News Round-Up

• “Two thirds of companies slash hiring plans after Reeves’ tax raid” – Rachel Reeves’ Budget has been accused of forcing employers into “damage control” mode, reports the Telegraph.
• “Budget tax raid will put us off hiring, say bosses” – The CEO of McVitie’s is the latest business leader to voice concerns about the Budget’s effect on Britain’s economy, says the Times.
• “Budget is good for jobs, claims Rachel Reeves” – Rachel Reeves claims her tax-raiding Budget will be “good for jobs and good for growth”, despite warnings from employers they will be forced to slash hiring, according to the Telegraph.
• “It’s too late for Rachel Reeves – she has already burned her bridges with business” – Sweet nothings won’t cut it after corporate Britain became the Budget’s number one loser, says Lucy Burton in the Telegraph.
• “Farmers will be forced to sell up to cover tractor tax, Labour warned” – The IFS warns that inheritance tax changes could force farmers to sell land, driving down its value, reports the Telegraph.
• “Boss of Labour-backing union accused of bullying and harassing women” – Gary Smith, the General Secretary of the GMB, has had four counts of bullying and harassment against a female union rep upheld in an internal investigation, reveals the Mail.
• “Now acting legend Michael Caine backs election petition” – Keir Starmer has dismissed demands for a fresh General Election despite a Parliamentary petition hitting 2.2million signatures – and even Michael Caine is sharing it, reports the Mail.
• “How a general election petition went viral – and racked up millions of signatures” – In the Telegraph, Rosa Silverman tells the story of Michael Westwood, a West Midlands pub owner whose call for a re-run of the General Election revealed a Britain disillusioned with its political leaders.
• “Musk backs calls for new general election, saying U.K. is ‘tyrannical police state’” – Elon Musk has criticised the British Government, calling the U.K. a “tyrannical police state”, according to the Hill.
• “Starmer may soon go down as the most unpopular Prime Minister in living memory” – After their ‘loveless landslide’ Labour have set about losing friends and alienating people at breakneck pace, notes Patrick O’Flynn in the Telegraph.
• “Starmer’s pledge to govern Britain like Wales is beginning to sound like a threat” – Devolution has left Wales vulnerable to the worst impulses of Left-wing policymaking, writes Tom Harris in the Telegraph.
• “Britain’s censorious elites will regret going to war with Elon Musk” – Think Labour’s war with Elon Musk’s war is bad now? Things can only get worse, says Laurie Wastell in Brussels Signal.
• “Free speech is under serious threat in the U.K. – and Christians should be concerned” – Despite the good news that Essex Police have dropped their Stasi-like investigation into Allison Pearson, orthodox Christians should still expect trouble from the woke thought police, warns Rev. Julian Mann in Christian Today.
• “When the country is sliding towards chaos, the police can’t waste time on ‘non-crime’” – Being offensive may be an offence, but some are beginning to question the priorities of the police, writes David Spencer in the Telegraph.
• “Former Met chief calls for review of non-crime hate incidents” – A new study reveals that non-crime hate incidents consume 60,000 hours of officers’ time annually, according to the Telegraph.
• “When it comes to free speech, the U.K. is a third-class nation. How did we let this happen?” – A global index of the right of expression puts us below Chile, Jamaica and most Western European states, laments Graham Stringer in the Telegraph.
• “Badenoch should listen to Clarkson, and learn” – In TCW, Sean Walsh urges Kemi Badenoch to simplify her approach, embrace Clarkson’s boldness and make farming the heart of a true conservative environmental vision.
• “Asylum hotels could bring Britain’s welfare state to its knees” – Time is running out for Labour to get a grip on the cost of housing Channel crossers, says Guy Dampier in the Telegraph.
• “How the charge of ‘Islamophobia’ menaces free speech” – Islamic blasphemy laws must have no place in modern Britain, writes Tim Dieppe in Spiked.
• “Gary Lineker accused of ‘shameful contempt for women’ after support for anti-Israel article” – Gary Lineker has been accused of “shameful contempt for women” after expressing support for an article attacking Israel in the Guardian newspaper, reports the Telegraph.
• “What the ICC gets wrong about Israel” – The ICC’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister and former defence minister is flawed, says Nigel Biggar in the Spectator.
