AI has outpaced us, thinks faster, scales wider, comprehends more. To cede cultural, emotional, and imaginative labor to algorithms is not progress; it is capitulation. Automated search engines or text-to-image prompt-to-creation systems are not just about machines; they now involve the executives, institutions, and stakeholders who determine how, where, and why these technologies are deployed.

When state companies and nation-state enterprises opt for the shortcut of AI-generated content in public communication and cultural production, the consequences go beyond the aesthetic and strike deeply at the level of meaning. It broadcasts a message louder than any campaign: that authentic creative labor is dispensable. Meanwhile, advocates argue that AI literacy should be treated as a public infrastructure issue, on par with education or access to information, to make society more resilient to systems capable of influencing our decisions and emotions. 

Yet removing human accountability breeds monsters: it undermines professional environments, disrupts competitive fields, and gradually erodes the human sense of initiative and creativity day by day. What was once a subculture, a shared resource, one requiring careful stewardship and limited use, is being transformed into an infrastructure of extraction and efficiency. 

Its social, cultural, and environmental costs are increasingly displaced outward, absorbed quietly by those who neither built it nor were consulted in its redesign. This shift, however, is not simply the result of technological inevitability or bad intentions. Rather, it extends to the gradual marginalisation of professional and creative roles in favour of optimised, automated services that quietly reconfigure the fabric of human work, expertise, and value.

Education integrated with AI

In China, university students now face educational landscapes stripped of artistic practice. Local universities that are less hesitant shutter arts degrees in the name of AI’s march. 

As reported by Al Jazeera’s Katrina Yu, such decisions render humans into passive bystanders. Moreover, the kinds of careers these students will pursue are increasingly shaped – or deformed – by this shift, ultimately orienting them away from traditional approaches to creative and performative work.

An open letter signed by some students of the university began circulating on social media. As a reaction to this outspoken strategy by the Chinese academic system, students reacted: 

When we saw the news, we were completely stunned. We applied to the Communication University because of these programmes. Now they’re being cut just like that. Will our diplomas still be recognised? What will happen to our remaining classes? And when we apply for jobs after graduation, will potential employers think we have also been eliminated in this game since our majors have been scrapped?

Once that path is normalized, it is unclear whether we, or our children, will recognize the contours of human creativity at all in the same way as we once did.

AI and the Performing Arts

AI is now also capable of generating avatars, songs, scripts, and even entire stage narratives. 

Fabrice Laffon is living proof of a professional exploring this new frontier of art and digital automation. He is the director of the legendary Madame Arthur, Pigalle’s historic drag cabaret. The troupe’s communications team unveiled Data von Tana, an AI-generated entity, at the beginning of April, signaling a subtle but profound shift in the cabaret’s artistic tone. 

Arkadi Zaides’ theatrical performance The Cloud is unique: much of the creative work – editing, staging, even the act of performance – is executed by artificial intelligence itself, rather than by the performer or the artist. If even learning to act can be algorithmically optimized and distributed at scale, the very foundation upon which theatre and performative arts stand begins to wobble.

Only by keeping firmly in mind that human creativity and AI literacy can and must coexist without machines “tricking” people will it be possible to manage the automation processes of contemporary society. Difficult? Yes, but our survival as human beings depends on our ability to assist human decision-making, never to replace it. 

The real question is not whether AI can replace performance, but whether enough people will stop caring about the difference to make replacement economically sufficient. That is a cultural question, not a technological one, and it is considerably more disturbing.

Featured image via Hollie Adams / Getty Images

By Tommaso Zerbi

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Arsenal have ended a 22‑year wait for the top-flight title, finally turning near-misses into silverware under Mikel Arteta. The Gunners sealed the 2025/26 Premier League crown after Manchester City drew 1-1 at Bournemouth, a result that handed Arsenal the trophy with one game to spare.

How it happened

Arsenal led the table for much of the season, then weathered a tense April that threatened to derail their bid.

A 2-1 defeat at Manchester City looked like a momentum shift, but Arteta’s side steadied, kept their nerve and capitalised when City failed to win at Everton and Bournemouth. The draws mathematically ended Arsenal’s long wait for a league title.

