A 27-Year-Old Ambulance Driver Was Taken To Court For Speeding At 90 Mph

An ambulance driver who was taken to court for speeding – while on a blue light emergency call – has branded the proceedings as ‘a waste of time’.

Matt Wood was on his way to Southampton Airport to pick up an ‘unstable’ patient arriving from Guernsey, in the Channel Islands, when he was clocked doing 90mph.

The 27-year-old, who was driving an unmarked ambulance, provided evidence he was responding to a medical emergency but was still prosecuted in what he has slammed as ’embarrassing’ proceedings.

After receiving a notice of intended prosecution, he had to attend Southampton Magistrates’ Court, where the case against him was eventually dismissed thanks to the evidence he provided.

Speaking afterwards, he said the prosecution was a ‘complete waste of time’. 

When the event occurred in January 2023, Mr Wood was employed by Criticare UK Ambulance Service.

He said: ‘I couldn’t believe it even got taken to court. It’s very odd this has happened.

‘I am pleased the case has been dropped but it is a waste of everyone’s time.

‘It’s embarrassing it has even got this far. I am hoping this won’t happen again.’

Hampshire Constabulary said records indicated the vehicle used was ‘not equipped to transport people and was not marked as an ambulance’.

When Mr Wood, a resident of Nursling, Hampshire, received the call to pick up the patient, he was in Portsmouth.

The case was pursued even after he gave Hampshire Constabulary and Driving Standards paperwork proving he was an ambulance driver.

He did deploy blue lights, however the emergency car he was driving was an unmarked Volvo.

Mr Wood continued: ‘Our vehicles must be unmarked as they are kept at our homes.

‘We serve the emergency flights from Guernsey – we don’t know in advance what time they will be arriving.

‘It was argued it was not an emergency as we should’ve known what time the flight would be arriving.

‘The patient was deemed to be an emergency case.

‘When the NIP was served on me, I didn’t know whether to laugh or not. It’s quite embarrassing, especially as it is our job.

‘Working in this field, my colleagues and I know there is a risk of this happening, not when it is clear cut.’

He added: ‘In these cases, we always make it clear to Driving Standards and the police who we are and what we are doing, and they tend to leave it alone, but not this time.

‘I am hoping this won’t happen again.’

A UNISON spokesperson said: ‘NHS vehicles equipped with blue lights have arrangements in place for handling speeding tickets when dealing with emergencies.

‘Ambulance workers can claim exemptions for going over the speed limit, but issues may arise if they’re in unmarked cars.’

The Crown Prosecution Service said a reviewing lawyer took the view the case should be brought to trial after police submitted a file of Mr Wood’s speeding.

A spokesperson added: ‘The CPS have a duty to continually review cases, and in light of Mr Woods’ evidence, the lawyer in court took the decision to offer no evidence and stop the prosecution.

‘The CPS does not decide whether a person is guilty of a criminal offence, but makes a fair, independent assessment about whether the case should be considered by a criminal court.’

Unless there is an emergency, an ambulance must abide by all traffic rules, especially those pertaining to speed limitations. An ambulance is exempt from adhering to some traffic restrictions, such as the speed limit, in an emergency.

We want these ambulance drivers to step on it and drive like the clappers when there’s an emergency and someone needs help immediately. The event should never have gone to court, and this was an absurd waste of taxpayer money.

People might not agree that an unmarked ambulance using blue lights is right when speeding, but if it were your family in the back of the ambulance and they were being rushed to the hospital because their condition was life-threatening they might think differently. When it’s somebody that they have no connection to, then people don’t seem to care.

This individual provided the court with his proof. The judge agreed, and the prosecution was a shameful waste of government funds and precious space. Story over!

Nurse Who Made Patients Wash His Car

A mental health nurse who made four vulnerable patients wash his car as part of their ‘therapy’ has been struck off. 

Ian Brown, who worked at a care home for male offenders with mental illnesses in Ipswich, claimed the activity was ‘more constructive’ than ‘sitting outside smoking’. 

A Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) misconduct hearing heard his conduct was ‘deplorable’ and ‘breached the fundamental tenets’ of the nursing profession.

Mr Brown qualified as a nurse in February 2018 but concerns were raised about his ‘unprofessional behaviour’ towards both colleagues and patients at his first job.

An inquiry was conducted as a consequence, and Brown received one last written warning.

He was then redeployed to Foxhall House, in Ipswich in January 2019 and was required to undertake a development plan for six months – which focused on ‘values and behaviours’.

However, in August 2019, he took four residents – all of which were sectioned under the Mental Health Act – to clean his car.

A colleague: ‘I was on the late shift. In handover there was nothing to report that he [Mr Brown] was taking the patients out to wash his car, it wasn’t discussed.

‘[Mr Brown] said it was therapy.’

Another witness said: ‘He came into the handover room and while I was handing over said that he had a job for the patients that afternoon and would be having them wash his car.’

The disciplinary panel heard only two of the four patients had permission to leave.

The hearing was also told that Mr Brown responded to a disciplinary allegation by saying: ‘I believe it’s more constructive to wash a car than sit outside smoking.’

Mr Brown was also found to have left a gate open in September 2021, meaning a patient was able to ‘abscond’ before ‘luckily’ staff were able to get him back.

In November 2020, he was reported to the Nursing and Midwifery Council after he submitted his resignation in October 2019.

The panel concluded Mr Brown’s conduct amounted to ‘serious misconduct involving numerous vulnerable residents’ and potentially members of the public which occurred over some time.

‘[We] determined that this is conduct that showed a flagrant disregard to the Code and would be considered deplorable by fellow nurses as well as an ordinary informed member of the public,’ they said.

‘The panel finds that vulnerable residents, visitors, members of the public and colleagues were put at risk of physical and emotional harm as a result of Mr Brown’s misconduct.

To be fair, the car cleaning exercise was a good idea, but not for the reason that this nurse got the patients to do it. More needs to be done for mental health patients and they need to do meaningful activities when they can or even if they can. Not all mental health patients could even do life-building skills et cetera.

We wouldn’t anticipate a cleaning exercise for a patient with mental health issues, and a nurse shouldn’t decide what’s best for a patient. Each mental health patient needs different things, and this nurse did not seek permission from those responsible for the patient’s welfare.

Also, if this was thought of as a good idea, then it should be structured, and there should have been a reward system put in place for the patients to attend, and there should have been a second nurse present.

There is nothing like being used and abused when a nurse takes it upon themselves to have a patient clean his car because he can’t be bothered.

Mental health patients should be given the freedom to decide whether or not to do these duties, and they should have a secure environment in which to do so.

It does sound very patronising when patients are being given rewards, but they also need structure, but more often than not they’re not rewards or structure, they command which is very patronising to an adult patient who is being treated like a child.

Christian Brueckner’s Emails Link Him To Madeleine McCann

Investigators allege that German police have uncovered an email account connecting Christian Brueckner to Madeleine McCann’s disappearance.

Senior detective Titus Stampa reported to a German court that Brueckner was closely connected to the crime via emails that were discovered on his Hotmail account.

The shocking disclosure represents the first instance in which an official conducting the investigation has hinted at proof that links Brueckner to the child’s 2007 disappearance from a vacation rental in Praia da Luz, Portugal.

But Stampa said he was unable to share details of the evidence as it was ‘related to the killing’ of young Madeleine.

The main suspect, Brueckner, is presently on trial in Germany for unrelated sex offences. He disputes any role he played in Madeleine’s 2007 abduction.

Speaking at the Braunschweig regional court in Germany, Stampa referred to the ‘murder’ email account allegedly possessed by Brueckner.

‘An external hard drive is also belonging to the killing case, and I am not allowed to talk about it.’ 

As reported by The Mirror, he refused to comment on whether the emails that were found had images or videos that showed the suspect in question.

Police, according to Stampa, had discovered another account where Brueckner, a convicted paedophile, had exchanged child abuse videos with other perpetrators.

