AJ Thomas
@zzypt.bsky.social
I wouldn’t follow me if I were you.
Posting to get thoughts out of my head so I can see how rubbish they are.
Mostly post about politics, rugby, music, TV and movies.
@zzypt everywhere else.
Posting to get thoughts out of my head so I can see how rubbish they are.
Mostly post about politics, rugby, music, TV and movies.
@zzypt everywhere else.
Pinned
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Reposted by AJ Thomas
They like Trump and want to help him
“Biden Asylum Cases” is NYT’s framing for a story pegged to a man who got asylum 3 months into the Trump administration
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/27/u...
November 27, 2025 at 11:32 PM
They like Trump and want to help him
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Everyone in politics, everyone in media knows what’s happening here: the White House is controlled by a repellant white supremacist who waits with bated breath for any opportunity to run nonwhite people out of America. They know who it is, what he’s doing. But they won’t SAY it.
Trump: “I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries … denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization.“
November 28, 2025 at 5:33 AM
Everyone in politics, everyone in media knows what’s happening here: the White House is controlled by a repellant white supremacist who waits with bated breath for any opportunity to run nonwhite people out of America. They know who it is, what he’s doing. But they won’t SAY it.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Among other things, the (nebulous but clearly unconstitutional) attack on naturalized US citizens contained in this screed is a significant escalation.
Trump: “I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries … denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization.“
November 28, 2025 at 5:30 AM
Among other things, the (nebulous but clearly unconstitutional) attack on naturalized US citizens contained in this screed is a significant escalation.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
It also risks the health of the Tooth Fairy, may provoke the Loch Ness Monster to violence, is an affront to our elven allies in Lothlórien, threatens a critical unicorn habitat and could undo the many benefits of Brexit.
BELGIUM WARNS THAT USING FROZEN RUSSIAN ASSETS TO FUND UKRAINE WOULD ENDANGER A PEACE DEAL — FT
November 27, 2025 at 11:35 PM
It also risks the health of the Tooth Fairy, may provoke the Loch Ness Monster to violence, is an affront to our elven allies in Lothlórien, threatens a critical unicorn habitat and could undo the many benefits of Brexit.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Today's 70% fall in net migration to 205,000 was not one of the six stories in BBC ten o'clock news.
Ta massive assymetry in whether rises in immigration and falls in immigration are considered newsworthy by broadcasters
Down by 140k isn't thought to be.
Up by 140k undoubtedly would be.
Ta massive assymetry in whether rises in immigration and falls in immigration are considered newsworthy by broadcasters
Down by 140k isn't thought to be.
Up by 140k undoubtedly would be.
November 27, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Today's 70% fall in net migration to 205,000 was not one of the six stories in BBC ten o'clock news.
Ta massive assymetry in whether rises in immigration and falls in immigration are considered newsworthy by broadcasters
Down by 140k isn't thought to be.
Up by 140k undoubtedly would be.
Ta massive assymetry in whether rises in immigration and falls in immigration are considered newsworthy by broadcasters
Down by 140k isn't thought to be.
Up by 140k undoubtedly would be.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
We have a UK government intellectually and psychologically unprepared to cope with potential labour shortages or market crashes because these scenarios don't match entreched assumptions about the trajectory of the global order
Fewer workers. Fewer international students. More people leaving.
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
A "step in the right direction" according to the PM.
Impossible to take PM/govt seriously on growth if they are deliberately reducing it (and making the fiscal position worse) *as a matter of policy*.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
UK net migration falls sharply with drop in arrivals for work and study
Provisional figures for net migration to the UK show levels dropped to 204,000 in the year to June 2025.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 8:30 PM
We have a UK government intellectually and psychologically unprepared to cope with potential labour shortages or market crashes because these scenarios don't match entreched assumptions about the trajectory of the global order
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Fascinating that the cash ISA limit is the most unpopular item in the budget. I would have thought it would be unpopular but not more so than e.g. freezing tax thresholds.
November 27, 2025 at 8:18 PM
Fascinating that the cash ISA limit is the most unpopular item in the budget. I would have thought it would be unpopular but not more so than e.g. freezing tax thresholds.
I am familiar with each of these, a list of fixable failure, if only someone would pay.
