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James McEnaney

@jamesmcenaney.bsky.social

3.8K followers 2.2K following 1.1K posts

Journalist and writer Former English teacher & lecturer | Author of 'Class Rules: the Truth about Scottish Schools' & 'A Scottish Journey' | Fond of FOI, motorbikes, La Gomera, and all things education www.jamesmcenaney.co.uk

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 22d

I've seen far too many people either praising or at least sanitising Charlie Kirk following his murder, so I've written something about his actual impact for @heraldscotland.bsky.social

www.heraldscotland.com/opinion/2546...

People like Charlie Kirk made women and girls less safe in schools

The murder of the far-right commentator has created a martyr for people seeking to radicalise boys and young men.

www.heraldscotland.com

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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 1d

No sudden rupture is now required for the far right to take power in this country. For what we're seeing is a steady normalisation of extremists by the Conservative and Labour Parties, BBC, Telegraph, Mail and others. A shift once considered unthinkable beings to look acceptable, even inevitable.🧵

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Janine Gibson @janinegibson.ft.com · 2d

R4 reporter suggesting the (unlikely) possibility Macron may accept Lecornu's resignation as PM but then immediately reappoint him which does at least on the face of it seem like the most French thing that could happen

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 2d

This is the lobbying group dressed up as a think tank that refuses to reveal who funds it. What if the money is coming from someone with an interest in nuclear power plants? That would be relevant, right?

enlighten @enlightenscot.bsky.social · 2d

"Scotland faces a choice: embrace nuclear and share in the investment, jobs, and clean power, or stick with an outdated ban and watch opportunity flow elsewhere"
@michaeljahill.bsky.social writes for the blog on the opportunities for Scotland from nuclear power
www.enlighten.scot/time-to-ditc...

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 2d

Kemi Badenoch 🤝 Russell Martin

"My approach will pay off eventually."

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 2d

Yer Da' throwing about the word 'woke' as an all-purpose insult was pathetic and embarrassing years ago, but his conference speech shows that it's still the best that Russell Findlay has to offer.

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John Oxley @joxley.jmoxley.co.uk · 2d

The alarming fact is we have so many grifters because it's a demand-led business and loads of people/orgs pay no real scrutiny to what is actually said by the "big" names they hire.

Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 2d

Maybe time for corporates to stop paying him £20k a pop for "inspirational" speeches?

Heard of one school trust that paid him £10k *of taxpayer money* for one keynote...

Robert Hutton @roberthutton.co.uk · 2d

Might do a separate sketch on Matthew Syed's speech, which is the most batshit crazy thing I have heard from a conference stage in years. And believe me, I've seen some things.

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 2d

This is obviously a very dangerous line of thinking.

It's also anti-Semitic.

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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 3d

Badenoch is the most compelling of the current party leaders because of the gulf between who she believes herself to be (she visibly thinks she is a bold thinker) and the reality (incredibly lazy and partisan).

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 3d

Repeatedly gather outside hotels for racist demos and you've got legitimate concerns.

Repeatedly protest against a genocide and Starmer will find new ways to let the police come after you.

Paul Brand @paulbrand.bsky.social · 3d

BREAKING: The Home Office is giving police new powers to restrict repeat protests like pro-Palestine marches.

Police can consider the ‘cumulative impact’ of protests on an area and could ban the protest / force it to move elsewhere.

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 3d

Falkirk Council wants to take its current funding for 13 'Enhanced Provision' ASN units and "redistribute" it across all 47 schools in the area.

But can parents trust assurances from officials who can't or won't answer basic questions?

www.heraldscotland.com/news/2551611...

Can families trust Falkirk Council over ASN proposals?

The authority is consulting on hugely controversial proposals but has not provided detailed information about the consequences for families.

www.heraldscotland.com

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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 3d

Important point - announcements about "crackdowns" and "bans" are a way to try and convince people the state has power when it increasingly fails at basic tasks.

Robert Wright @reporterrwright.ft.com · 3d

And the state is growing less and less effective at the same time. One relatively trivial example is fly-tipping. There are steep fines for it and rewards for those who turn in offenders. But the problem grows worse and worse in many places.