When Madeleine disappeared from a hotel resort in Praia da Luz, southern Portugal, in early 2007, Brueckner is reported to have erased all of the emails from that account, according to Stampa.

‘I can remember that things were “massively” deleted in the inbox. There was nothing in there from January 2007,’ he told the court.

On May 3, 2007, Brueckner is suspected of stealing little Madeleine from Rothley, Leicestershire, from a bedroom in the family’s vacation rental at the Ocean Club resort.

The matter was first looked into by British police, but in July 2008 it was archived because of insufficient evidence. Until Scotland Yard launched its own investigation in 2011, her family continued to work with private investigators to pursue the matter.

In 2020, German police officially designated Brueckner as their primary suspect; since then, the disappearance has been the subject of ongoing international investigations by law enforcement agencies.

It has now been disclosed that, following an appeal to Microsoft in 2019, prosecutors were granted access to a confidential email account that contained pictures of abuse.

The account was said to have been opened in January 2007, months before Madeleine’s disappearance. 

If there is evidence, then charge him, but don’t keep drip-feeding snippets that may or may not link him to the disappearance. If there was real credible evidence, then the German police would probably keep it close to their chest while they gather more information, not telegraph it for his defence to concoct stories if he is responsible.

In all honesty, there’s no need to prosecute him with the Madeleine McCann probe because he’s already incarcerated and not going anywhere. In this manner, they might attempt to assemble a strong case against this man.

After all, the parents of Madeleine McCann want to put all of this behind them and they want real evidence so they can know what happened to their child.

Even if the police can prove that this man kidnapped poor Madeleine, he will never tell them where she is or what he did to her. Even though it seems unlikely after all this time, we should never lose hope that Madeleine McCann will one day be found or even just appear out of nowhere.

Some people may argue that this case has received too much attention at this point, but if it saves another kid, it will have been well worth the inquiry and coverage. Sadly, there are not enough resources to handle the thousands of missing children that occur every day, and many of them go unreported. Is it preferable to save one child over none at all, or should we give up on them all?

A Dossier Suggests MP Candidates Shared Antisemitic Slurs And Conspiracy Theories

After receiving a dossier indicating that MP candidates had exchanged conspiracy theories and antisemitic remarks online, the Green Party decided to look into the matter.

Last night, the party had staff looking into files of nearly 20 general election candidates who have shared horrific material online, according to The Times.

MailOnline previously revealed Joe Belcher, who is standing in the Aldridge-Brownhills seat in the West Midlands, authored posts blasting ‘Jew lovers’.

Later, the party suspended him and he was no longer allowed to run for parliament.

Now it has emerged that other candidates have posted similar – and in some cases arguably worse – material online, including claims that the October 7 attacks were a ‘false flag’ orchestrated by Israel. 

Adam Pugh, the candidate for Deptford and Lewisham North in London, posted ‘I hope [Royal Navy Ships] sink’ with a prayer emoji when it was announced they were being sent to support Israel.

Extraordinarily, when three other candidates were accused of antisemitism, he posted: ‘Either they haven’t discovered my tweets yet, or I’m not being vocal enough.’

A spokesman for the party told The Times the allegations were ‘serious and are being treated as such’. 

They went on to state that decisions are still being made on the final candidate list before the deadline of 5 p.m.

The tide of antisemitism accusations stemmed from controversy which erupted at the May local elections.

Green Party councillor Mothin Ali, who won in a ward in Leeds, said Palestinians has the right to ‘fight back’ – referring to the October 7 massacre.

He shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ after being elected to a city council, boasting it had made him ‘infamous’.

Ali claimed he was being made a ‘scapegoat’ to distract from ‘war crimes’ being committed in Gaza.

His unapologetic appearance at a small rally in his native Leeds – shared on his social media channels – came after British Jewish leaders accused the Green Party of ‘hypocrisy’ for not suspending him over his ‘extremist nonsense’.

Amid fears of a rise in sectarian politics fuelled by the crisis in the Middle East, former Labour Cabinet minister Lord Mandelson accused the Greens of becoming a ‘dustbin’ for ‘disgruntled hard-leftists’.

