Ed Wilson
eddwilson.bsky.social
Ed Wilson
@eddwilson.bsky.social
Lefty liberal by temperament, exasperated by experience.
Not strictly qualified for most arguments, but I do read a lot.
Stockport, UK

Jake Berry complains that the minimum wage has been increased for younger people.

Did he object when his Conservative colleagues did that?

#PoliticsLive
February 10, 2026 at 2:42 PM
"Increasing the cost of employment" can be considered relative to

- the current cost of employment is right

- the cost of employment should be zero

The debate should be a bit more intellligent than this.

#PoliticsLive
February 10, 2026 at 2:39 PM
Palantir's contract with the NHS was awarded by the Tories, but if there is a break clause with a review this year, that's an opportunity.

#PoliticsLve
£240m. With no tender. Palantir.

I wrote to Wes Streeting last week demanding answers.

Every day without any transparency deepens the scandal.

Palantir out.
Mandelson’s malign influence runs right through the heart of this Government.

Not least in the govt’s NHS data deal with Palantir – a spy-tech firm co-founded by a man who thinks the NHS should be ‘ripped up.’

I've written to Wes Streeting urging him to ditch this dangerous deal.
February 10, 2026 at 2:33 PM
Trump at a smaller scale, but they're just getting going.

#PoliticsLive
Reform is threatening Bangor University over a student society’s decision. The society isn’t Bangor University—but this is a neat preview of how a Reform government would work: public money for supporters only. Trump-style politics, UK edition.

Authoritarian reflex is already working just fine.👇
February 10, 2026 at 2:24 PM
"The government can’t afford another era where standards are optional, and scrutiny is dismissed as an inconvenience. Trust in politics is already hanging by a thread."

#PoliticsLive
February 10, 2026 at 2:19 PM
The former chair of the UK Conservative party has recommended "finding out from Google" as the way to truth.

You have to work a bit harder than that, Mr Berry.

#PoliticsLive
February 10, 2026 at 2:15 PM
Labour's @johnmcdonnellmp.bsky.social written to General Sec Hollie Ridley for 3rd time calling for independent inquiry into Labour Together

"Keir Starmer yesterday promised a change of culture in the party. This will be an early test of that promise”
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/pr-firm-pr...
PR firm probed over Labour Together investigating journalists
Investigation into APCO Worldwide deepens questions for Cabinet Office minister Josh Simons
democracyforsale.substack.com
February 10, 2026 at 2:07 PM
#HalfAnHourBehind

It's a while since I last heard Katy Clark, but she's never been that funny before.

#WATO
February 10, 2026 at 1:57 PM
The cartoon that appeared this week on the front page of France’s most influential national newspaper, Le Monde

Brilliant work by the cartoonist, Guffo.
February 10, 2026 at 1:26 PM
Lavrov's seen a lot. He signed the Budapest memorandum which was then ignored.

#WATO
Lavrov made a number of statements that clearly illustrate Russia's vision of the current situation

Russia isn’t interested in peace at the moment

"Europe is still trying to dictate its approaches across the Eurasian continent,interfering with natural interactions between Russia&
February 10, 2026 at 1:25 PM
Reposted by Ed Wilson
New James Bond announcement
February 10, 2026 at 1:00 PM
"Britain has been gradually slipping down the rankings since 2015, falling from the seventh-placed country to 20th in 2025, with a score of 70 out of 100, down from 71 in last year’s report."

www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2025

#WATO #PoliticsLIve
Corruption Perceptions Index 2025
The Corruption Perceptions Index 2025 ranks 182 countries by their perceived levels of public sector corruption. Find out the scores and read our analysis.
www.transparency.org
February 10, 2026 at 1:01 PM
Davie: Other western news organisations are cutting their international reporting teams, disinformation is flooding the digital sphere at an incredible speed, and state-backed media firms are using AI to promote propaganda...

#WATO #PoliticsLive
February 10, 2026 at 12:48 PM
Reposted by Ed Wilson
Sounds like Cabinet Secretary is departing. If that is the case, some of details in this may have changed, but the overarching challenges for a new Cab Sec remain the same.

Which itself tells a story.

www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/...
The next cabinet secretary | Institute for Government
What lies ahead for the UK's new top civil servant.
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk
February 10, 2026 at 7:21 AM
Tories: We awarded contracts to Palantir, but we suspect that you awarded contracts to Palantir that are even more dodgy than ours, and it's good for us to keep stirring.

#R4Today #WATO #PoliticsLive
I have granted the following urgent questions in the @houseofcommons.parliament.uk today.

From James Cartlidge MP to ask John Healey MP, the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make a statement on his department’s contracts with Palantir.
The House of Commons sits from 11.30am today.

The #OrderPaper is published each sitting day and lists the business of the House.
February 10, 2026 at 11:16 AM
Reposted by Ed Wilson
Did you see all the “Countryside is too white”, “countryside is racist” hoo ha last week?

If you were anywhere near RW media or the hell site, you can’t have missed it!

Want to know where it all came from? Why there were over 30 “news” pieces about it in just 4 days?

Let’s take a look!👀

🧵1/29
February 9, 2026 at 9:25 PM
Reposted by Ed Wilson
Plans to invade Greenland have just been cancelled after this
February 9, 2026 at 6:42 AM
@bbcr4today #AsItHappened Tuesday 10 February 2026

#R4Today
February 10, 2026 at 9:05 AM
I have no problem w security guarantees for Russia: once it has retreated inside its internationally recognised borders, Ukraine & the West should promise not to attack RU territory. But Grushko is asking for guarantees of continued Ukrainian insecurity, not Russia’s security. That’s unacceptable.
Senior Russian official says Moscow needs 'security guarantees' #Ukraine
February 10, 2026 at 7:53 AM
Trump’s best friend Jeff Epstein was worried about Trump’s dementia way back in 2017. How bad do you think it is now?
February 10, 2026 at 7:47 AM
I'd add to @benansell.bsky.social's political analysis here the simple point that a reset here would be *good* for growth and save money.

The settlement proposals are not just morally repulsive and politically self-defeating, but also an act of economic self-harm.
If Starmer wants a reset - and not yet another U-turn when the parliamentary party balks at a policy - here is his chance.
February 10, 2026 at 7:45 AM
Nick Buckley sets out Advance UK immigration policy of Ben Habib's party

- bsn ILR & revoke aıı post-2018 grants
- encourage all settled migrants to leave
- bsn all work visas from India & all other majority non-white countries
- ban foreigners becoming citizens
- invade French waters
February 10, 2026 at 7:44 AM
Reposted by Ed Wilson
Happy 13th anniversary to this pair of matching news headlines.
February 10, 2026 at 7:26 AM
I'm sorry, I feel for any family dealing with a kidnapping, but what the hell has the Nancy Guthrie case got to do with us?

There are thousands of kidnappings in Pakistan, for example, but they're not from rich families.

edm.parliament.uk/early-day-mo...

#R4Today
February 10, 2026 at 7:36 AM