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Watch: Netanyahu’s new comms director admits making stuff up for propaganda

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Eli Hazan, Benjamin Netanyahu's comms director smiles in a corporate headshot with the Israel flag and a packed bookshelf behind him

Eli Hazan, Benjamin Netanyahu's comms director smiles in a corporate headshot with the Israel flag and a packed bookshelf behind him

Eli Hazan has reportedly just moved from running communications for Benjamin Netahyahu’s extremist Likud party to direct Netanyahu’s own press office. He’s well qualified for the position, even admitting to supporters that he “fabricat[es] fake news” for propaganda purposes.

Speaking in Hebrew, Hazan claimed Israel needs to be (even) more like Trump in its shameless dishonesty.

The only issue with Hazan’s comment is the idea that Israel isn’t already at least as mendacious as Trump.

From making up claims of Palestinians raping women and beheading babies to denials of bombing hospitals, to then making up claims of Hamas bases to justify bombing the hospitals, to smearing journalists as terrorists and murdering them with their families, Israel is a ‘dab hand’ at lies. Not to mention the whole “most moral army in the world” nonsense.

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It could teach even the US liar-in-chief a trick or two. Israel is so dishonest it even has to pass laws to ban its own citizens from mentioning how its Gaza atrocity propaganda fell apart like a cheap suit.

So there’s no surprise at all that Netanyahu’s PR chief admits he made stuff up. Just that he treats it as if it’s a new or derived phenomenon.

Featured image via Wikimedia Commons

By Skwawkbox

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Gen Z Habits That Stress Out Millennials

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"It’s hard to watch someone wear your old mistakes," said comedian Casey Balsham.

Gen Zers and millennials may technically be neighbors on the generational timeline, but culturally, they sometimes feel a universe apart.

From communication styles to news consumption to how they show up on social media, the two generations often approach the world in very different ways. And those differences can sometimes cause friction.

We asked millennials to share the Gen Z behaviours that stress them out. Of course, habits vary from person to person, but certain patterns and tendencies still emerge.

1. Recycling Our Bad Fashion Choices

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“Bringing back the extremely troubling fashion that we buried in 2002. Girl, put away the puka shells. Last year, when long denim skirts with the slit in the front were back in stores, I cried. They are bad. They have always been bad. They will always be bad. It’s hard to watch someone wear your old mistakes.” ― comedian Casey Balsham

2. Misusing Therapy Speak And Self-Diagnosing

“I am a big fan of normalising mental health conversations and people having access to the help they need. In fact, I love that about Gen Z. But with access comes misusing and misinterpreting words, like ‘triggered’ or ‘narcissism,’ as well as a rise in self-diagnosis. As a psychiatrist, I regularly see people who think they have a condition because TikTok told them they do. I appreciate that they show up in my office and ask about it to learn more, because not everyone does that step, and that TikTok even informed them about a diagnosis that resonated to begin with ― but it can sometimes lead to hard conversations when I say, for example, that not all trouble concentrating is ADHD.” ― Dr. Jessi Gold, psychiatrist and chief wellness officer at the University of Tennessee System

3. The Gen Z Stare

“I have noticed that Gen Z struggles with basic in-person social skills and communication. They are digital natives and can struggle to translate those skills to in-person interactions. The term ‘Gen Z stare’ exists for a reason; it’s real.” ― political and news commentator Millennial Mia

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4. Disregarding Their Surroundings

“Three words: choreography in public. Doing a full routine on the top of the Empire State Building? Airport acrobats? All of it makes me feel so uncomfortable! Also, has anyone else noticed an uptick in people crossing the street whenever they feel like it? I see people fully look up at a green light, then look me in the eyes sitting in my car and wave and then walk. Is there no fear?” ― Balsham

5. Excessive Trauma Posting

“I think that Gen Z can turn even a stressful or traumatic moment into a funny post on TikTok and IG. Us Millennials do that sometimes as well, but Gen Z has a very specific way about it. Their house could be burning down and they’d post on social media ‘first house fire kinda nervous.’ They are so unserious and I find that very entertaining, impressive and stressful all at once haha. (I’m obligated as a millennial to end every sentence with a haha or lol).” ― lifestyle content creator Shaunie Begley