Ali later expressed regret and made it clear that he opposes violence. Still, this was just the start.

On October 7, another candidate, Pugh, wrote: ‘You don’t have to be neutral when it comes to apartheid, colonisation and genocide, I don’t care what anyone says. I promise you, you don’t.’

Additionally, a tweet by Pugh quoting Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the six-month anniversary of October 7 was discovered by MailOnline.

Pugh commented: ‘There is no ‘war’ in Gaza. Israel are committing genocide and you are enabling them, you despicable terrorist sympathiser.’

In January, he posted: ‘I want David Cameron (among others) to be chased to the ends of the earth for their complicity in this GENOCIDE of the Palestinian people.

 ‘May these people never know peace or rest.’

The Green candidate for Brent East in west London, Nida Alfulaij, liked tweets that suggested that the US was the terrorist organisation, not Hamas.

This is basically a bunch of nutters attempting to think without a brain cell.

It’s hard to know who to vote for these days because we are being infiltrated by antisemitism, hostility and prejudice. It might seem subtle at the moment, but once it manifests itself and rears its ugly head, there will be major conflicts on the streets of the UK, and our government and police will do nothing about it, other than raising their hands and shouting ‘Heil Hitler’, and Jews all over the UK should be very afraid.

Religion and politics don’t mix and never should, but sadly, this is what’s occurring as the nation grows more and more diverse, and there will be difficult times ahead. Yawn today and Hamas will be in power in the UK tomorrow – they may as well allow the National Front to run for Prime Minister the way this lot is going – oh sorry, that’s already happening right under our noses! Soon we will have extremists dressing up, looking like law-abiding citizens, pretending that they care when all they want to do is cause extreme chaos.

I was going to vote in the General Election. Now, I don’t think so. I know many people out there will say that if I don’t vote I don’t have a say. I do have a say, I’m a British citizen. I was born and bred in the UK. I pay my taxes, therefore I still have a say!

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK Accused Of Having ‘No Plans To Reform Anything’

Reform UK was accused of having ‘no plan for reforming anything’ after a poll suggested Nigel Farage’s party was just two points behind the Tories.

Conservative ministers lashed out, saying it was easy for Mr Farage and his party to shout from the sidelines but ‘these guys don’t even have a policy’.

And in a boost for Rishi Sunak, rumours of further Tory defections to Reform melted away. None were expected ahead of today’s deadline for nominations to stand in the General Election.

But Reform chairman Richard Tice said the Tories were ‘terrified’ of the insurgent party.

Following Mr Farage’s announcement of his return to front-line politics as Reform leader, Reform’s percentage point standing was 17 this week, according to a YouGov survey. Labour was at forty and the Tories at nineteen.

A slew of other polls suggested Reform was increasingly squeezing Tory support. 

A Focaldata poll found Mr Sunak was just one percentage point above Mr Farage on the metric of who would make the best prime minister, at 20 versus 19. Labour leader Keir Starmer was on 41.

Focaldata had Reform up two to 14 points, the Tories down one to 25 per cent and Labour up one to 44 per cent. 

Meanwhile, Redfield and Wilton found the Prime Minister to have a worse favourability score than Mr Farage, at -19 per cent compared with -7. 

Tory candidates are growing increasingly concerned that Mr Farage’s rebel party would split the Right-wing vote and facilitate a Labour triumph.

Launching his campaign on Monday, Mr Farage predicted Reform could be level with the Tories in the polls ‘within a week’.

Furthermore, the fiery politician attacked Mr Sunak for departing early from D-Day ceremonies in Normandy, France, to continue his campaign.

Mr Farage attended ‘in a personal capacity’, where he was seen trying out a military truck on Gold Beach in Arromanches. Sir Keir attended the full day, along with world leaders and veterans.

Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride was asked if the YouGov poll sent ‘a shudder down your spine?’ He told Sky News: ‘The only poll that matters is the General Election.’ 