What it means for the club

This is Arsenal’s first league title since the Invincibles season of 2003/04.

Beyond the nostalgia, the victory marks the end of a run of three consecutive second-place finishes and a six-year trophy drought.

For Arteta, it’s his second major honour as manager at the Emirates and a vindication of a project built on structure, discipline and a clear identity.

The squad and style

Arsenal’s season was defined by a compact, resilient unit rather than a single superstar explosion.

The defence proved the backbone of the campaign, while key midfield signings and tactical tweaks allowed the team to grind out results when flair alone wasn’t enough.

The balance between organisation and attacking intent gave them the consistency required over 38 games.

The moment and the reaction

Players and staff celebrated at London Colney as the final whistle blew at Bournemouth. Social media and former figures associated with the club joined the chorus of congratulations.

The club will lift the trophy after their final game of the season at Crystal Palace, a formal coronation to match the long, patient build-up.

What’s next

Arsenal now head into the Champions League final against PSG in Budapest with momentum and belief.

The European final represents a chance to add a historic first Champions League trophy to the season’s haul and to cement this campaign as a genuine turning point for the club.

Quick takeaways

• End of an era: First league title since 2004; the Invincibles’ shadow finally lifted.
• Managerial milestone: Arteta’s project reaches a major peak; continuity rewarded.
• Team effort: Defence and midfield balance carried the campaign; collective over individual.
• Still to play for: Champions League final against PSG offers a chance for a double.

Arsenal’s title feels like the payoff for a long, methodical rebuild: smart recruitment, a clear tactical identity and a manager who learned from setbacks. The celebrations will be loud, but the real test is whether this becomes a launchpad for sustained dominance or a glorious peak.

Either way, north London has its crown back and the club’s next chapter starts with a trophy in hand and a European final on the horizon.

Featured image via Julian Finney / Getty Images

By Faz Ali

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Fenerbahçe players celebrated the Turkish Women’s Football League title amid remarkable scenes that included raising the Palestinian flag during the coronation ceremony. The moment received widespread interaction across social media.

Both Zeynep Kerimoglu and Ipek Kaya were seen raising the Palestinian flag inside the stadium during the celebrations.

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Other clips showed a number of the team’s players celebrating the title with the Palestinian flag after the end of the coronation ceremony. Observers considered this to be a continuation of the frequent presence of Palestinian symbolism inside Turkish stadiums and sports celebrations during recent times.

This comes days after a similar scene during Galatasaray’s celebrations of the Turkish league title, when French player Sacha Boey, 24, stole the show after appearing draped in the Palestinian flag on Friday evening.

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Turkish stadiums have witnessed several similar situations in recent months, both from fans and players, in support of Palestine and the Gaza Strip.

Turkish Parliament speaker supports Lamine Yamal

Politician Numan Kurtulmus, who is speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, praised Barcelona right winger Lamine Yamal for his anti-genocide stance. Yamal raised the Palestinian flag during his team’s celebrations of the Spanish League title and faced condemnation from Israeli officials for doing so.

Kurtulmus said Yamal had taken a “humanitarian stance” by supporting Gaza despite the pressure, adding that the player had become “the greatest football player humanity has ever known”.

He also attacked Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, for his criticism of Yamal, while praising the prime minister of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, for backing the 18-year-old footballer.

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By Alaa Shamali

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Aston Villa head into the Europa League final against Freiburg with a clear sense of purpose and a manager whose record in this competition is unmatched in recent years. The club have already secured Champions League football for next season, and the final in Istanbul represents an opportunity to add a major trophy to a season that has exceeded many expectations.

Experience at the helm

Unai Emery’s presence is the defining factor for Villa in this fixture. He arrives in his sixth Europa League final, having won the competition multiple times with other clubs and lost once in a high-profile defeat.

That history matters less as a tally and more as evidence of his familiarity with the tactical and psychological demands of European finals. Emery himself has downplayed any notion of entitlement, stressing that past success does not guarantee victory with this squad; he has framed the match as a new chapter that must be earned by the current group of players.

