News Round-Up

• “We haven’t seen a pardon as sweeping as Hunter Biden’s in generations” – Joe Biden has pardoned his son Hunter despite repeatedly denying he would do so before leaving office in the broadest clemency agreement since Richard Nixon, writes Betsy Woodruff Swan in Politico.
• “Joe Biden was always going to pardon Hunter” – Of course, Joe Biden was going to grant clemency to his only living son Hunter. He just pretended he wouldn’t all year for electoral reasons, says Freddy Gray in the Spectator.
• “Joe Biden is the self-serving liar Democrats claimed Trump was” – Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter marks a new low for the Democrats, writes Sam Ashworth-Hayes in the Telegraph.
• “Trump threatens to hit Hamas ‘harder than anybody in history’” – Trump has threatened to unleash “hell” in the Middle East if hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip are not released before his inauguration on January 20th, reports the Hill.
• “Nigel Farage calls for a referendum of Chagossians on ‘rotten’ island deal” – Nigel Farage has called for a referendum on Sir Keir Starmer’s “rotten” Chagos Islands deal, urging ministers to let the Chagossian people decide the fate of their homeland, reports the Telegraph.
• “The Tory Flood has changed Britain forever” – In the Spectator, Patrick O’Flynn delivers a blistering verdict on the “Tory Flood”, an era-defining immigration surge that he says will shape Britain’s future for generations.
• “Time is running out to prevent our mass migration wave from becoming permanent” – Net immigration in the year ending June 2023 reached 906,000. The country has mechanisms to undo this error, writes Guy Dampier in the Telegraph.
• “Foreign criminals who avoided deportation committed more than 10,000 offences in a year” – Ministry of Justice data reveals that a quarter of foreign criminals went on to reoffend in the U.K. after being released from jail and remaining in the country, reports GB News.
• “‘Shocking’ findings of ex-Muslims study shared at NSS Members’ Day” – Dr. Ben Jones’s “shocking” research, funded by the National Secular Society, reveals the terrifying lengths ex-Muslims in the U.K. go to escape abuse, censorship and threats to their lives.
• “The disastrous Scottish education trap serving as a warning to Starmer” – In the Telegraph, Ben Wright warns that the Scottish education system’s disastrous adoption of a “skills-based” curriculum should serve as a cautionary tale for Keir Starmer.
• “Shops suffer worst slump since pandemic amid fears over economy” – High street retailers have suffered their worst slump in sales since Covid, as fears over the economy hammer demand among shoppers, reports the Telegraph.
• “New Cabinet secretary Sir Chris Wormald was criticised for Covid response” – Sir Chris Wormald, a veteran civil servant whose preparation for the pandemic was criticised by the Covid Inquiry, has been appointed Cabinet Secretary to “rewire the British state”, says the Times.
• “A shadow HR empire runs Britain – and it’s getting bigger“ – In the Telegraph, Lucy Burton reveals how Britain’s expanding HR empire has become a productivity drain, with its influence reaching dangerously unchecked levels.
• “Tony Blair is wrong to love nuclear energy” – If we are going to have a new nuclear age, the safety aspects will very much still have to be addressed, writes Ross Clark in the Spectator.
• “Vauxhall’s Luton plant ‘still faces closure’ despite shock exit of cost-cutting chief” – Stellantis has lost £2.44 billion in value after the CEO of Vauxhall’s parent company resigned, just days after the announcement to close the Luton factory, reports Sky News.
• “VW workers go on strike over pay after EV uptake plunged by a quarter” – Workers at Volkswagen factories across Germany have begun strikes after the manufacturer threatened to close plants amid falling demand and a slower-than-expected transition to electric vehicles, says the Mail. 
• “This sneaky assisted-suicide Bill strikes against decency and genuine choice” – In TCW, Sean Walsh warns that the rushed passage of the assisted dying Bill is a slippery slope that reduces life to a cost-benefit calculation.