Bim Afolami, economic secretary to the Treasury, said: ‘[Reform] don’t have a plan for reforming anything. It’s easy to shout from the sidelines, if you’re Nigel Farage or anybody else, say “All of the established parties are rubbish”. But these guys don’t even have a policy.’

A deal between Mr Sunak and Mr Farage to allow their respective candidates a clear run in particular seats has been ruled out.

Their manifesto does seem to have some good ideas. Labour has had fourteen years to think of some, but Reform has had five minutes in comparison, and whatever ideas they do have, how will they be funding them because they will all have to be costed.

Since nothing can be implemented without funding, brilliant ideas come at a high cost to the taxpayer. Never does it come from their own pockets. We have to pay for everything in the end, even if they make it appear so nice!

It doesn’t matter whose manifesto you read, or how they plan to achieve it – action speaks louder than words. You see their mouths open and words come out, but at the end of the day, it’s all white noise. We promise you this, we promise you that but it’s all pie in the sky and much of it unworkable claptrap.

Whoever gets to be our Prime Minister in the next General Election has no plans whatsoever. They will get into power, tear up their promises and then wonder what to do next.

How Much Do Young People Know About D-Day?

Alongside the Battle of Britain and Dunkirk, D-Day holds a shrine in British history as a moment when the country’s heroism came head-to-head with the Nazi regime.

The courage and sacrifice of our Second World War servicemen are rightfully at the forefront of our public awareness as we commemorate the landings’ 80th anniversary.

Politicians have taken a step back from campaigning, the royal family was out in force to pay tribute at remembrance events and Britons up and down the UK were recalling the fateful day.

On the anniversary of the Normandy landings, MailOnline surveyed Generation Z to find out how much they knew about the Allied invasion of France.

Some admitted they ‘didn’t really listen’ as their grandparents tried to tell them about their history and others said they had ‘no idea’ what the moniker meant. One even believed it stood for Doomsday.

While one Brighton resident stated that she believed the iconic conflict had taken place in London, another Birmingham girl laughed embarrassingly as she estimated that it happened in 1970.

However, some made their nation proud by delving into forensic detail and providing answers to a series of questions meant to push the boundaries of their awareness.

Speaking in Birmingham, Ash Robinson, 21, said he thought D-Day was ‘the bombing of Britain’, although he admitted he didn’t ‘know exactly where in Britain’ this had happened. 

When pressed, he later added that he thought it had taken place in ‘Birmingham… I think it might have been some in London, but mostly Birmingham, I think.’

Some young people were able to name every coded beach in France where Allied forces had landed, while others named London as the location they thought they had landed.

Emily Painting, 25, who works for the Civil Service, added: ‘I actually don’t know. I have no clue.’ When asked when it had taken place, she continued: ‘I don’t know… 1970?’

Student Luke Marsden, 19, continued: ‘My great gran tried to tell me so much about it and I didn’t really listen! Maybe the day that there was some landings somewhere?’

And Mia Allen, 21, said: ‘No, I don’t know anything about it.’

But the historic event appeared to have been overshadowed for some. Ibrahim Abdullah, 24, told a reporter, ‘Doomsday is a day when the world ends, ok, so what do we define as the world ending?

Sadly, in Britain, individuals under forty have a terrible lack of knowledge of even recent history, and they don’t teach history in schools like they used to.

This country’s history has been slowly eroding, and it’s been replaced by woke, shame, and guilt. Our youth have been indoctrinated by adults and oikophobia thrives.

You start to question why our predecessors ever battled to protect future generations when you take a stroll around any of our towns and cities.

In British schools, teaching about D-Day and related events is essential for developing national pride, historical awareness, and an appreciation of the sacrifices made for freedom and democracy. Additionally, it encourages moral introspection and critical thinking while assisting pupils in understanding the difficulties and human costs of conflict.

But since Britain is unlike any other country, this is not a method to dramatise our nation. We must keep in mind that over the ages, it has invaded places it could and seized what it desired.

If we don’t educate our children in school, they won’t be able to form educated opinions as adults.

It’s been almost 80 years since World War II and in that time, the UK has seen peace but unfortunately, with that comes complacency.