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“Social media makes so many of my patients feel like they have to tell their entire life story to be considered ‘authentic’ and to get likes and follows. Sometimes that means they trauma dump publicly, instead of trying it out with a therapist and psychiatrist to process it privately first. Telling your story isn’t as easy as just saying it out loud, especially when public confessions often lead others to tell you their stories, too, or you open yourself up to criticism and trolls. I love that they want to talk about all of these hard topics and break down the stigma of the silence of them, but I just wish they just shared when they were emotionally ready, and not because they thought they were supposed to!” ― Gold

"It’s hard to watch someone wear your old mistakes," said comedian Casey Balsham.
“It’s hard to watch someone wear your old mistakes,” said comedian Casey Balsham.

6. Getting The Majority Of Their News From Social Media

“They love to speak about subjects that they have zero experience in and their information comes from entertainment. They quote TikToks and Reels not understanding that most of the information is clickbait and not backed in facts or actual research.” ― Greivy, lifestyle influencer

7. So Much Millennial Criticism

“Growing up, my generation got called ‘lazy’ a lot by the generations before us. Now, even the generation after us seems to enjoy actively critiquing millennials, especially online! All through TikTok I’ve learned that, according to Gen Z, we aren’t parting our hair ‘correctly,’ we rely too heavily on the French tuck and most recently I saw a video calling out the ‘millennial smile.’ I’ll be completely honest, I did start parting my hair down the middle a few years ago in response! But as I get older, I care less and simply find it amusing. The amount of time Gen Z seems to spend deconstructing millennial characteristics feels… unique.” ― Nausheen Farishta, travel expert and author

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“My biggest pet peeve is when Gen Zers criticise or make fun of our ‘dated’ clothing. I don’t remember our generation doing that to Gen Xers when we were in our 20s. And I’m not talking about looking back and laughing at the styles in old photos ― I’m talking about real-time comments in 2026, like pointing out when someone wears ankle socks or still rocks skinny jeans. Honestly, maybe we just don’t want to spend $100 on new jeans every year to keep up with the latest trends. For a generation that claims to care about sustainability, secondhand shopping and reducing clothing waste, it feels a bit hypocritical to judge others for not constantly updating their wardrobes.” ― Nadine Sykora, travel vlogger

8. Entitlement

“One thing I genuinely admire about Gen Z is how intentional they are about work-life balance. Millennials definitely started pushing that conversation, but Gen Z is actually enforcing it. They’re clear about their boundaries, what they want, and what they’re not willing to compromise on ― and I respect that. On the flip side, if I’m being honest, that same confidence can sometimes come across as entitlement. There can be an expectation of flexibility, growth or reward without always putting in the same level of time or grind that previous generations were used to. It’s a shift ― and not always a bad one ― but definitely noticeable. Overall, though, I think Gen Z is challenging norms in a way that’s forcing everyone to rethink how we work, date, and show up in the world ― which is pretty powerful.” ― Erin C., content creator

“They can be easily be discouraged and distracted when working on anything that’s not their personal interest! Blaming others for their lack of skill and experience instead of seeing it as a learning curve. And they also tend to take everything personal ‘why bother if it doesn’t serve me’ mentality it drives me crazy!” ― Greivy

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9. Posting Without Filters

“You’d think what stresses me out most is the recycling of 2000s fashion ― low-rise jeans, capris, platform sandals ― but it’s actually the casual posting with minimal curation. As millennials, perfectionism, overthinking and curation are basically in our DNA. The 2010 era was all about aesthetically cohesive feeds and matching Ludwig filters. I’ve gotten better at posting on the fly, but I genuinely admire Gen Z’s ability to post whatever they want, whenever they want.” ― Kate Steinberg, social media personality