Villa players and pundits have been consistent in their praise for Emery’s influence. Striker Ollie Watkins has highlighted the transformation in belief and style since Emery’s arrival, pointing to the team’s cohesion and the work done on the training ground. Former players and commentators have also noted that Emery’s attention to detail and his ability to prepare teams for one-off European nights make him an ideal coach for this occasion.

Freiburg: the underdog with clear strengths

Freiburg arrive in Istanbul as a side that has outperformed many expectations. The German club have combined a compact defensive structure with creative attacking outlets, and their route to the final has included results against established Bundesliga opponents.

Key figures for Freiburg include experienced defender Matthias Ginter, creative midfielder Johan Manzambi, and long-serving forward Vincenzo Grifo, whose goals and influence have been central to their run. Observers warn that Freiburg should not be underestimated; their balance and the form of certain individuals make them a genuine threat.

Tactically, Freiburg have tended to use a 4-2-3-1 shape for much of their domestic campaign, which has allowed them to be compact without the ball and fluid in transition. That structure will test Villa’s midfield control and the ability of Emery’s side to create and exploit space in wide and central areas.

What Villa must do to win

Villa’s path to success in the final is straightforward in concept but demanding in execution. They must combine the defensive organisation that has improved under Emery with the attacking fluidity that has produced notable results in the Premier League and Europe. Controlling the midfield, limiting Freiburg’s counter-attacking opportunities, and ensuring clinical finishing from chances created will be decisive.

Set-pieces and transitions are likely to be key moments. Villa’s ability to press and force errors, then convert those moments into goals, will test Freiburg’s discipline. Equally, Villa must guard against individual moments of quality from Grifo and Manzambi, who can change a game with a single action.

Atmosphere, stakes and perspective

For Aston Villa supporters, this is the club’s first major European final since 1982, and the occasion carries emotional weight for the fanbase and the city.

The club’s recent progress and securing Champions League qualification establishes a consistent top-level presence, which means the final is also a logical next step rather than an isolated peak. For Emery, adding silverware would be another milestone in a project that has already shifted Villa’s trajectory.

Emery’s own words ahead of the match were measured and forward-looking; as he put it:

It’s going to be a special day.

That short line captures both the significance of the occasion and the coach’s attempt to keep focus on the task rather than the narrative of his past achievements.

Final thought

The Europa League final between Aston Villa and Freiburg presents a clear contrast: a club on the rise under a manager with a proven European blueprint, versus a disciplined and spirited Bundesliga side that has earned its place through collective effort.

The match will be decided by preparation, composure in key moments, and the ability of both teams to impose their preferred style.

For Villa, the chance to convert a season of progress into tangible silverware is real; for Freiburg, the opportunity to complete a remarkable campaign is equally compelling.

Featured image via Francisco Seco – Pool / Getty Images

By Faz Ali

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At a time when Western media and political discourse insist on marketing the narrative that the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has settled into a permanent stalemate and a mutual swamp of attrition, facts on the ground reveal a completely different trajectory.

This prevailing perception represents a flawed strategic reading: Russia has not merely managed a local war of attrition, but has used it as a historical lever to massively restructure its military and industrial power. Today, the result is manifested in a decisive Russian superiority in the defence.

By manufacturing war, and through intensive preparation for a potential (and more conventional) confrontation with NATO, Russia reveals how the European continent is structurally helpless, militarily depleted, and unqualified to fight a conflict of this scale.

The Russian Military-Industrial Revolution: The Numbers Speak

The first of these leaps was manifested in human mobilisation and structural expansion, as the size of the Russian army jumped from 900,000 soldiers on the eve of the conflict’s outbreak to 1.6 million, with a relentless target of reaching a solid regular force of 2.2 million troops. This increase is supported by a complex logistical infrastructure and deep strategic stockpiles of conventional and advanced ammunition, which are capable of sustaining various large-scale emergencies.

Reflecting plans for a long-term confrontation with NATO, Russia has established the ‘New Leningrad Military District‘ along the Finnish border. This district includes a massive military corps, which some analyses estimate to be between 20,000 and 70,000 soldiers, formed by merging and expanding Soviet-era units, depots, and military enclaves in Karelia and Murmansk. On completion, this would produce an integrated front equipped and ready to fight a wide-ranging conventional war.

