News Round-Up

• “Parliament gridlocked by tractors as farmers vow to beat ‘death tax’” – Farmers have accused Keir Starmer of wiping out Britain’s next farming generation as hundreds of tractors took over Westminster in a protest against planned changes to inheritance tax, reports the Mail.
• “The most depraved paedophile rings operating in Britain” – The jailing of a seven-strong child sex abuse ring that preyed on children as young as 13 in a Glasgow drug den, nicknamed the “Beastie House”, brings to an end one of the most disturbing trials in recent history, says the Mail.
• “Pakistani paedophile escaped deportation because it would ‘harm his children’” – A Pakistani father who was jailed for child sex offences has escaped deportation because it would be “unduly harsh” on his children, reports the Telegraph.
• “Five security escorts for one migrant: how Britain’s deportations compare to Trump’s” – Videos and photos of foreign criminals and failed asylum seekers being deported from Britain have been published for the first time – revealing that up to five security escorts are needed for every migrant, according to the Telegraph.
• “The big task in immigration – we must look to those already here” – The ‘Boriswave’ migrants will soon become eligible for Indefinite Leave to Remain, writes Nick Timothy in the Telegraph. Only those who contribute should get to stay.
• “The last soldiers for mass migration” – You can always count on some conservatives to defend their indefensible immigration record, says Connor Tomlinson on the Restoration Substack.
• “Labour suspends another MP over vile WhatsApp group” – Burnley MP Oliver Ryan is the second person to be suspended by Labour over their membership of a controversial WhatsApp group, reports the Mail.
• “Ex-Labour minister’s WhatsApp chat recorded as non-crime hate incident” – Police have recorded a NCHI over leaked WhatsApp messages involving the sacked minister Andrew Gwynne, according to LBC.
• “Diane Abbott condemns ‘racist and sexist’ Labour WhatsApp group” – Diane Abbott has slammed a Labour WhatsApp group as “racist and sexist” and called for anyone involved to quit the party, says the Mail.
• “MPs have learnt nothing from Matt Hancock’s WhatsApp humiliation” – What is so damaging about Andrew Gwynne’s case is the hole it blows in the Left’s permanent claim to moral superiority, writes Isabel Oakeshott in the Telegraph.
• “Keir Starmer loses three ministers over scandals in just seven months” – Just seven months on from Labour’s general election victory, the PM has already lost three members of his Government to fraud, corruption and racism claims, reports the Mail.
• “Starmer has just made his maddest ministerial appointment yet” – Ashley Dalton embodies the sort of Labour Party that Morgan McSweeney has desperately been trying to yank Starmer away from, writes William Atkinson in the Telegraph.
• “Why are prime ministerial staff so self-important?” – In the Telegraph, Charles Moore argues that Morgan McSweeney’s public disdain for Keir Starmer mirrors Dominic Cummings’ betrayal of Boris Johnson.
• “Kemi Badenoch delivers three-word verdict on election deal with Nigel Farage” – The Tory leader has branded the prospect of an electoral deal with Nigel Farage “for the birds”, according to the Express.
• “Kemi is a reformed Conservative – she has learnt from her mistakes” – In the Telegraph, Camilla Tominey assesses Kemi Badenoch’s first 100 days as Conservative leader.
• “Tories in WhatsApp war over how to tackle Reform threat” – WhatsApp messages leaked to the Telegraph reveal that current and former Tory MPs are at war over how best to tackle the threat of Reform UK.
• “Freddo fans’ fury as price of beloved chocolate soars 900%” – Fans of Freddo have lashed out after the iconic 18g chocolate was spotted on sale for £1 – a staggering tenfold increase since the bar returned to shops 20 years ago, reports the Mail.
• “Civil servants admit they have nothing to do – it’s time for cuts” – A zero-tolerance approach to bull s— office jobs is needed in the public sector, and fast, says Lucy Burton in the Telegraph.
• “What are they doing with our money? Public service productivity falls” – The Mail reports that despite soaring funding, official stats show the public sector remains as inefficient as ever.
• “Killing terrorists is not a crime” – It is absurd to punish soldiers for effectively prosecuting a war, says Sam Bidwell in the Critic.
• “How to win a law war” – On Substack, Dr David McGrogan exposes how the Left wages lawfare to reshape policy, while the Right brings a debate club to a knife fight.
• “Archbishop of York hit by biggest-ever rebellion amid calls to resign” – The Archbishop of York is facing a major rebellion from Church leaders amid calls for his resignation over allegations of bullying and “poor judgment”, reports the Telegraph.