10. Confusing Communication At Work

“As Gen Z establishes itself in the workplace, there’s a learning curve on all sides. As the first generation of ‘digital natives’, the way Gen Z communicates (or doesn’t) at work could prove not only annoying but also confusing to their colleagues. I’ve been brought in to lead workshops for Gen Z in corporate settings on what effective communication and executive presence look like on the road to success, while we also explore ways to stay true to themselves along the way.” ― Farishta

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“Their communication style can be a bit confusing for millennials. They use completely different emojis, memes and online shorthand, which sometimes makes it hard to understand what they mean right away.” ― Valerie Melnikova, comedian

11. Constant Social Media Immersion

“I’d say their relationship with social media is… a lot. And that’s coming from someone in the influencer space. There’s a level of constant immersion that can feel overwhelming at times ― like, log off and go touch grass for a second.” ― Erin C.

“I feel a deep sadness for them that they have no idea what life was like before social media when you just lived life for yourself and the moment and didn’t need to have a discourse with friends about what to post or who is watching your stories. I don’t think a single Gen Zer has ever been to a beach without posting a picture of their knees. Never has a glass of rosé been drank that wasn’t photographed. An Aperol spritz in Italy has never gone unstoried. There’s something about this need for attention that is deeply stressful” ― Balsham

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Answers have been edited and condensed for clarity.

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World Cup referees need ‘FIFA intervention’ to obtain US visas

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World Cup referees

World Cup referees

It seems that the 2026 World Cup has decided to break an old rule: that referees are the highest authority on the pitch. But the irony this time is that this very authority requires “external intervention” from FIFA simply to overcome an obstacle that has nothing to do with the whistle or video technology… but with visas.

That it has come to requiring FIFA’s coordination to facilitate the entry of elite referees into the United States does not appear to be merely a routine administrative procedure, but rather an indication of the scale of complexity surrounding the upcoming tournament, where football extends beyond the white lines and enters the labyrinth of international bureaucracy with all its cumbersome details.

World Cup referees struggling with visas

Some selected World Cup referees from Arab and African countries faced visa delays, so FIFA intervened directly: it sent official correspondence and documents to the General Secretariat and provided the referees with special codes to expedite their visa applications. A scenario more akin to an “administrative clearance” process than to preparing an elite refereeing team for a tournament of the World Cup’s magnitude.

The irony here lies not in the procedure itself, but in its implications. The international federation, which imposes the highest standards of discipline on referees—from barring them from officiating friendly matches for participating national teams to strictly controlling their movements—finds itself, at the same time, compelled to intervene to overcome the most basic hurdle: entry into the host country.

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This raises a question that goes beyond a mere visa crisis: to what extent have major tournaments become hostage to non-sporting politics? Is ‘preparing for the World Cup’ still solely about technical readiness, or has it transformed into a complex web of procedures, policies and coordination between institutions and nations?

Certainly, the 2026 World Cup, shared between the United States, Canada and Mexico, adds a new layer of complexity to modern football. A tournament managed on three fronts, subject to organisational, diplomatic and logistical considerations no less important than what happens on the pitch.

Ultimately, the visa crisis may not be a major event in itself, but it reveals a striking truth: even the World Cup referees, who are supposed to be the symbol of justice within football, now need ‘facilities of justice’ outside it… before the starting whistle has even blown.

Featured image via the Canary

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By Alaa Shamali

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Stormont pumps money into ICE surveillance tech

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ICE officer has his back to the camera, capturing only his bulletproof vest with 'Police ICE' on it

ICE officer has his back to the camera, capturing only his bulletproof vest with 'Police ICE' on it

Invest Northern Ireland (Invest NI), Stormont’s business development agency, has been ploughing funds into a software company making spying tools for Trump’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) thugs.

An investigation by the Belfast Telegraph revealed how Belfast-based Nisos make a range of programmes that can potentially be used to violate human rights.

Nisos is a US-headquartered firm that claims to “help law enforcement bring those who lurk in the shadows to justice”.