On the drone warfare and ‘aerial flooding’ strategy front, Russia has tripled the area of its Shahed-136 manufacturing facilities (known in Russia as ‘Geranium’) outside the city of Kazan. Although official documents and conservative estimates indicate production rates ranging between 100 and 600 drones per day (averaging 4,500 drones per month, with the ability to mobilize 1,000 drones in concentrated attacks), the entry of advanced jet-powered generations into service gives Moscow the future capability to raise the pace of attacks to record levels, aimed at completely paralysing Western air defences.

European Fragility: Feeble Armies and Empty Depots

On the flip side, generous and continuous support for Kyiv has emptied the conventional weapons and interceptor missile depots of European nations, exposing sharp structural flaws in the continent’s military readiness.

The United Kingdom, for example, suffers from a severe depletion of resources that prevents it from concluding major new heavy equipment procurement deals until 2030. A striking numerical shrinking has also left the entire British Army small enough to fit inside a modern football stadium, with thousands of empty seats remaining.

As for France, despite the efficiency of its forces, it lacks domestic logistical sustainability and strategic airlift capabilities, leaving it unable to deploy more than 7,000 troops to any external theatre of operations without declaring general mobilisation.

In Germany, despite the allocation of a €111 billion special fund in 2022 to modernise the army, bureaucracy and political divisions have prevented tangible results. Berlin’s plans to deploy a military brigade to Lithuania face logistical obstacles, immense pressure on production lines, and delayed contracts as a result of the war’s repercussions and the tremendous strain the defence industry is undergoing following the war in Ukraine.

The most dangerous vulnerability lies in the fact that Europe today does not possess a real air defence umbrella capable of withstanding a sustained Russian flooding attack of drones and updated cruise missiles, such as the ‘Iskander-K‘ and hypersonic systems. This imbalance has enabled Russia to possess a conventional destructive capability that could level Europe’s strategic infrastructure, with no equivalent conventional deterrence options available to the West.

The Deterrence Dilemma and Breaking Red Lines

For decades, European security doctrine has been built on the sanctity of ‘Article 5‘ of the NATO Treaty and the American nuclear umbrella. However, these calculations face a fatal logical challenge today.

Washington has sent a clear message that any Russian use of tactical nuclear weapons inside Ukraine would be met with a conventional US response using long-range missiles – the very same missiles whose stockpiles the West has critically depleted.

Should Russia launch overwhelming conventional strikes against the European depth, Western leaders will find themselves facing an existential dilemma akin to a political ‘checkmate’. Any French or British nuclear response would automatically mean an immediate Russian counter-retaliation that would annihilate their capitals. With European intelligence networks penetrated and domestic political decision-making fragmented, Moscow moves with the certainty that European leaders will ultimately choose to retreat and swallow a conventional defeat rather than commit collective nuclear suicide.

This understanding coincides with a radical shift in the tone of the Russian leadership. While Russian discourse has historically been characterised by caution and pragmatism, the Western permission for Ukraine to cross red lines and strike deep inside Russian territory has led to a decisive shift in Moscow’s stance. It has transitioned from a posture of managing a local conflict to actual psychological and military readiness for a broader war aimed at punishing European capitals directly.

The Historical Trajectory: How Ukraine Became a Thorn in the Side

The current crisis was not born by chance. It is the culmination of a long-term Western strategy that has used Ukraine as a platform for geopolitical targeting against Russia.

Since 1948, American intelligence circles viewed western Ukraine as an ideal arena for guerrilla warfare against the Soviet Union. This approach deepened through intelligence-driven political interventions in the 2004 Orange Revolution, leading to the 2014 Maidan events that overthrew Kyiv’s neutral government to install hard-line nationalist factions, officially transforming the country into an advanced confrontation front and a ‘thorn in Russia’s side’.