Here is a list of reasons why some of my hearings and trials this year have been delayed and kicked off into the long grass, stuck in our record court backlog. Serious allegations which will now be tried *years* after the event. 🧵👇
November 27, 2025 at 8:11 PM
I am familiar with each of these, a list of fixable failure, if only someone would pay.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Here is a list of reasons why some of my hearings and trials this year have been delayed and kicked off into the long grass, stuck in our record court backlog. Serious allegations which will now be tried *years* after the event. 🧵👇
November 27, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Here is a list of reasons why some of my hearings and trials this year have been delayed and kicked off into the long grass, stuck in our record court backlog. Serious allegations which will now be tried *years* after the event. 🧵👇
Reposted by AJ Thomas
As noted elsewhere: is somebody going to ask Michael Gove about this, or should we chuck it on top of the big pile of things Michael Gove doesn’t get asked about
November 27, 2025 at 7:25 PM
As noted elsewhere: is somebody going to ask Michael Gove about this, or should we chuck it on top of the big pile of things Michael Gove doesn’t get asked about
Reposted by AJ Thomas
The Ancestry . com stadium
Above all, they should be naming a stand at the Scottish Gas after whoever it is that was in charge of their scouting programme over the last 15 years.
November 27, 2025 at 7:08 PM
The Ancestry . com stadium
Reposted by AJ Thomas
America’s message to the tens of thousands of people who fought and bled and died for us is that you are worthless and the small possibility that one of you might eventually go on to do something bad in the future means that if things go sideways, we’ll leave you to die.
November 27, 2025 at 6:48 PM
America’s message to the tens of thousands of people who fought and bled and died for us is that you are worthless and the small possibility that one of you might eventually go on to do something bad in the future means that if things go sideways, we’ll leave you to die.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
The Trump administration effectively says that no one should ever work with Americans during wartime; that our promises mean nothing, our word is dust, and we will throw our allies under the bus the moment we want.
In any future armed conflict, who would ever trust us again?
In any future armed conflict, who would ever trust us again?
CIA statement about the Afghan man identified as the gunman who shot two National Guardsmen in Washington
November 27, 2025 at 6:44 PM
The Trump administration effectively says that no one should ever work with Americans during wartime; that our promises mean nothing, our word is dust, and we will throw our allies under the bus the moment we want.
In any future armed conflict, who would ever trust us again?
In any future armed conflict, who would ever trust us again?
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Abysmal, mindless, utterly zombified. You can't even call it policymaking because that implies a degree of thought which simply isn't present. Pretty soon they might actually hit Cameron's 'tens of thousands' target and then they'll shit themselves with horror at the consequences.
PM describes net migration of 205k as "a step in the right direction". His govt has no public position on a sustainable level of immigration is, nor any known process to decide what, why & how. Starmer is now implying he wants it significantly lower
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
Net migration drop ‘step in the right direction’ – Starmer
Net migration peaked at a record 944,000 in the year to March 2023 but has fallen sharply since then.
www.standard.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Abysmal, mindless, utterly zombified. You can't even call it policymaking because that implies a degree of thought which simply isn't present. Pretty soon they might actually hit Cameron's 'tens of thousands' target and then they'll shit themselves with horror at the consequences.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Spot on. The terms of the plan 2 loan are utterly usurious. Notably the budget has not frozen just the threshold for repayments at a marginal rate of 9%, dragging more and more graduates into it, but it also freezes the interest of those loans which is as much as 6.2%! Which is ridiculous!!
I'm constantly shocked (but not surprised) by how little we discuss the additional financial burden placed on young people by the Clegg-Cameron student loan regime.
@rmcunliffe.bsky.social is one of the few journalists who brings it up continuously - once again in the wake of the budget 👇
@rmcunliffe.bsky.social is one of the few journalists who brings it up continuously - once again in the wake of the budget 👇
Rachel Reeves hits young graduates with a double stealth tax
The Chancellor plans to raise as much money from freezing loan repayment thresholds as from the mansion tax
www.newstatesman.com
November 27, 2025 at 1:09 PM
Spot on. The terms of the plan 2 loan are utterly usurious. Notably the budget has not frozen just the threshold for repayments at a marginal rate of 9%, dragging more and more graduates into it, but it also freezes the interest of those loans which is as much as 6.2%! Which is ridiculous!!
Reposted by AJ Thomas
PM describes net migration of 205k as "a step in the right direction". His govt has no public position on a sustainable level of immigration is, nor any known process to decide what, why & how. Starmer is now implying he wants it significantly lower
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
Net migration drop ‘step in the right direction’ – Starmer
Net migration peaked at a record 944,000 in the year to March 2023 but has fallen sharply since then.
www.standard.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 2:35 PM
PM describes net migration of 205k as "a step in the right direction". His govt has no public position on a sustainable level of immigration is, nor any known process to decide what, why & how. Starmer is now implying he wants it significantly lower
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
“the most openly corrupt president in American history”
NEW: BBC tells staff they cannot quote Trump line removed from Reith Lecture
BBC News article & Media Show prevented from repeating Rutger Bregman’s corruption allegation in its coverage… of whether the BBC censored his speech!
BBC/Trump fallout continues
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...