Meanwhile, another US contractor, Amentum, which partners with ICE’s bosses, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), advertised a job in which the successful candidate will be:

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…comparing internal ICE-provided data against NISOS investigative results to identify discrepancies or corroborating evidence…

This implies the tech is being used to hunt down people ICE target in its brutal raids terrorising immigrant communities in the US.

Belfast Telegraph reporters spoke to a software engineer, who attended two job interviews at Nisos’s Urban HQ Belfast base.

The man was “deeply uneasy” by what he thought Nisos wanted him to do.  He was told his job there would:

…involve using “automated intrusion systems” to vacuum up vast volumes of personal data from the internet.

As a result of what Nisos said, the man felt the technology was likely going to be used to spy on US citizens in an unethical or illegal way.

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ICE thugs have deported over 450,000 people

ICE is a fundamentally lawless and unethical organisation. Trump’s murderous brownshirts have been rampaging across the US, killing, imprisoning and deporting vast numbers of people. The agency has kicked out “442,637 people between October 2024 and September 2025,” according to statistics cited by the Belfast Telegraph.

ICE is also known to routinely pick up the wrong people, so there are likely many among that number who have been unjustly ripped from their home. An Irish man with a valid work permit was held for five months.

Once imprisoned, detainees often have to endure squalid and overcrowded conditions.

There are other troubling aspects to Nisos’ work, including the fact they moved to Belfast “partly because it wanted to be close to MI5’s Holywood base”.

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The Nisos CEO:

…asked Invest NI for advice on “the career decisions people make when departing MI5 in Palace Barracks”…

It is deeply troubling that a US company seeking to profit off of ICE criminality is looking to leverage MI5’s sinister past in Six Counties surveillance work. MI5 had a hand in all manner of abuses carried out by security forces in the region, including mass internment and murderous collusion with paramilitaries.

Nisos surveillance tech targets workers

Nisos tech also has worrying implications for workers’ rights. The Telegraph article describes how their software:

…was built to counter insider threats in large organisations, allowing companies to proactively spot leakage of commercially-sensitive information or threats to executives.

To do this:

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…companies would upload their entire workforces to the platform, something meant to be covered in the small print of employees’ contracts. It would mean their employer could effectively spy on their private lives, monitoring personal social media accounts, financial information and other data to spot when they might become a potential threat.

A former employee said there is potential for this to be “vastly abused”. It could allow bosses spying on an employee to:

…identify that person’s home location, work location or their children’s school — the places they’re likely to be at some point each day.

Workers already enjoy minimal freedom in deeply hierarchical workplaces. Many effectively lose their right to free speech, as everything they say publicly is policed by their employer. This surveillance tech is just another means of corporate control over workers.

Nisos’ software also looks like it is potentially implicated in US violence abroad. It’s reported that they offer it for:

  • Identification of foreign scientific research activity and development
  • Tailored investigations into the activities of specific foreign military or paramilitary units

Corporate-state spying poses huge threat to basic freedoms

General use of this sort of technology by a corporate-state nexus presents a huge threat to individual freedom.

Prior to its arrival, the principle of public activity having limited expectations of privacy protection were reasonable. Perhaps a certain amount of CCTV outdoors in cities could be justified as one’s activities were in plain view already. Similarly, if you’d posted on social media for the world to see, it wasn’t valid to claim your privacy was violated if someone cited it to criticise you.

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However, when there are cameras everywhere, tech companies that hoover up all social media content and AI to make sense of all this data, the calculation changes. The power attained from collating your cumulative public presence gives those who hold this information enormous power. It is this asymmetry of the state and corporations versus the individual that ICE is abusing.

Meanwhile, Invest NI finds itself with more questions to answer. The agency has also been funding the F-35 warplane programme, a killing machine used for the Gaza holocaust. Sinn Féin economy minister, Caoimhe Archibald, conducted a review that dishonestly attempted to whitewash this funding.

It would now seem appropriate to conduct a full review into all current Invest NI spending to see if further skeletons lurk in the closet. Alongside that, a revised ethics policy will ensure the north of Ireland public never again have their money pumped into criminal endeavours.