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Dani Garavelli @danigaravelli.bsky.social · 3d

This is what Reform does: it identifies a wedge issue, it spreads disinformation until people are no longer able to distinguish between what’s real and what isn’t, it polarises communities, politicians get scared and potentially positive schemes are jettisoned. It’s 100% its MO.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 3d

How Reform ‘misinformation’ campaign sank town’s refugee sanctuary plan

Party accused of stoking divisions in Weston-super-Mare over scheme to improve support for asylum seekers

www.theguardian.com

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Kenny Stewart @kennystew.art · 3d

Big credit to @andrewlearmonth.bsky.social and the @heraldscotland.bsky.social for choosing to do their own version of this thread (this time regarding the Autumn Budget Revision) as the splash in today’s paper. Imagine a world where budget papers made it clear how taxpayers’ money is being spent.

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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 4d

In her lunch with the FT the OnlyFans CEO says her company pays more tax than the entire British fishing industry. Quite a stat.

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Future Economy Scotland @futureeconscot.bsky.social · 4d

🇮🇪🇸🇪🇩🇰 Foreign state-owned firms own 12% of total ScotWind capacity – including the governments of Ireland, Sweden and Denmark

ScotWind profits will support public spending abroad, but not in Scotland

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Future Economy Scotland @futureeconscot.bsky.social · 4d

🌍 78% of ScotWind capacity is owned by parent companies headquartered outside the UK

This means the majority of profits extracted will flow overseas rather than be reinvested in Scotland

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 4d

Want to see how the government has sold off Scotland's natural resources? Here you go 👇

Future Economy Scotland @futureeconscot.bsky.social · 4d

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Who owns Scotland's offshore wind assets?

Our new interactive map with @cmmonwealth.bsky.social lets you explore who really owns ScotWind projects – and who stands to benefit

Highlights in 🧵
Explore the map 👉 www.futureeconomy.scot/scotwind

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 4d

"The difference between reality and the fable, however, is that the wolf is and has always been real, and some of the sheep are already missing legs and bleeding out."

www.heraldscotland.com/news/2551663...

Colleges are crying wolf and the wolf is very real

The college sector has long called for increased funding. Although the message it is sending now is much the same, the situation feels very…

www.heraldscotland.com

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 5d

The Scottish Government has issued new advice on supporting trans pupils, with updates around toilets and changing rooms. You've probably already seen the headlines and some awful reactions, so I wrote about it for @heraldscotland.bsky.social

www.heraldscotland.com/opinion/2551...

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Felicity Hannah @felicityhannah.bsky.social · 5d

This article manages to name her husband before it names… her.

Article reads:
Woman named as Archbishop of Canterbury in historic first

The 63-year-old archbishop-designate is married to Eamonn Mullally, with whom she has two children. Originally from Woking in Surrey, she was the UK's chief nursing officer from 1999 to 2004.

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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · Oct 18

I see my own profession, the media, as being as culpable as any. How did we allow a bizarre sect, with a phenomenally cruel and brutal agenda, to set the prevailing view of this and other issues?
And it was right across the board: just about every major outlet in the UK.

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Scott @scottcuthbertson.bsky.social · 5d

This is where we are, a homophobic slur used by a politician on national television. His denials show a man either ignorant of what words mean or so comfortable using homophobia in day to day speech he didn’t care.

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 5d

And the consequence of this incompetence is that John Swinney walked away largely unscathed from the debate, despite official bodies making clear that his party has pushed the college sector to the brink.

It's all a game to politicians, and the rest of us have to suffer as a result.

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 5d

In other news, whoever told Sarwar to use the "snooty and elitist" line is a fool. The guy is extremely wealthy, went to private school, and spent tens of thousands sending his own kid there. Snooty and elitist, you say?

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James McEnaney @jamesmcenaney.bsky.social · 5d

Kudos to Kathleen Nutt for telling readers the truth. Nobody seriously thinks Swinney's comment was a reference to Sarwar's ethnicity, but that didn't stop Labour spin doctors from trying to engineer a scandal.

Desperate stuff from a desperate party.

www.heraldscotland.com/news/2551242...

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