question is whether Reform will tolerate a councillor who’s expressed an intent to eradicate a sizeable UK minority group.

Reform vetting

The Canary’s Antifabot posted the following:

Hey @reformparty_uk 🙋‍♀️

I just wanted to know, do you screen your candidates and if you do, is being a total and utter fascist who looks like a nonce a must?

Just so you know, if you do get in, we will absolutely stand up against people like this

Fucking dickhead pic.twitter.com/qz5hP9ZpFd

— 𝔸𝕟𝕥𝕚𝕗𝕒𝔹𝕠𝕥 – AKA The Intolerant Left (@_Wrevolution_) April 4, 2026

Advertisement

As we reported earlier today, there is reason to believe that Reform just isn’t vetting its candidates:

Brett Muscroft is Reform UK’s candidate in Castleford Central & Glasshoughton, Wakefield.

He shows clearly that Reform UK’s vetting is nil for this coming local elections.

His posts on Islam, his support of Tommy Robinson, Enoch Powell and posting far-right and racist content… pic.twitter.com/2kDm9P5DSI

— Reform Party UK Exposed 🇬🇧 (@reformexposed) April 3, 2026

Advertisement

The exposed posts from Brett Muscroft were found on his personal Facebook account. When we looked into it, this account was still public, and was instantly discoverable with a search on Facebook.

This leaves two possibilities:

• Reform isn’t vetting candidates.
• Reform has decided to accept the absolute dregs of humanity.

Either way, we get to the same result.

Featured image via Derek Bennet (Wikimedia)

Animal Justice Project has staged a demonstration in Leicester Square asking people to “Skip the Lamb” over Easter. As the charity highlights, lambs are usually only a few months old when they’re slaughtered:

We’re in Leicester Square today, urging the public to ‘Skip the Lamb’ this Easter.

Joined by dedicated activists and a powerful street stunt featuring a lamb and butcher, we’re challenging passersby to confront the reality behind their choices… and who ultimately pays the… pic.twitter.com/eHD2GhHkBJ

— AnimalJusticeProject (@ajpReact) April 4, 2026

This Easter — Skip the Lamb

In a press release, the group said:

Organised by Animal Justice Project, the demonstration features a powerful visual installation exposing the reality behind lamb consumption. A performer portraying a lamb lies on a table, dressed in a white costume with lamb ears and realistic prosthetic wounds, including a slit throat and severe leg injury. A figure dressed as a butcher appears to cut into the body, while a pile of severed leg props represents the scale of animals killed.

Volunteers are holding placards and distributing leaflets encouraging passers-by to “Skip the Lamb”, while a life-size lamb prop reinforces the connection between animals and the food on people’s plates.

In a video posted to social media, the group showed their activists interacting with the public:

Over 75% of the public are meat-eaters… but what percentage realise they are eating babies?

For many, Easter is a time for eating ‘a leg of lamb’, yet the disconnect is present even in the language.

Eating a lamb’s leg means killing baby animals, sometimes as young as 10… pic.twitter.com/5VzhIMe1sY

Advertisement

— AnimalJusticeProject (@ajpReact) April 4, 2026

Claire Palmer (Animal Justice Project founder) said:

Easter is often seen as a time of renewal and compassion, yet it’s still associated with eating lambs — animals who are only a few months old when they’re killed.

We want people to stop and think. Behind every Easter meal is an animal who wanted to live.

Palmer added:

Traditions can change. And when they involve the lives of young animals, they should.”

Animal Justice Project also provided the following statistics:

• April: 893,336 lambs slaughtered
• June: 1,106,894 lambs slaughtered
• Lambs are typically slaughtered at 4–8 months old

A Change of Heart

Animal Justice Project are simultaneously releasing a new film titled A Change of Heart: From Sheep Farmer to Vegan. The video follows Sivalingam “Kumar” Vasanthakumar — a former sheep farmer. Kumar took his flock to a sanctuary before transitioning to a plant-based livelihood.

As the press release notes:

Previously featured by BBC News, Kumar now grows vegetables and runs a vegan street food business, Kumar’s Dosa Bar, using largely home-grown produce.

. …

“I saw them as individuals,” Kumar says in the film. “Once you see that, you can’t continue as before.”

Advertisement

You can watch A Change of Heart: From Sheep Farmer to Vegan here.

Featured image via Animal Justice Project

Farage’s his Reform have started their own podcast — you know — like that Zack Polanski did.

On the one hand, this is understandable, because a good idea is a good idea. On the other hand, Reform — as ever — have decided to push the truth to breaking point:

“do things differently” = “copy the Green Party” pic.twitter.com/RVaNO1zrYA

— Adam Smith (@adamndsmith) April 4, 2026

Farage — bold Politics VS bold-faced lies

As noted above, Zack Polanski runs his own podcast called Bold Politics. The most recent episode features Canary contributor Cody Dahler:

To be clear, Polanski did not invent podcasting. He’s also not the first politician to have his own podcast. He is, however, the only one who isn’t infinitely repellant (we’re looking at you, Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart).

Bold Politics is absolutely a Green Party podcast, anyway; it’s not like Polanski is on there discussing true crime or recapping The Traitors. Farage can pretend otherwise, but it just makes him look like a liar and a copycat at the same time. Pick a lane, Nigel!