Featured image via the Canary

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By Robert Freeman

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Minister Mocked For Claiming Starmer Is ‘Man Of Integrity’

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Minister Mocked For Claiming Starmer Is 'Man Of Integrity'

A cabinet minister has attracted online backlash after claiming Keir Starmer is a “man of honesty and integrity” amid the fallout of Peter Mandelson.

The prime minister’s judgement – and political future – is under question after it emerged this week that his pick to be the UK’s ambassador to the US failed security vetting, but still got the top job anyway.

Starmer insists that the Foreign Office kept him in the dark about the security risks around Mandelson.

Technology secretary Liz Kendall furiously defended the prime minister on Sky News on Sunday, telling presenter Trevor Phillips she had “100%” confidence in the prime minister, despite this scandal.

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“He is a man of guts and strength and courage,” she said. “He does take responsibility.

“He is a man, when big decisions are facing the country, is making the right calls, on getting a grip of our public finances, on investing in our defence and NHS, of not getting involved in the war with no clear objective and no clear exit plan, who has focused on things that have mattered to me my entire life – getting kids out of poverty and tackling violence against women and girls.

“That is why I support the prime minister, because on the big judgements facing the country, he has made the right calls, no matter what pressure is put on him.”

On the Mandelson appointment, she continued to describe the prime minister as an “honest man” who acknowledges it was a “mistake” to promote the ex-Labour peer.

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“He removed Peter Mandelson and I think that he is a man of honesty and integrity,” Kendall said.

“And you know what, Trevor, tomorrow in the House of Commons, he will face all of these issues and questions. He will lay all the facts before parliament.”

Kendall also claimed Starmer would not have appointed Mandelson if he knew he failed the security vetting.

She sent a warning to political opponents who might be trying to topple the prime minister, saying: “Any politician that focuses more on their future and their job, not people’s future sand their jobs, will lose the public support. That is why I back Keir Starmer.”

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However, her comments sparked a strong reaction on X, where many online critics strongly disagreed with her support for Starmer…

@leicesterliz how does accepting designer clothes , glasses & many other luxury items from a Labour donor fit in with honesty & integrity 🤔 not to mention appointing a man who used to hang out with a convicted Paedophile as Uk Ambassador to Us ? https://t.co/Qsys3WK8FF

— RaphieB . (@KFRD_I) April 19, 2026

Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

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How To Make Exercise Even Better For Your Heart And Sleep

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How To Make Exercise Even Better For Your Heart And Sleep

You might have heard of “chronotypes”, or a person’s natural body clock that determines whether they’re a night owl or an early bird.

That’s usually mentioned in relation to sleep. But a new randomised controlled trial suggests that it might impact our peak workout time, too.

Published in the BMJ journal OpenHeart, the research found that, “Aligning exercise timing with individual chronotype significantly enhances cardiometabolic and sleep-related outcomes in at-risk adults.”

What did the research show?

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The scientists conducted a 12-week trial in which 150 sedentary participants, aged 40-60, had their chronotype assessed with a questionnaire.

They all had at least one cardiovascular risk factor.

The participants were split into groups, including a chronotype-aligned exercise (CAE) group, who worked out when best suited their chronotype, and a chronotype-misaligned exercise (CME) group, who exercised outside of their natural “best” time.

Participants completed five 40-minute moderate-intensity sessions a week for the duration of the trial. Researchers measured their blood pressure, heart rate variability, blood sugar, LDL cholesterol levels, sleep quality, and oxyegn use.

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The reduction in blood pressure in the CAE group was “substantial and significantly greater than in the CME group,” the paper reads.

“Aligning exercise timing with individual chronotype significantly enhances cardiometabolic and sleep-related outcomes in at-risk adults.”

How should I plan my workouts according to my chronotype?

You likely already know whether you’re a night owl (late chronotype) or an early bird (early chronotype).