Drowned In A Sea Of Milkshake!

The model, who was arrested for throwing a drink over Nigel Farage, is using the exposure to encourage people to visit her OnlyFans page.

Victoria Thomas-Bowen, 25, was arrested by police on suspicion of assault after she drenched the new Reform leader as he stepped out of a Wetherspoons in Clacton, Essex.

She has since used the stunt to try and bring viewers to her ‘explicit XXX’ content page, posting a photo of herself scantily clad alongside the link and the lyrics, ‘My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard’.

Dramatic pictures show how the mother-of-one dodged Mr Farage’s burly minders before flinging the contents of a McDonald’s cup towards him, catching him full in the face.

Mr Farage, who previously dubbed Clacton the ‘most patriotic’ town in Britain, merely wiped his eyes and continued.

Thomas-Bowen is a Jeremy Corbyn-supporting OnlyFans model who hails from a family of Brexiteers, MailOnline previously revealed. 

Speaking from his home in nearby Jaywick, her Brexit-voting brother Paul told MailOnline: ‘I have just seen it, and to be honest, I’m appalled. I don’t know where she is. I don’t want anything to do with her.’

Despite posting a video on X with the caption ‘my milkshake brings all the people to the rally’ in reference to the 2003 song Milkshake, Farage admitted it was ‘quite frightening’. 

The incident has led to wide condemnation from MPs all across the political spectrum, including Labour’s Yvette Cooper, who called it a ‘disgrace’ and ‘completely unacceptable and wrong’.

But Thomas-Bowen, who films her x-rated video clips in the spare bedroom of her mother’s £260,000 house in Grays, told the BBC she flung the banana milkshake because she ‘just felt like it’.

‘He doesn’t stand for me’, the self-described ‘petite blonde pocket rocket’ added. ‘He doesn’t represent anything I believe in or any of the people around here. He doesn’t represent us; he’s not from here.’

She has since posted support for her actions on her social media, who said they ‘could not be more proud’ of her.

She then shared a picture of herself in a suggestive stance, wearing nothing but her pants and sports socks, along with the lyrics to the song “Milkshake” and a link to her Onlyfans website.

Thomas-Bowen previously called for Britons to abstain from the late Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and expressed her support for Jeremy Corbyn on Facebook.

Although this woman is not a protestor, she was seeking a promotion—exactly what the media is currently doing. She’ll be on Love Island next!

However, you need to see her online photographs to see what she looks like in real life. Another one that uses industry filters and is utterly deluded.

This woman is a mother and she appears to be putting money before her child, who will be constantly mocked in school, which will affect their mental health, which makes her selfish with no self-respect or morals.

To put it briefly, she attacked a public servant. Though I’m not a big fan of Nigel Farage, the law remains the law as long as you can get the police to show up.

No one has the right to assault somebody else, especially with the excuse of, ‘I don’t agree with your views’, and this lady should not be allowed to profit from it either, but our lily-livered politicians will do nothing to deter this sort of behaviour, which could be acid next time.

A ‘Dystopian’ Apartment Block With 20,000 Residents Who Never Leave

One of the biggest apartment complexes in China is home to thousands of people, and because of its excellent amenities, its occupants never really have to leave.

Because you want it to be as flawless as possible, finding the appropriate location to live might be challenging.

You want to be sure that it’s inexpensive, convenient for visiting friends and family, in a good area for business, and perhaps even offers entertainment nearby.

Imagine being able to obtain everything you need without ever having to leave your apartment complex.

Would that be a utopian dream or a dystopian nightmare?

In one of China’s biggest towers, it appears like at least 20,000 individuals are experiencing that reality.

Within Qianjiang Century City, which is the primary business sector of Hangzhou, there is a massive complex called the Regent International that is home to thousands of people.

Now, why don’t the people living here tend to leave? Well, because all of their necessities are pretty close to them.

Of course, the building cannot provide fresh air unless you open a window, so you’re probably going to want to head for some air and stretch your legs once in a while.

Standing at 675 feet tall and with 260,000 square metres of area, the stunning edifice is among China’s tallest structures.