Despite Moscow’s attempts in the spring of 2022 to reach a flexible political settlement via the ‘Istanbul Communiqué‘ – in which Russia expressed a willingness to withdraw from Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in exchange for Kyiv’s neutrality and recognition of the Donbas’s independence – direct NATO intervention, the pumping of billions in aid packages, and intelligence efforts to launch counter-attacks aborted the diplomatic opportunity for peace.

This Western insistence on escalation later forced Moscow to permanently integrate those regions into the Russian Federation through the September 2022 referendums.

Strategic Conclusion: Bitter Choices to Save the Continent

Current data proves that the Ukrainian gamble has reached its end. Russia has already settled the war of attrition in its favour. In order to avoid a catastrophic military clash on European soil, decision-makers on the Old Continent must wake up from the offensive American vision and execute a courageous strategic pivot to save face, anchored on three inevitable realities:

• First – Realism in the Energy File: It must be acknowledged that the United States is incapable of providing a sustainable and affordable energy alternative for Europe, especially with global maritime straits – like the straits of Hormuz, Bab al-Mandeb and the Suez Canal – remaining at the mercy of regional powers and sudden closures at any time.
• Second – Strategic Reconciliation with Moscow: Europe’s industrial survival depends entirely on abandoning the framework that treats Russia as a permanent strategic enemy, and reintegrating it as a vital, indispensable partner for achieving economic stability and energy security.
• Third – Accepting the Eurasian Reality of Ukraine: The West must stop the futile pursuit of integrating Ukraine into the Western system. History and geography prove that Ukraine’s long-term stability lies in its return as a bridge state that achieves balance alongside Russia and Belarus, rather than remaining a depleting front line for a NATO alliance going through its worst structural and logistical crises.

Featured image via Diego Fedele / Getty Images

By Mohammad Fakih

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Nigel Farage is facing significant heat at the moment over a £5m ‘gift’ he failed to declare. Farage faces two separate investigations on the matter, and he’s also facing question about whether he used the money to purchase a £1.4m house in Surrey.

On the topic of the house, the BBC have been trying to get Farage on to discuss the matter. This was how Reform responded:

Victoria Derbyshire, "We asked for an interview with Nigel Farage tonight and we got a thumbs down emoji from his team"

"Over the last couple of weeks we've asked for an interview with Nigel Farage or anyone from Reform UK's front bench ten times"

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Jake Berry, who used to be a… pic.twitter.com/l594M6EQ1Q

— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) May 19, 2026

Farage rattled and rolled

Jake Berry is a former Tory MP who also served as the party’s chairman. In July 2025, he defected to Reform, stating:

I’ve always believed that change comes with challenging the old order. In shaking up the system when it isn’t working

Oh yeah – we’re sure he’s always thought that – that’s why he joined the Tories – the longest running political party in the UK.

In the clip at the top, Berry said:

Well, the question is how did Nigel Farage pay for his house? We know because he told us he did an interview with Harry Cole and he said that he received money from Irem as a celebrity, which is actually part of a wider business career… Including representing companies that sell things like gold, including doing appearances in celebrity things. He got that money, he used it to buy his house, The explanation does add up.

I’ll tell you what doesn’t add up is this inference that money received 35 days earlier enabled him to buy the house. Anyone who’s ever bought a house recently know it takes about six months. And Nigel’s been really clear about this. He said he’d passed proof of funding, he’d agreed to buy this house a long time before this gift was received. And I accept his explanation.

For clarity’s sake, the £1.4m Surrey house is different to the Clacton house. The latter house also attracted controversy when people accused Farage of using his partner’s name on the deeds to avoid paying £44k in stamp duty.

The accusation Berry alluded to is that Farage actually paid for the house with an undeclared ‘gift’ of £5m he received from foreign-based crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne. Notably, this wasn’t the only thing Farage did after receiving the gift:

Here are the facts as laid down by Derbyshire:
1) Farage says he won’t run
2) crypto billionaire pays him £5mill
3) Farage U-turns and runs
4) Farage hides the donation
5) Farage announces if he wins the election he will slash capital gains tax for crypto firms

Same old same old https://t.co/ViEIFZkf3A

— Alonso Gurmendi (@Alonso_GD) May 6, 2026

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Back to the interview, Derbyshire said:

The explanation that he bought that house from the fee from I’m a Celeb when the money was paid into his media business company, and was still in the account, according to the FT, after the house purchase was made.