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“Early chronotypes benefited more from morning exercise, while late chronotypes showed better results with evening sessions,” the study reads.

However, this research noted that all exercise, even that which is done outside of your chronotype, reduces the risk of heart health issues.

Dr Jeffrey Kelu, a research associate at King’s College London, told the Science Media Centre: “This is a useful and important study because it brings personalised medicine into a very practical context by asking not only what intervention to prescribe, but also when to prescribe it”.

They added, “Importantly, even the misaligned group improved, so the broader public-health message remains that any exercise is worthwhile, while timing it to biological preference may offer an additional benefit.”

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Angela Rayner Holds Secret Meeting With Andy Burnham

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Angela Rayner Holds Secret Meeting With Andy Burnham

Angela Rayner had a secret meeting with Andy Burnham on Friday night, according to new reports.

The Sun on Sunday shared photos of the Greater Manchester mayor arriving at the former deputy prime minister’s constituency home in Ashton.

Their summit adds to mounting speculation the two soft-left Labour figures might be considering launching a joint coup.

Their encounter came hours after Keir Starmer furiously defended his premiership amid fresh developments in the Peter Mandelson scandal.

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It was revealed by the Guardian this week that the ex-Labour peer failed security vetting, but still secured the top job as the UK’s ambassador to the US.

Starmer has since insisted that he was not told Mandelson had failed and only found out on Tuesday night.

He then sacked the chief of the Foreign Office, Olly Robbins, on Thursday night.

As scrutiny over Starmer’s judgement grows once again, technology secretary Liz Kendall sent a message to the PM’s potential opponents this morning.

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She said: “Any politician that focuses more on their future and their job, not people’s future sand their jobs, will lose the public support. That is why I back Keir Starmer.”

Burnham was blocked by Labour’s executive body from running for parliament earlier this year amid fears he would try to overthrow Starmer once safely set up with a seat in the Commons.

Rayner is allegedly also considering a run at the top job, but may still be hampered from any power grab by the ongoing HMRC investigation into her tax affairs.

She had to step down from the cabinet last year after underpaying on stamp duty when buying an £800,000 property.

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Labour is expected to endure major losses at the elections in May, when Holyrood and the Senedd are up for re-election along with hundreds of local authorities in England.

Insiders have told HuffPost UK any leadership challenge to Starmer will likely come after the elections so any successor can avoid taking responsibility for the bloodbath.

Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

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Trump Threatens To Strike Iran Infrastructure

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Trump Threatens To Strike Iran Infrastructure

Donald Trump has threatened to strike Iranian infrastructure after accusing Tehran of breaching their ceasefire agreement.

The US president claimed Iran fired bullets in the Strait of Hormuz at a “French ship and a freighter from the United Kingdom”.

In a furious post on TruthSocial, the US president said there was going to be “no more Mr Nice Guy” – even though America “loses nothing” over the ongoing chaos.

He also called Iran’s decision to close the strait “strange”, claiming the US blockade had already closed it.

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He said Iran should take the “very fair and reasonable” deal the US negotiators put forward on Monday while meeting with their Iranian counterparts in Pakistan – or the US “is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran.”

Trump claimed his military would “come down fast, they’ll come down easy”, adding: ” IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!”

Tehran has also accused the US of breaching the ceasefire deal by imposing a naval blockade on Iranian ports.

No traffic is currently moving through the major shipping lane, the Strait of Hormuz, due to the conflict in the Middle East.

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Tehran retaliated to the strikes from the US and Israel at the end of February by effectively closing the Strait by targeting any ships which pass through it.

That triggered a global economic shock because the waterway transports around a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas, with around 140 ships passing through in either direction.

After frantic negotiations, Iran claimed the waterway was reopened for commercial vessels on Friday – but only if ships go through an inspection by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, and in some cases, pay a toll.

Iran then seemed to close the waterway again on Saturday, saying it will remain shut until the US ends its blockade on Iranian ports.

