Laurie Dunkin Wedd
@ldw1.bsky.social
Bought no coal or gas since 1977, no flights since 2006, no petrol since 2015. You can give up fossils too!
PV, EV, domestic battery.
ME/CFS. #UBI
Kent UK.
Sometimes musical.
PV, EV, domestic battery.
ME/CFS. #UBI
Kent UK.
Sometimes musical.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Contrived self-employment and National Insurance dodge.
Drivers at Amazon, Evri, eCourier and elsewhere are persuaded to be self-employed. They pay income tax and Class 4 NIC but lose out on worker rights - e.g. minimum wage.
Companies don't pay employers’ NIC.
Must end this dodge.
Drivers at Amazon, Evri, eCourier and elsewhere are persuaded to be self-employed. They pay income tax and Class 4 NIC but lose out on worker rights - e.g. minimum wage.
Companies don't pay employers’ NIC.
Must end this dodge.
National Insurance is a regressive tax that hits the less well-off hardest
Compared to income tax, national insurance contributions attract little sustained scrutiny even though they provide large amounts to the public purse.
leftfootforward.org
February 11, 2026 at 9:36 AM
Contrived self-employment and National Insurance dodge.
Drivers at Amazon, Evri, eCourier and elsewhere are persuaded to be self-employed. They pay income tax and Class 4 NIC but lose out on worker rights - e.g. minimum wage.
Companies don't pay employers’ NIC.
Must end this dodge.
Drivers at Amazon, Evri, eCourier and elsewhere are persuaded to be self-employed. They pay income tax and Class 4 NIC but lose out on worker rights - e.g. minimum wage.
Companies don't pay employers’ NIC.
Must end this dodge.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Trump to pollute more, produce electricity more expensively, cost taxpayers more in bid to shore up fossil fuel industry
The fossil industry were, of course, heavy donors to his election campaign
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
The fossil industry were, of course, heavy donors to his election campaign
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Trump to Direct Pentagon to Buy Coal in Bid to Revive Industry
President Donald Trump will unveil plans to use government funding and Pentagon contracts to sustain US coal-fired power plants as he seeks to drive domestic reliance on the fossil fuel.
www.bloomberg.com
February 11, 2026 at 9:32 AM
Trump to pollute more, produce electricity more expensively, cost taxpayers more in bid to shore up fossil fuel industry
The fossil industry were, of course, heavy donors to his election campaign
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
The fossil industry were, of course, heavy donors to his election campaign
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
To be clear they approached the debating society.
Who does thar?
I'll tell you - people who are deliberately engineering controversy in the hope that it will get talked about on talk radio stations and GB News
Who does thar?
I'll tell you - people who are deliberately engineering controversy in the hope that it will get talked about on talk radio stations and GB News
Reform UK approached Bangor University to ask whether Sarah Pochin (Reform MP) could come to debate. They said no, and this is the response they get
Reform would behave exactly as Donald Trump. Don't agree with them, and they will penalise, threaten, defund, and cancel you. They are proto fascists.
Reform would behave exactly as Donald Trump. Don't agree with them, and they will penalise, threaten, defund, and cancel you. They are proto fascists.
February 11, 2026 at 9:36 AM
To be clear they approached the debating society.
Who does thar?
I'll tell you - people who are deliberately engineering controversy in the hope that it will get talked about on talk radio stations and GB News
Who does thar?