In other words, it seems to literally be impossible that Farage could have paid for the house as Reform is claiming:

Another whopper from Farage. His Celebrity money was paid into his Thorn in the Side account (his tax dodging vehicle) and never left it to buy a house. https://t.co/rY3yZXY01s pic.twitter.com/MOaCTYKMrI

— Mr Ethical (@nw_nicholas) May 16, 2026

On the back foot

In the interview, Berry got quite flustered and attempted to change the subject:

"He told us… he received money from I'm A Celebrity."

Sir Jake Berry, Reform UK, defends his party leader and argues that the continued focus on his finances is just "the mainstream media desperate to keep this story going against Nigel Farage". #Newsnight pic.twitter.com/4bquGSUITI

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— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) May 19, 2026

Berry also got the name of Reform’s candidate in the Makerfield by-election wrong:

Jake Berry: “What I think is extraordinary about this by-election, is you have ‘Robert Jenkins’, a brilliant candidate for Reform…”

Victoria Derbyshire: “That’s not his name by the way”

Jake Berry: “Sorry?”

Victoria Derbyshire: “It’s Robert Kenyon”#newsnight pic.twitter.com/3ZIdwbXvLw

— David (@Zero_4) May 19, 2026

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It seems clear why Farage doesn’t want to respond to these questions; it’s because he doesn’t have good answers.

Sooner or later, however, he will have to account for himself.

Featured image via Getty Images (Ryan Jenkinson) 

By Willem Moore

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One of the UK’s biggest disabled people’s organisations has slammed a trade union for supporting disability benefit reforms and conflating Department for Work and Pension (DWP) disability benefits with benefits that assist work.

TUC makes DWP PIP about work

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) called for ‘genuine reform’ of the DWP benefit Personal Independence Payment (PIP), as they say it enables many disabled workers to enter jobs. However, as Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) points out, PIP isn’t an out-of-work benefit and has nothing to do with employment.

Ahead of the TUC disabled members conference, the union submitted its response to the Timms review of PIP. In the submission, the TUC says that PIP is ‘crucial’ for disabled people to start and stay in work. However, the body warns that it’s not working as intended.

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said:

The government has a vital opportunity to support more Disabled people into work through the Timms Review. Right now, Disabled people are bearing the brunt of unemployment, low pay and insecure work – all while navigating a social security system that is not fit for purpose.

Only a genuine reform of PIP will ensure that Disabled people who can work, receive the support they need to move into and stay in work. But this must come alongside wider action too, like ensuring Disabled workers get the reasonable adjustments they need, stronger rights at work and reform of the Access to Work scheme.

Disabled people’s organisation DPAC are ‘disappointed’ that Nowak focused on work when talking about PIP and not on how it’s a vital benefit for so many.

They said in a statement:

PIP is paid to people who work and who don’t work. It is not paid on the basis of work – it is paid on the basis of daily living and mobility/ getting around. Work does not come into the assessment, nor should it. It may help people to access work, but that is not the primary purpose of it.

The TUC statement suggests that PIP reform and the Timms review is justified and should involve consideration of work. It is now being reported in the media as ‘PIP rules should be changed to get disabled people into work.’

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TUC is focusing too much on work

For what it’s worth, it seems like the TUC’s heart is in the right place. They consulted with many disabled members, and as a union body, employment is probably a priority for their disabled members.

And to some extent, disability employment does need to be improved.

As the TUC statement said:

TUC analysis found that the unemployment rate for Disabled people is 8.8% – it’s highest since before the pandemic – compared to 4.3% for non-disabled people. The situation is even worse for young Disabled workers – with an unemployment rate of 24.2%, compared to 12.2% for those who are not Disabled.

The stats for young people are especially worrying. However, the DWP’s solution isn’t to support young people but instead to force them into dead-end work. And the department is throwing under 24’s on PIP under the bus before the Timms review is even complete, with the extension of the assessment period not applying to young people.