Perhaps what Farage means is ‘Reform is the only party with a podcast named after itself’? The problem is that this still wouldn’t be true:

Oh look @Nigel_Farage is lying AGAIN pic.twitter.com/LJtVylapWt

— Capman #FBPE (@Euro_toff) April 4, 2026

As we’ve reported, Restore Britain is a Reform UK breakaway party that is to Farage’s lot what Reform are to the Tories (i.e. a more right-wing version). Founded by ex-Reform MP Rupert Lowe, Restore is basically just the Conservative Party 3.0. Although, to be fair, they do have far fewer Tories than Reform does:

‘We do things differently at Reform’ pic.twitter.com/U3PcNKsYFf

— shatners (@shatners144143) April 4, 2026

The fact that we have three right-wing parties means these people are all struggling to differentiate themselves. In this instance, Reform have attempted to show that they’re different from the Tories by literally copying Restore.

People had other criticisms of Farage’s post too:

The entire fucking media is a Reform podcast. Everything you say is repeated to death.

— Oliver (@OWS1892) April 4, 2026

Preaching to the converted won’t arrest your decline in the polls. pic.twitter.com/JQI3VwScTI

— Zokko (@Zokko18) April 4, 2026

Pobcasting

We’ll be honest, we do think Reform are missing a trick. After all, they could have had Matt Goodwin host the show so they could refer to it as the Reform UK Pob-cast:

Just realised Matt Goodwin reminds me of ‘Pob’ and now I can’t unsee it 🤦🏼‍♀️😂😂 https://t.co/bPO2E8GxWE pic.twitter.com/Sac7lgD5qM

— Susan Cowell (@SusanCowell) February 17, 2026

If they follow our advice, they could truthfully say they’re the only party to have a podcast which is hosted by a failed MP who was recently accused of using AI to write an error-riddled book.

Featured image via Parliament

On 2 April, Donald Trump sacked attorney general Pam Bondi. Her sacking came as a great shock. Not because she was competent or deserving of her position, but because it meant Trump has found someone else who’s willing to make themselves legally culpable for improperly handling the Epstein Files.

Now, we’re once again seeing how Trump repays those who tarnish their reputation to protect him:

Lmao https://t.co/wNWw0MiKA3

— evan loves worf (@esjesjesj) April 3, 2026

Pam Bondi binned

This is how the BBC reported on Bondi going:

The president’s frustration had been growing with her leadership at the justice department – particularly over her handling of the Epstein files which have become a reputational liability for the administration.

This is a bit rich from Trump, to be honest. His big issue wasn’t Bondi; it’s the fact that he’s personally named thousands of times in the Epstein Files.

While we’re sure there are people who could have pulled off a more competent cover-up than Bondi, the question is who would want to expose themselves like that? Because the task at hand is risking jail time to protect a senile creep of a president who’s accused of the worst crimes imaginable.

You could argue that Bondi did a lot to prevent the files coming out, but there was only so much she could achieve (this isn’t praise):

“She did it because we threatened contempt, we threatened impeachment, we passed a law!”

After Trump removes US Attorney General Pam Bondi, Democrat Ro Khanna on whether she deserves credit for having released 3.5 million pages of the Epstein Files.

Advertisement

pic.twitter.com/LdzkeQ1Y4x

— Simon Gosden. Esq. #fbpe 3.5% 🇪🇺🐟🇬🇧🏴‍☠️🦠💙 (@g_gosden) April 4, 2026

Bondi didn’t only provide cover on Epstein either, as More Perfect Union reported:

Under Bondi the Justice Department:
– Dropped 23,000 criminal investigations including white collar and corporate crime
– Halted 159 corporate enforcement actions
– Settled the lawsuit to break up LiveNation/Ticketmaster
– Let 18 companies avoid $3.1 billion in penalties

The BBC also wrote:

Trump has often demanded unrestricted control of the justice department to pursue investigations into targets of his choosing, even when he was warned there was no evidence to do so.

He addressed that directly in a post directed at Bondi – saying the delays in those cases were “killing our reputation and credibility”.

The guy replacing Bondi is Todd Blanche who has suggested that Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged co-conspirators are safe:

Q: Is the public going to learn the identities of the men who abused the girls in the Epstein files?

Acting AG Todd Blanche: Like, what does that mean? I don’t understand what that means. pic.twitter.com/CkKLHaWcDU

— FactPost (@factpostnews) April 2, 2026

Advertisement

Acting AG Todd Blanche declares mission accomplished on the Epstein files: “The DOJ has now released all of the files with respect to the Epstein saga” pic.twitter.com/1Yugz7ItEA

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 3, 2026

The above is not true, by the way, and Blanche is already facing scrutiny:

Congratulations AG Blanche. Now you have 30 days to release the rest of the files before becoming criminally liable for failure to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. https://t.co/LOcytrTXJV

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 3, 2026

Oh, and just because Bondi is gone, that doesn’t mean she won’t still be legally responsible for her handling of the Epstein Files or other matters

Pam Bondi, “There is no evidence that Donald Trump has committed a crime”

Ted Lieu, “You just lied under oath. There is ample evidence in the Epstein files”

Pam Bondi, “Don’t you ever accuse me of a crime”

Ted Lieu, “You just lied under oath, and this is on video tape”

Ted… pic.twitter.com/v2Feci6P4u

Advertisement

— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) February 11, 2026

Whether this translates into actual accountability is anyone’s guess.

As many have said, crime is essentially legal in the US now if you’re one of the elites.

Good riddance

The following image is from the same hearing as the above. The women with their hands up are victims of Jeffrey Epstein. And the reason they have their hands up is because they’re answering affirmatively that Bondi’s justice department ignored them:

This photo and the Epstein file cover up will be Pam Bondi’s legacy. pic.twitter.com/FOX5wgnNAy

— Harry Sisson (@harryjsisson) April 2, 2026

So yes, this disgraced politician does belong in the bin.

And by ‘the bin’, we of course mean ‘prison’.

Featured image via Gage Skidmore (Wikimedia)