I'll tell you - people who are deliberately engineering controversy in the hope that it will get talked about on talk radio stations and GB News
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
The same people who tell us “oh, dear boy, you don’t understand” when reassuring us about Palantir embedding itself in the British state were almost exactly the same people who told us Russian interference, Cambridge Analytica and phone hacking were just ‘conspiracy theories’
February 10, 2026 at 11:31 PM
The same people who tell us “oh, dear boy, you don’t understand” when reassuring us about Palantir embedding itself in the British state were almost exactly the same people who told us Russian interference, Cambridge Analytica and phone hacking were just ‘conspiracy theories’
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
our FT story from June 2023 showed:
Mandelson stayed at Epstein’s $77m townhouse in Manhattan in June 2009 while the financier was in prison for soliciting prostitution from minor
in 2010 and 2011 Epstein noted that “Petie” was with him in Paris, where the financier owned a sumptuous apartment
Mandelson stayed at Epstein’s $77m townhouse in Manhattan in June 2009 while the financier was in prison for soliciting prostitution from minor
in 2010 and 2011 Epstein noted that “Petie” was with him in Paris, where the financier owned a sumptuous apartment
February 11, 2026 at 7:59 AM
our FT story from June 2023 showed:
Mandelson stayed at Epstein’s $77m townhouse in Manhattan in June 2009 while the financier was in prison for soliciting prostitution from minor
in 2010 and 2011 Epstein noted that “Petie” was with him in Paris, where the financier owned a sumptuous apartment
Mandelson stayed at Epstein’s $77m townhouse in Manhattan in June 2009 while the financier was in prison for soliciting prostitution from minor
in 2010 and 2011 Epstein noted that “Petie” was with him in Paris, where the financier owned a sumptuous apartment
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
An 11 ppt swing from mortgagers to renters over the 3 decades since 1995 means that 8.6 million people in lower-income families rent from a private landlord.
These people spend on average 43 per cent of their total household budget on rent.
Read Unsung Britain now ⤵️ buff.ly/7WcqrbQ
These people spend on average 43 per cent of their total household budget on rent.
Read Unsung Britain now ⤵️ buff.ly/7WcqrbQ
February 11, 2026 at 9:45 AM
An 11 ppt swing from mortgagers to renters over the 3 decades since 1995 means that 8.6 million people in lower-income families rent from a private landlord.
These people spend on average 43 per cent of their total household budget on rent.
Read Unsung Britain now ⤵️ buff.ly/7WcqrbQ
These people spend on average 43 per cent of their total household budget on rent.
Read Unsung Britain now ⤵️ buff.ly/7WcqrbQ
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Reform MPs Accused of Pandering to Putin After Skipping Russian Interference Debate
Reform MPs Accused of Pandering to Putin After Skipping Russian Interference Debate
Nigel Farage's party refused to attend the debate, called after more than 100,000 people signed a petition demanding a public inquiry into Russian interference in British politics
bylinetimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 9:46 AM
Reform MPs Accused of Pandering to Putin After Skipping Russian Interference Debate
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
"For every dollar invested in protecting nature, US$30 are spent destroying it."
This is not ‘finance’, it’s arson with public money and corporate profit matches.
This is not ‘finance’, it’s arson with public money and corporate profit matches.
Harmful investments outpace nature protection by 30 to 1 – new UNEP report
For every US$1 the world invests in protecting nature, it spends US$30 on destroying it. This stark imbalance is the central finding of a new UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report released today. It ...
www.unep.org
February 11, 2026 at 9:47 AM
"For every dollar invested in protecting nature, US$30 are spent destroying it."
This is not ‘finance’, it’s arson with public money and corporate profit matches.
This is not ‘finance’, it’s arson with public money and corporate profit matches.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
🚨🚨Welcome news: The #EU is hatching an unprecedented plan that could give #Ukraine partial #membership in the bloc as early as next year, as Brussels tries to shore up the country’s position in Europe and away from #Moscow. 🧵
www.politico.eu/article/5-st...
www.politico.eu/article/5-st...
5 steps to get Ukraine into the EU in 2027
Plans to bring Kyiv into the tent before it has completed all reforms and to remove Hungary’s veto signal a sense of urgency in Brussels.
www.politico.eu
February 11, 2026 at 9:43 AM
🚨🚨Welcome news: The #EU is hatching an unprecedented plan that could give #Ukraine partial #membership in the bloc as early as next year, as Brussels tries to shore up the country’s position in Europe and away from #Moscow. 🧵
www.politico.eu/article/5-st...
www.politico.eu/article/5-st...
“The [shadow] fleet currently consists of 1,468 vessels... about 18-19% of the total internationally trading tanker fleet, carrying approximately 17% of all seaborne crude…”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Sanctions-busting shadow ships are increasing - the big question is what to do about them
What can governments do when countries circumvent or flout the rules to export oil?
www.bbc.co.uk
February 11, 2026 at 9:17 AM
“The [shadow] fleet currently consists of 1,468 vessels... about 18-19% of the total internationally trading tanker fleet, carrying approximately 17% of all seaborne crude…”
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
The insistence on hoops to jump through, even on the left, is the bane of my existence as a UBI advocate.