• “Scotland’s care home tragedy” – HART’s Substack exposes the horrific impact of pandemic-era isolation, neglect and human rights violations in Scottish care homes.
• “Expert’s verdict on Arla Foods’ ‘Bovaer’ after ‘cancer causing’ claims” – In the Mail, experts weigh in on accusations that milk sold in Britain’s major supermarkets will soon be contaminated with an additive that’s supposedly linked to a host of health issues, including cancer.
• “Jay Bhattacharya and the vindication of the ‘fringe’ scientists” – Prof. Jay Bhattacharya’s NIH nomination, years after being maligned for questioning lockdowns, is a boon for real science, says Allysia Finley in the WSJ.
• “Poetic justice for Jay Bhattacharya” – The Free Press editors celebrate Prof. Jay Bhattacharya’s rise from pandemic scapegoat to the next NIH director.
• “Covid select concludes two-year investigation, issues 500+ page final report” – On Substack, Robert W. Malone reports on a damning two-year investigation into the origins, mismanagement and widespread failures of the pandemic response.
• “Why is Dr. Scott Gottlieb so desperate to keep Robert F. Kennedy Jr. out of Trump’s cabinet?” – On Substack, Alex Berenson exposes the shadowy tactics of Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Pfizer’s paid director, as he fights to block RFK Jr. from becoming Secretary of Health and Human Services.
• “Scientific American’s purging of Laura Helmuth is only a start” – On Substack, Paul D. Thacker dismantles the partisan wreckage at Scientific American, where Laura Helmuth’s departure is just the first step in reclaiming science journalism from ideological rot.
• “SARS-CoV-2 spike protein persists in the skull-meninges-brain axis and causes neurological damage” –On the Courageous Discourse Substack, Nicolas Hulscher discusses a new study that confirms the Spike protein is a persistent neurotoxin.
• “The ‘Wild, Wild West’ of the American egg donor industry” – In the Free Press, Rina Raphael exposes the hidden costs of egg donation, from long-term health risks to the emotional toll.
• “‘Trump can seize back control of health policy from WHO’” – Nigel Farage says that Trump’s election presents a “once in a generation” chance to seize back control of health policy from the WHO, according to the Telegraph.
• “What does being ‘uncomfortable’ with Gregg Wallace mean? Either make an allegation, or don’t” – In the Telegraph, Celia Walden takes aim at the vague and dangerously overused term “uncomfortable”, arguing that its ambiguity undermines serious allegations.
• “Why Gail’s triumphs” – The reason Gail’s is worth celebrating is that the product is good, says Sam Leith in the Spectator.
• “Jaguar’s ‘Barbie’ relaunch is a disaster for an iconic brand” – The new Jaguar model’s leaked images are a far cry from the understated splendour of earlier cars, writes Matthew Lynn in the Telegraph.
• “‘Jag man’ abandoned by carmaker as dealerships close” – Jaguar has been accused of abandoning loyal customers and dealerships with its controversial rebrand, reports the Telegraph.
• “What is a woman?” – On Substack, Andrew Doyle tackles the Supreme Court’s latest stab at solving humanity’s oldest riddle: what is a woman?
• “Transgender rapist Isla Bryson’s mother says ‘no wigs, dresses or make-up makes you female’” – The mother of trangender rapist Isla Bryson has said wearing wigs, dresses and make-up do not make a person a woman, insisting only biology can, according to GB News.
• “How scouting went woke” – On Matt Goodwin’s Substack, a whistleblower reveals how radical gender ideology has captured the Scouts.
• “Elon Musk vs woke Britain” – On the latest episode of The Winston Marshall Show, Winston dives into social media “crimes”, Two-Tier Keir’s regime, blasphemy laws, mainstream media bias and journalists facing police visits.
• “This guy can kill any mood” – A video on X shows Keir Starmer flicking the switch on the Christmas lights in Downing Street – and somehow managing to drain every ounce of joy from the moment.

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