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Trump’s full post reads:

“Iran decided to fire bullets yesterday in the Strait of Hormuz — A Total Violation of our Ceasefire Agreement! Many of them were aimed at a French Ship, and a Freighter from the United Kingdom. That wasn’t nice, was it? My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations. Iran recently announced that they were closing the Strait, which is strange, because our BLOCKADE has already closed it. They’re helping us without knowing, and they are the ones that lose with the closed passage, $500 Million Dollars a day! The United States loses nothing. In fact, many Ships are headed, right now, to the U.S., Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, to load up, compliments of the IRGC, always wanting to be “the tough guy!” We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY! They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years. IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!

Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

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Labour Peer Calls For Keir Starmer To Resign

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Labour Peer Calls For Keir Starmer To Resign

A Labour peer has called for Keir Starmer to resign over the Peter Mandelson scandal.

Maurice Glasman has become the most senior figure within the party to urge the prime minister to resign, claiming he “cannot conceivably continue” in the job.

It comes after it emerged Mandelson – Starmer’s pick to be the UK’s ambassador to the US – failed security vetting last year.

The Foreign Office then overrode the security advice not to hire the ex-Labour peer and gave Mandelson the plum job in Washington.

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Mandelson was sacked over his long-running friendship with convicted paedophile last September, but the decision to hire him continues to haunt Starmer.

The PM insists he was not aware Mandelson failed the vetting process and is blaming Whitehall for keeping him in the dark.

But questions over Starmer’s judgement continue to grow and there is speculation other Labour figures – Angela Rayner and Andy Burnham – could be looking to overthrow him.

Glasman told the Telegraph: “He cannot conceivably continue as a credible prime minister any longer. And that’s all because he cannot say ‘I made a mistake, I’m sorry’.

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“If you can’t own your mistakes, you can’t move.

“All he needed to say was ‘we made an error’.

“But he’s completely stuck in saying he hasn’t done anything wrong, so this can’t go away.”

Glasman, known for championing the Blue Labour movement, also warned that his party is facing a bloodbath in the May elections when voters select their candidates for Holyrood, the Senedd and hundreds of local authority seats across England.

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He said: “May 7 is going to be another debacle. I can’t see how he [Starmer] carries on after the May elections.

“He could limp on to the summer but the point is we’re doing all this while there’s a war in Iran, there’s a war in Ukraine and where is the political leadership?”

Technology secretary Liz Kendall publicly defended Starmer amid this increase in pressure on Sunday morning.

she told Sky News: “Keir Starmer is my favourite to be the prime minister, to take us into the next election.

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“Let me tell you right now, with the cost of living crisis that people are facing and with the world so uncertain, and that’s deeply frightening to people, any politician who focuses more on their future and their job, not on people’s futures and their jobs, will lose the public support. That is why I back Keir Starmer.”

Subscribe to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

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Unite escalates strike action against below-inflation pay for Scottish university workers

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Unite

Unite

On 20 April, Unite the Union announced that more than 1,100 workers at five Scottish universities will stage a 24-hour strike. The industrial action is scheduled for 24 April to dispute an imposed real-terms pay cut.

Unite members at Glasgow, Strathclyde, Glasgow School of Art, Edinburgh Napier and Heriot Watt universities will take part.

At 12:30pm on the same day, 24 April, Unite will also hold a Pay and Fair Funding Rally. The assembly will take place at the top of Buchanan Street, next to the Concert Hall and Donald Dewar statue.

The announcement marks an escalation of previous Unite action at Glasgow, Strathclyde and Edinburgh Napier universities on 10 April. Likewise, staff members at Strathclyde also staged a strike from 16 to 22 March over proposed job cuts.

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‘No option but to fight back’ says Unite

As the Canary previously reported, the higher education (HE) sector across the country has already suffered under 15 years of substandard pay awards. Compared to 2010, the below-inflation ‘rises’ have left most staff with a real-terms cut of around 30%.

The current dispute centers on the fact that the universities are imposing a pay offer of just 1.4% for 2025/26 on the Scottish workforce. For context, retail price index (RPI) inflation currently stands at 3.6%. However, it looks set to climb far higher due to the repercussions of Trump/Netanyahu’s illegal war on Iran.