BBC News article & Media Show prevented from repeating Rutger Bregman’s corruption allegation in its coverage… of whether the BBC censored his speech!
BBC/Trump fallout continues
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...
BBC tells staff they cannot quote Trump line removed from Reith Lecture
Journalists not allowed to repeat Rutger Bregman’s corruption claims against US president in coverage of edit
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 2:34 PM
“the most openly corrupt president in American history”
Reposted by AJ Thomas
“Also for legal reasons, we’re not able to tell you what that line is.”
From a media law perspective: BS.
There is no "legal" reason for not publishing that line.
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...
From a media law perspective: BS.
There is no "legal" reason for not publishing that line.
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...
BBC tells staff they cannot quote Trump line removed from Reith Lecture
Journalists not allowed to repeat Rutger Bregman’s corruption claims against US president in coverage of edit
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 1:32 PM
“Also for legal reasons, we’re not able to tell you what that line is.”
From a media law perspective: BS.
There is no "legal" reason for not publishing that line.
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...
From a media law perspective: BS.
There is no "legal" reason for not publishing that line.
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...
Reposted by AJ Thomas
It's such a bizarre framing. Labour MPs think taking 450k kids out of poverty is putting the country first! That's why they wanted it to happen! It's not because they personally benefit.
Headline on The World at One just now:
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
"Sir Keir Starmer has denied putting the Labour Party before the country by ending the two-child benefit cap".
Can we please go back to reporting the actual news, not someone's partisan take on it?
November 27, 2025 at 1:16 PM
It's such a bizarre framing. Labour MPs think taking 450k kids out of poverty is putting the country first! That's why they wanted it to happen! It's not because they personally benefit.
Reposted by AJ Thomas
THE POLICY ADDRESSES THIS ALREADY.
"Homeowners will be able to roll up the annual payments and defer them until they move house or die." www.ft.com/content/5b07...
"Homeowners will be able to roll up the annual payments and defer them until they move house or die." www.ft.com/content/5b07...
November 27, 2025 at 11:43 AM
THE POLICY ADDRESSES THIS ALREADY.
"Homeowners will be able to roll up the annual payments and defer them until they move house or die." www.ft.com/content/5b07...
"Homeowners will be able to roll up the annual payments and defer them until they move house or die." www.ft.com/content/5b07...
Reposted by AJ Thomas
Falling migration probably won't boost support for Labour. What it should do, though, is show that our economic problems were never the result of high immigration. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Net migration to UK drops 69% year on year, ONS figures show
Figure of 204,000 in 12 months to June 2025 is lowest since 2021, statistics body says
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 11:32 AM
Falling migration probably won't boost support for Labour. What it should do, though, is show that our economic problems were never the result of high immigration. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Reposted by AJ Thomas
'This isn't an opinion. This is counting.'
- A 100,000 drop in net migration costs us £7bn
- Scrapping the two-child benefit cap costs us £3bn
What gets more attention?
James O’Brien says 'we have become a ludicrous country'.
- Scrapping the two-child benefit cap costs us £3bn
What gets more attention?
James O’Brien says 'we have become a ludicrous country'.
November 27, 2025 at 11:29 AM
'This isn't an opinion. This is counting.'
Reposted by AJ Thomas
i mean not to prejudge this, but the cyber expert is likely to say 'yeah you hit publish, mate'
OBR calls in cyber expert over botched release of Budget analysis
OBR calls in cyber expert over botched release of Budget analysis
Rachel Reeves's statement was thrown into chaos after journalists were able to access the document early.
www.bbc.com
November 27, 2025 at 11:25 AM
i mean not to prejudge this, but the cyber expert is likely to say 'yeah you hit publish, mate'
Reposted by AJ Thomas
The five they haven't done:
Allow councils to keep right to buy money; scrap tuition fees for teacher training; halt HS2 sell-offs; scrap salary rule for foreign partners of British citizens).
They had to be ideas that didn't require legislation and were collectively broadly cost neutral.
Allow councils to keep right to buy money; scrap tuition fees for teacher training; halt HS2 sell-offs; scrap salary rule for foreign partners of British citizens).
They had to be ideas that didn't require legislation and were collectively broadly cost neutral.
November 27, 2025 at 10:54 AM
The five they haven't done:
Allow councils to keep right to buy money; scrap tuition fees for teacher training; halt HS2 sell-offs; scrap salary rule for foreign partners of British citizens).
They had to be ideas that didn't require legislation and were collectively broadly cost neutral.
Allow councils to keep right to buy money; scrap tuition fees for teacher training; halt HS2 sell-offs; scrap salary rule for foreign partners of British citizens).
They had to be ideas that didn't require legislation and were collectively broadly cost neutral.