• “The problem with the CofE: an open letter to Stephen Cottrell” – In Psephizo, Ian Paul argues that the Church of England’s crisis stems from leaders who refuse to step aside when trust is lost.
• “Miliband hands £2 billion in subsidies to wood-burning power station” – Ed Miliband has agreed to hand an estimated £2 billion of taxpayer subsidies to a controversial wood-burning power station operated by Drax, reports the Telegraph.
• “Secondhand electric car sales ‘face drastic road tax hit’” – Sales of secondhand EVs are at risk of stalling as the market braces for higher vehicle excise duty rates from April, says the Express.
• “How Net Zero plans to cut pollution have accelerated global warming” – In 2020, strict rules were put in place to slash cargo-ship emissions, writes Jim Norton in the Telegraph. Five years on, it appears to have been less than helpful.
• “Net Zero cure worse than climate change disease” – On Substack, David Turver directs readers to his recent Sacred Cows talk where he slays Net Zero myths and the Government’s approach to climate change.
• “The anti-vegan backlash that made Britain fall back in love with meat” – Meat is making a comeback – but have we really escaped the clutches of the vegan cult? wonders Marianka Swain in the Telegraph.
• “Regarding the Vaccine Damage Payment scheme – an open letter to the Telegraph” – On his blog, Jonathan Hall urges the Telegraph to investigate the VDPS’s failures, highlighting the role of US claims giant Crawford & Co, the conflicts of interest and the systemic delays that leave victims struggling for justice.
• “Merz’s Faustian bargain has spectacularly backfired” – CDU leader Friedrich Merz will forever now be known as the politician who sacrificed the firewall, says Lisa Haseldine in the Telegraph. It’s an epithet he is sure to come to loathe.
• “Hamas pauses Israeli hostage releases until further notice” – President Trump says that if all the hostages held in Gaza are not returned by Saturday at noon, he will cancel the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and let “all hell break loose”, according to CBC News.
• “It’s time to forget about a two state solution for Gaza” – UNRWA should be closed down, and Palestinians should be handled like all other refugees – by the UNHCR, says John Bolton in the Telegraph.
• “Roger Waters sued for libel after claiming reporter was ‘cheerleader for genocide’” – Roger Waters is being sued by an antisemitism campaigner who he claimed was a “cheerleader for genocide”, reports the Telegraph.
• “Free speech win in legal fight against eSafety Commissioner” – On Substack, Rebekah Barnett reports that the Australian eSafety Commissioner’s covert censorship of social media via an informal, unaccountable process is facing scrutiny.
• “Democrats are fast losing the argument on Elon Musk’s Doge revolution” – Trump’s critics think the purge of the federal bureaucracy is outrageous, says Paul du Quenoy in the Telegraph. But to most Americans, he is cleaning house – and it’s high time.
• “‘‘I’m biologically female’, insists trans NHS doctor’” – Dr Beth Upton has told an employment tribunal that trans women have right to get changed in front of female colleagues, according to the Telegraph.
• “Seb Coe plans mandatory cheek-swab tests for all female athletes” – World Athletics is looking to introduce a mandatory cheek-swab test as part of tougher new rules for athletes who want to compete in the female category, reports the Independent.
• “Trump the ‘misogynist’ is doing more than liberals ever did to safeguard the rights of women and girls” – With three bold executive orders, Trump has restored biological reality, protected kids and saved women’s sports, writes Matt Goodwin on his Substack.
• “The vibe shift comes to the Super Bowl” – From Super Bowl patriotism to woke rebrands, River Page charts America’s shifting cultural tides in the Free Press.
• “Taylor Swift booed by fans at Super Bowl as she cheers Travis Kelce on” – Taylor Swift was left stunned after being met with emphatic booing at the Caesars Superdome when she appeared on the jumbotron for the first time at the Super Bowl, reports the Mail. 
• “Harry’s swipe at Trump is a ‘distraction’, says Invictus insider” – Prince Harry’s swipe at Donald Trump after he called his wife “terrible” was an unwelcome “distraction” from the good work of Invictus, an insider has told the MailOnline.
• “The ignorance of culture warriors” – On Substack, Andrew Doyle explains how culture warriors twist words to trick progressives into backing regressive causes.
• “Musk ‘makes $100 billion offer for arch-rival’s AI company” – Elon Musk is leading a group of investors offering to buy OpenAI for nearly $100 billion, reports the Mail. 
• “Kanye West Twitter/X account is deactivated amid public backlash” – Kanye West has had his X account deactivated after a tirade of antisemitic, misogynistic and racist comments, says the Mail. 

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