Alison MacLean, Unite’s lead officer for higher education, said:

Thousands of Unite members working in higher education have faced years of real-terms pay cuts. Our members have no option but to fight back against repeated threats of compulsory redundancies, and cuts to their terms and conditions. This funding crisis has also come about as a result of gross financial mismanagement and incompetence at some universities.

The latest round of strikes is part of Unite’s campaign to ensure that higher education is fully funded, and its workers are fairly rewarded. We can no longer accept more cuts and derisory pay awards which is why our members are fighting back.

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‘Workers are facing another cost of living crisis’

Trade unions across the HE sector are already engaged in negotiations for the 2026/27 pay award. The next meeting is scheduled for 13 May.

The unions are demanding either a pay offer of RPI + 3%, or a £3,000 increase – whichever is higher. On top of that, they’re also arguing for a £15/hr minimum basic pay. These changes would impact 138 higher education institutions across the UK.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said:

University workers deserve far better from higher education institutions. For years they have had real terms pay cuts imposed on them which is unacceptable. Inflation throughout this time has soared and now workers are facing another cost of living crisis.

Unite will fully support our higher education members. We won’t tolerate them having to face attack upon attack on their jobs, pay and conditions.

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Time and again, we’ve watched as the lowest-paid in our society have been forced to absorb the greatest impacts of inflation and financial crisis.

The fact that UK universities are imposing yet another below-inflation pay offer, with full knowledge that worse is round the corner, is simply intolerable. However, as the escalation of industrial action at these five Scottish universities has shown, the workers will not take these imposed cuts without a fight.

Featured image via the Canary

By Alex/Rose Cocker

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Energy Secretary Calls Trump A ‘Creative Negotiator’

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Energy Secretary Calls Trump A 'Creative Negotiator'

White House Energy Secretary Chris Wright called President Donald Trump a “creative negotiator” when asked about his threats to “knock out every single” power plant and bridge in Iran.

As peace talks between the United States and Iran appear to be at a stalemate amid a tenuous ceasefire agreement and continued jockeying over control of the Strait of Hormuz, the president demanded Iran accept America’s terms or face his full wrath in a Sunday morning Truth Social post.

“NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!” Trump declared, calling the US’s diplomatic offer “very fair and reasonable.”

Asked if the president’s intimidation tactics could “complicate” negotiations with Iran during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” just hours later, Wright said he had full confidence in Trump.

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“The president is using every way he can to get leverage over the regime and bring this conflict to an end,” he told host Shannon Bream. “He’s a creative negotiator, he uses pressure in different ways.”

FOX NEWS SUNDAY: When the president talks about blowing up every power plant and bridge, how does complicate things?

CHRIS WRIGHT: He’s a creative negotiator pic.twitter.com/XsmrnxQvrZ

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 19, 2026

“He uses uncertainty in different ways and I think as you’ve seen in the last 16 months, generally it leads to good results,” the cabinet member went on. “I don’t think we’ll see any surprises here.”

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Wright envisioned reaching a “nice end to this conflict,” which he said would rescue Iran’s regional neighbors from “constant terror” and also guarantee a free “flow of goods” through the Strait of Hormuz.

“Imagine a nuclear armed Iran, not far away from that reality,” he said. “This is going to put an end to it.”

Wright stuck by his support for Trump’s strategy in a separate Sunday interview on CNN, where host Jake Tapper asked the secretary if he was worried strikes on civilian infrastructure could “constitute a war crime.”

“The president is looking for maximum leverage,” he said, later adding, “No, I’m not worried about that.”

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Earlier this month, Trump triggered international panic with a near-identical ultimatum, telling Iran to “open the fuckin’ Strait” of Hormuz within two days or find themselves “living in hell” via Truth Social.

After upping the ante with a post warning “a whole civilization will die tonight” just hours before his 8pm April 7 deadline, a two-week ceasefire was announced.

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