• “Arresting Netanyahu in U.K. would be unlawful, Shadow Attorney General and lawyers warn” – Lord Wolfson KC, the Shadow Attorney General, has warned that the U.K. would breach international law if it acted on the ICC’s arrest warrant for the Israeli Prime Minister, reports the Telegraph.
• “Israel gives green light to Hezbollah ceasefire deal in Lebanon” – Israel has given the green light to a ceasefire deal with Hezbollah that would see the terror group leave southern Lebanon and Israel withdraw its forces, says the Times of Israel.
• “Labour Government putting national security at risk, suggests former MI6 chief” – Ex-MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove has accused the Government of risking U.K. security and called Home Secretary Yvette Cooper “clueless” over Netanyahu’s arrest warrant, according to the Telegraph.
• “The West is at war with three formidable enemies… and only one politician can save us” – The West is under siege from unchecked climate policies, rising authoritarianism and the collapse of industry – only Trump can save us from our accelerating decline, argues Alex Story on GB News.
• “Passing the peak, or: the Great Correction” – On Substack, Eugyppius explores how Western politics became so hysterical, and why their worst excesses may be headed for a drastic correction.
• “HSBC sustainability chief quits amid backlash at green rules” – HSBC’s head of sustainability has quit the bank after her role was relegated in a management revamp amid a wider backlash against green finance, reports Reuters.
• “Rare golden eagle killed after flying into wind turbine in Galloway” – A probe into the death of a golden eagle has found the bird of prey was killed by a wind turbine in Galloway, says the Daily Record.
• “German Greens accused of spending £200,000 on ‘biased’ nuclear study” – Germany’s Green party has been accused of spending £200,000 of taxpayers’ money on a biased study against nuclear energy, with the conclusion determined before the research began, reports the Telegraph.
• “Establishing claims of effectiveness” – On the TTE Substack, Prof. Carl Heneghan and Dr. Tom Jefferson discuss the implausible modelled estimates of Covid vaccine efficacy.
• “Assisted dying advertised on Tube – while junk food ads are banned” – Transport for London has been slammed for allowing an “utterly disgraceful” assisted dying legislation advert to be plastered onto a wall in a Tube station, reports the Mail.
• “Assisted dying is sexist, report finds” – A new report reveals that assisted dying could disproportionately harm women, potentially becoming a tool for male abusers, according to the Telegraph.
• “BBC historian under scrutiny over ‘conflicted’ role in Observer sale” – Broadcaster David Olusoga is under scrutiny over his role in the sale of the Observer after journalists highlighted his links to Tortoise Media, reports the Telegraph. 
• “Children told refugees ‘enrich our country’ and drive ‘growth’ in Usborne book” – An Usborne book tells children aged seven and up that refugees “enrich our country”, and, according to the Telegraph, includes classroom activities encouraging them to write to MPs in support.
• “Jaguar’s rebrand is the latest attempt to subvert history and tradition” – Out of touch Jaguar execs have produced an utterly cringeworthy advert that erodes the value of the brand, says Camilla Tominey in the Telegraph.
• “Death of mistletoe: work parties ditch Christmas tradition over abuse fears” – According to the U.K.’s leading supplier of the plants, young people are ditching the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe out of fear of being “accused of abuse”, reports the LBC.
• “BBC will not replace Gary Lineker on Sports Personality as all-female presenting line-up announced” – Gary Lineker’s exit from the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year programme means it will have an all-female presenting line-up for the first time, says the Telegraph.
• “Tens of thousands of teens lying about their age on social media to beat safeguards” – The majority of children using social media apps are hiding their true age to access features meant for adults, reports the Telegraph.
• “Free speech win Down Under as misinformation Bill is binned for good” – In a win for free speech advocates, the Australian Government has formally abandoned its misinformation Bill after failing to secure support in the Senate, writes Rebekah Barnett on her Substack.
• “Why the liberal elite can’t stomach Yellowstone’s success” – Mainstream media scorns one of the most popular shows in the U.S., yet it seems like an obvious metaphor for America’s waning empire, says Jessa Crispin in the Telegraph.
• “Why Orwell still matters” – While other writers resigned themselves to a life inside the whale, Orwell was determined to cut his way out, writes Andrew Doyle on his Substack.
• “Every ‘Net Zero’ scammer should be forced to watch this video” – On X, a video clip shows an American oil advocate schooling a young eco-zealot on the harsh truths of a fossil fuel-free world.

If you have any tips for inclusion in the round-up, email us here.