Though the facility can hold up to 30,000 people, it only has about 20,000 people living there at the moment.

You’re undoubtedly thinking about all the incredible amenities this skyscraper offers to keep people in. Well, a lot depends on which side of the structure you reside on.

But whatever side it may be, you are going to find facilities just like you’d find in your local town.

There’s a huge food court, medium-sized supermarkets, barbershops, nail salons, swimming pools, and even internet cafés.

The building’s amenities were featured on TikTok, which caused it to go viral on social media.

Although the interior is undoubtedly magnificent, the building’s immense size is what has drawn a lot of attention online.

Amazing drone footage highlights the building’s enormity in a video that user @fatheristheone posted to TikTok.

The structure was supposed to be a six-star establishment when it was created by Alicia Loo, the principal designer of the Singapore Sands Hotel, the second-highest hotel in the world.

But it now thrives as a building boasting thousands of apartments and hosting even more residents.

It’s now been labelled ‘the most sustainable living building on Earth’.

Would you be willing to live there? Perhaps not, but get used to it because, in years to come, this is what our lives will look like. I certainly wouldn’t want to be the Amazon delivery guy delivering to that area!

Let’s hope there isn’t a fire!

On The Day Keir Starmer Told Voters He “Knows How It Feels To Struggle With Bills,” He Wore A £500 Sandro Coat

Sir Keir Starmer was spotted wearing a £500 coat on the campaign trail, and on the same day he told voters he ‘knows what it feels like to struggle with bills’.

On the other hand, after having his greatest day of the campaign, Rishi Sunak was spotted in casual attire boarding a sleeper train in Penzance.

During a trip to Brighton, the opposition leader wore opulent clothing from upscale French brand Sandro.

The chief of Labour donned a detachable hood on his blue coat and a navy t-shirt when addressing electors in the coastal city, according to The Sun.

Sir Keir was then seen sporting a more humble England football hoodie, which has a comparatively cheap £50 price tag, as he left his London property.

In doing so, he ignored the warnings of his aides, who, it was reported by Labour insiders, advised him not to put on a Three Lions shirt during the election campaign for fear of upsetting Scottish voters. 

When Rishi Sunak had a good day of campaigning, he was seen getting off a night train wearing a light grey sweatshirt, tracksuit pants, and sneakers.

When the prime minister visited a construction site in 2022 as part of the Tory leadership campaign, he was made fun of for wearing £500 Prada loafers, a pricey fashion choice.

On that occasion, Mr Sunak stood next to the north-east region’s mayor, Ben Houchen, in brown suede shoes while doubling down on his proposed remedies to the cost-of-living crisis. 

Despite a disastrous first week, the Prime Minister was grinning in Penzance as the most recent polls indicated he was closing the gap with Sir Keir.

A startling new survey released indicated that Labour’s advantage over the Tories had shrunk to just 12 points. Mr Sunak appears to have bounced back from his initial days in office, during which he made his first address in the rain and posed at Belfast’s Titanic yard.

The Conservatives are at 28%, up two points from the beginning of May, while Sir Keir Starmer’s party is at 40%.

Labour’s lead has slipped from 18 points in April to 15 points in early May, according to the polling by J.L. Partners carried out on Friday and Saturday.

The pollster said the main reason behind the tightening of the polls was a shift among over-65s, with the Conservatives going from a 10-point lead over Labour to a 20-point lead in the age group.

It comes as Diane Abbott might be blocked from being a party candidate at the upcoming General Election, with even Keir Starmer’s allies branding him ‘disgraceful’ for ‘humiliating’ the veteran MP.

Ms Abbott was suspended from Labour’s parliamentary party for more than a year amid an investigation into her comments about Jewish people in a letter to the Observer newspaper in April 2023.

Fewer Tory voters—23 percent—also now say they would consider voting for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, down 10 points since early May.

The poll’s results indicate a clear Labour win, even if the Conservatives—who had long anticipated that Sir Keir’s advantage would shrink once the election was called—will applaud them.