February 10, 2026 at 5:34 PM
The insistence on hoops to jump through, even on the left, is the bane of my existence as a UBI advocate.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
The hypocrisy exposed 👀
“When was the last time anyone spotted the Reform UK leader 'at work' in his own constituency of Clacton-on-Sea? According to him, it’s 'a couple of days a week'. Sounds a lot like hybrid working, then.”
“When was the last time anyone spotted the Reform UK leader 'at work' in his own constituency of Clacton-on-Sea? According to him, it’s 'a couple of days a week'. Sounds a lot like hybrid working, then.”
Nigel Farage is a WFH icon – I can just picture him at his ‘home desk’
The Reform UK leader wants to end remote working, saying it ‘doesn’t make you more productive’. He would know, writes Vi
www.independent.co.uk
February 10, 2026 at 7:15 PM
The hypocrisy exposed 👀
“When was the last time anyone spotted the Reform UK leader 'at work' in his own constituency of Clacton-on-Sea? According to him, it’s 'a couple of days a week'. Sounds a lot like hybrid working, then.”
“When was the last time anyone spotted the Reform UK leader 'at work' in his own constituency of Clacton-on-Sea? According to him, it’s 'a couple of days a week'. Sounds a lot like hybrid working, then.”
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
@teamlabouruk.bsky.social
What is going on with VED?
Fair enough introducing it for EVs, why are diesel gate era combustion cars not increasing too?
@ed-miliband.bsky.social ?
EV driver's don't mind paying, but if we're trying to encourage a nation to switch, why the mixed price signals?
What is going on with VED?
Fair enough introducing it for EVs, why are diesel gate era combustion cars not increasing too?
@ed-miliband.bsky.social ?
EV driver's don't mind paying, but if we're trying to encourage a nation to switch, why the mixed price signals?
February 10, 2026 at 12:58 PM
@teamlabouruk.bsky.social
What is going on with VED?
Fair enough introducing it for EVs, why are diesel gate era combustion cars not increasing too?
@ed-miliband.bsky.social ?
EV driver's don't mind paying, but if we're trying to encourage a nation to switch, why the mixed price signals?
What is going on with VED?
Fair enough introducing it for EVs, why are diesel gate era combustion cars not increasing too?
@ed-miliband.bsky.social ?
EV driver's don't mind paying, but if we're trying to encourage a nation to switch, why the mixed price signals?
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
The govt is refusing to commit to an inquiry into the MOD's contracts with US-based spy tech giant Palantir despite the web of shady connections between Mandelson, Epstein, and Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel - this absolutely stinks.
February 10, 2026 at 7:03 PM
The govt is refusing to commit to an inquiry into the MOD's contracts with US-based spy tech giant Palantir despite the web of shady connections between Mandelson, Epstein, and Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel - this absolutely stinks.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
🔴Reform MPs Accused of Pandering to Putin After Skipping Russian Interference Debate
Nigel Farage’s party refused to attend the debate, called after more than 100,000 people signed a petition demanding a public inquiry into Russian interference in British politics
bylinetimes.com/2026/02/10/r...
Nigel Farage’s party refused to attend the debate, called after more than 100,000 people signed a petition demanding a public inquiry into Russian interference in British politics
bylinetimes.com/2026/02/10/r...
Reform MPs Accused of Pandering to Putin After Skipping Russian Interference Debate
Nigel Farage's party refused to attend the debate, called after more than 100,000 people signed a petition demanding a public inquiry into Russian interference in British politics
bylinetimes.com
February 10, 2026 at 4:19 PM
🔴Reform MPs Accused of Pandering to Putin After Skipping Russian Interference Debate
Nigel Farage’s party refused to attend the debate, called after more than 100,000 people signed a petition demanding a public inquiry into Russian interference in British politics
bylinetimes.com/2026/02/10/r...