The TUC has said that PIP can only help some disabled people into work alongside Access to Work, which the department is also cutting. However, the union body falls into the trap of putting the onus on employers for workplace adjustments, something the DWP has also been pushing.

The TUC said:

Disabled workers who took part in a TUC self-reporting survey (for its submission to the Timms Review) reported using PIP payments to cover for the cost of reasonable adjustments – many workers believed these costs should be covered by their employer or other support systems.

The TUC is calling on employers to do their part and implement reasonable adjustments to help keeping Disabled employees in work.

Whilst this might be possible for bigger companies, for smaller employers, it means they’re just less likely to employ a disabled person. It also wrongly lets the DWP off the hook, as this is literally what Access to Work is for.

TUC needs to focus on what’s important

Worryingly, the TUC said Timms Review is a ‘step in the right direction’, which isn’t exactly the words I’d use for an already determined farce of a review that pretends to be co-produced by disabled people, but each to their own.

That being said, the TUC is also urging the DWP to:

• Reform the assessment process, moving away from a one-off, snapshot assessment to start capturing fluctuation, fatigue and recovery time – and making the process more accessible and less burdensome.

• Improve assessor expertise and decision-making, ensuring that assessors have relevant medical knowledge and/or training, and that medical evidence is given appropriate weight in decision-making.

• Improve first decision accuracy and reduce reliance on appeals – as at present too many people are only awarded PIP when they challenge a refusal at tribunal.

• Ensure PIP payment levels reflect the true additional costs of disability  and the extra costs associated with working – such as travel, energy and support.

• Reduce unnecessary reassessment, limiting repeat reassessments where conditions are unlikely to improve.

It’s clear the TUC is focusing on work, because that’s important to their members, but by doing so it’s feeding into the DWP’s rhetoric that disabled people are only worthy of support if they contribute to the economy. It means many disabled people are left feeling betrayed once again.

It’s well past high time that we stopped putting employment on this pedestal. Disabled people should be supported to thrive whether or not they work. And however well meaning the TUC’s statement was, all it’s done here is put disabled people who can’t work at the bottom of the heap again.

Featured image via Getty/Alishia Abodunde

By Rachel Charlton-Dailey

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Hayden Panettiere, the star of Nashville, Heroes and the Scream movie franchise, has claimed that a “well-respected” Oscar-winning actor once exposed himself to her at a party.

In an excerpt of her new memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning published by People magazine, Hayden wrote about how when she was 19, she went to an event with a friend.

Making small talk with a group of men made her uncomfortable, she wrote, so she decided to call it a night.

That’s when an “Oscar-winning actor and director” came up to her as she was putting on her coat and pointed down to what he claimed was gum on his pants.

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“I looked down and recoiled,” Hayden recalled. “This well-respected, award-winning actor’s testicles were hanging out from his unzipped fly.”

Hayden said the stunt “hadn’t hurt me and I was sure it was a drunken joke, but I’d never seen a grown man do something like that”.

“I was shocked,” she noted.

Hayden also wrote about a sketchy friend who took her to a cabin on a luxury yacht where “a famous thirtysomething British singer-songwriter was lying in a bed” per Entertainment Weekly.

The now-36-year-old claimed: “He was shirtless and propped up on a few pillows with his arms positioned behind his head. From the waist down, he was covered by bedsheets, and I could see the outline of his body underneath.”

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She claimed her friend then pulled the sheet away and told her: “I want you to get in bed with him. He has a huge dick.”

“The shock was so great it didn’t even occur to me to say no,” Hayden wrote.

However, she said, she didn’t let things go any further and made arrangements to leave the yacht.

As for the identities of these famous men, the I Love You, Beth Cooper actor wasn’t about to name certain names in her book.

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“Things happened a long time ago, but it was to protect me and my company from being sued by some very pissed-off famous people,” she explained to The Hollywood Reporter.

Help and support:

• Rape Crisis services for women and girls who have been raped or have experienced sexual violence – 0808 802 9999
• Survivors UK offers support for men and boys – 0203 598 3898

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