It also found that six in 10 voters—60 percent—think that it is time for a change of government, and Sir Keir has a 12-point advantage when voters are asked who would make the best PM.

The poll suggested the top emotion in the event of a Rishi Sunak win would be ‘disappointed’, while only nine percent said they would be ‘happy’.

Labour and the Tories declined to comment on the findings, but a Labour source pointed to Sir Keir’s previous warnings against ‘complacency’.

JL Partners conducted the polling for the Rest is Politics podcast on May 24 and 25, following the announcement of the election.

Regarding their results, James Johnson of JL Partners remarked, “Let’s see if the trend continues, as this was just one poll.”

Starmer is yet another multimillionaire Labour leader, the same as most of the others. He has absolutely nothing in common with the ordinary working man in this country. He is, in reality, no different from Cameron, Johnson, and the rest. He just has to pretend a little more.

However, I fear that Labour will get in! The Conservatives have done a diabolical job and have made biblical mistakes. I think it’s time for a change, so I’ll be voting for a different party altogether.

Just keep in mind that politicians do not understand what it’s like to struggle!

It always tickles me pink when the super-rich claim they know what it’s like to struggle. They have no idea how it is to struggle when they were all born with a silver spoon in their mouths. I am also incensed when the super-rich, especially pop stars and actors, tell us that we should donate our money to the latest cause.

No MP struggles to pay bills of any kind because they’re protected by the bank of the taxpayer.

Daniel Kretinsky’s EP Group Buys Royal Mail For £3.57 Billion

The board of International Distribution Services, which owns Royal Mail, said that it has accepted a £3.57 billion buyout bid from the EP Group, led by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky.

Businessman Mr Kretinsky already owned more than a quarter of IDS, which controls Royal Mail, Parcelforce, and the international mailing service GLS.

Known as the ‘Czech Sphinx’ for his inscrutable nature, his purchase of IDS – which may yet be subject to government scrutiny – could take the UK’s 500-year-old postal service into full foreign ownership for the first time. 

The postal service must maintain its UK headquarters and tax residence to remain connected to Britain, and the EP Group’s bid, which is valued at 370p per share, complies with this requirement from IDS executives.

However, the deal looks set to include Royal Mail’s pending ask of delivering second class post every other weekday – which it applied to Ofcom for earlier this month, pending consultation.

Shareholders will vote on the deal at IDS’s next annual general meeting in September – at a perilous time for Britain’s universal postal service. The deal values the group at £5.2 billion.

Keith Williams, chairman of the company, said: ‘IDS has the potential to become a leading international logistics player.

‘Both the IDS board and EP are acutely aware of their responsibilities to IDS and particularly to the unique heritage of Royal Mail and its obligations as the designated Universal Service Provider of postal services in the UK.

‘The IDS Board has negotiated a far-reaching package of legally binding undertakings and commitments which provide our customers, employees and broader stakeholders with important safeguards.

‘These cover the provision of the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service Obligation (including First Class letters still delivered six days a week), the financial stability and maintenance of the IDS Group including Royal Mail, the maintenance of employee benefits and pensions, and ensuring Royal Mail remains headquartered and tax resident in the UK.’

These promises, coupled with a vow not to take away the company’s assets and to continue using the Royal Mail brand and Royal Cypher, are only guaranteed for the first five years of Mr. Kretinsky’s ownership of IDS.

These assurances, coupled with commitments to acknowledge unions and keep providing first-rate posts six days a week, are not guaranteed to stay in effect after five years.

Mr Kretinsky said he had the ‘utmost respect for Royal Mail’s history and tradition’. The deal is not believed to come with any requirements of redundancies beyond those factored into the Royal Mail’s existing cost-cutting plans.

We have been let down by successive Governments for decades. To selling off our gold cheaply and those raiding our pensions, as well as, selling off our industries and key national assets.

Because it was British with royal authorisation, it was known as Royal Mail. Since it will no longer be controlled by the British, how in the world can it remain under that name?

Our power has been sold off, our water and now our postal service, where the service goes down the pan and prices go up.

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started