Nigel Farage’s party refused to attend the debate, called after more than 100,000 people signed a petition demanding a public inquiry into Russian interference in British politics
bylinetimes.com/2026/02/10/r...
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
The weather in Devon reminding me of a previous time global warming hit 3 degrees above baseline.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1Ld...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1Ld...
That Time It Rained for Two Million Years
YouTube video by PBS Eons
www.youtube.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:00 PM
The weather in Devon reminding me of a previous time global warming hit 3 degrees above baseline.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1Ld...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1Ld...
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
£240m. With no tender. Palantir.
I wrote to Wes Streeting last week demanding answers.
Every day without any transparency deepens the scandal.
Palantir out.
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.
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 1:14 PM
£240m. With no tender. Palantir.
I wrote to Wes Streeting last week demanding answers.
Every day without any transparency deepens the scandal.
Palantir out.
I wrote to Wes Streeting last week demanding answers.
Every day without any transparency deepens the scandal.
Palantir out.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
A £240m defence contract without tender.
Their fingerprints all over our health care data.
A meeting in the USA but without any minutes.
Everything around Palantir stinks.
www.thenational.scot/news/2584192...
Their fingerprints all over our health care data.
A meeting in the USA but without any minutes.
Everything around Palantir stinks.
www.thenational.scot/news/2584192...
Zack Polanski pressures Wes Streeting over Palantir after Mandelson texts released
ZACK Polanski has piled fresh pressure on Wes Streeting over Palantir’s NHS contracts after the Health Secretary’s newly-released text messages…
www.thenational.scot
February 10, 2026 at 1:55 PM
A £240m defence contract without tender.
Their fingerprints all over our health care data.
A meeting in the USA but without any minutes.
Everything around Palantir stinks.
www.thenational.scot/news/2584192...
Their fingerprints all over our health care data.
A meeting in the USA but without any minutes.
Everything around Palantir stinks.
www.thenational.scot/news/2584192...
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Srsly, do not come here for the World Cup. Do not come here for the LA Olympics. Just don't. It's not safe
ICE director refuses to commit to pausing operations for 2026 World Cup
Acting ICE director Todd Lyons told a congressional committee that his agency was ‘key’ to World Cup security plans
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 10:29 PM
Srsly, do not come here for the World Cup. Do not come here for the LA Olympics. Just don't. It's not safe
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Meet Hannah Spencer - Green MP candidate for Gorton and Denton, and the only vote to stop Reform.
February 10, 2026 at 6:02 PM
Meet Hannah Spencer - Green MP candidate for Gorton and Denton, and the only vote to stop Reform.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Rip them up and start again
UK signed deals with US firms that were clients of Mandelson lobbying company
Clients of Global Counsel, co-founded by Mandelson, included OpenAI and Palantir, which have both signed deals with government
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 10:36 PM
Rip them up and start again
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Well. This vid came along after a pretty rubbish day. Anyone who’s dealt with disability in their family will get what #HannahSpencer says here. I did. And it made a difference to my day. Thanks @boldpolitics.bsky.social. Not your usual politics talk.
Tomorrow's episode of Bold Politics is so so rare in British politics: real people who are unafraid to just be themselves for an hour because they know they don't have to protect any vested interests.
It's time for a clearout of robots in Westminster.
It's time for a clearout of robots in Westminster.
February 10, 2026 at 7:08 PM
Well. This vid came along after a pretty rubbish day. Anyone who’s dealt with disability in their family will get what #HannahSpencer says here. I did. And it made a difference to my day. Thanks @boldpolitics.bsky.social. Not your usual politics talk.
Reposted by Laurie Dunkin Wedd
Tomorrow's episode of Bold Politics is so so rare in British politics: real people who are unafraid to just be themselves for an hour because they know they don't have to protect any vested interests.
It's time for a clearout of robots in Westminster.
It's time for a clearout of robots in Westminster.
February 10, 2026 at 6:06 PM
Tomorrow's episode of Bold Politics is so so rare in British politics: real people who are unafraid to just be themselves for an hour because they know they don't have to protect any vested interests.
It's time for a clearout of robots in Westminster.
It's time for a clearout of robots in Westminster.