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It was a disaster waiting to happen. In a highly publicised press conference, Tommy Robinson and Quilliam announced that the former had seen the error of his ways and decided to part with the English Defence League, a hard-line anti Islam group. Many prominent organisations and personalities had expressed scepticism at the time, dismissing it as nothing but a PR stunt to bolster the images of both Quilliam, a counter extremism think tank founded by former members of the radical...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor The final PMQs before the New Year had an extra-terrestrial vibe and I don’t mean the Tory backbenchers from Cocoon. It began with the PM praising UK astronaut Tim Peake, and everyone who was watching at home. Well we did Dave, you turned your head 180 degrees, like a lizard, and flicked your tongue at the screen. Corbyn wished everyone a happy Christmas even “Tim who wasn’t on this planet,” which inevitably set the Tories...

Callum Towler, Stephen Adams and Owen Black chat about the worrying rise of far-right politics following the Paris attacks. Should Donald Trump be banned from the UK? Do ISIS thank their lucky stars for characters like Farage and Le Pen? Is western liberalism dying in the face of terror? And how can the left reverse this surge? Alternatively, you can also listen via Soundcloud here  Follow us @callumtowler @stephenjcadams1 @owenblk And please leave your thoughts below.

London Waterloo has been crowned the UK's busiest railway station once again after the latest figures from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) revealed 99 million passengers passed through the station in the past year. Nine out of the top ten spots went to stations in London, with the top five dominated by the capital. Victoria, Liverpool Street and London Bridge came two to four respectively, with Charing Cross climbing ahead of Euston in the rankings. Martin Abrams of the Campaign...

By Oliver Ward Last weekend’s gruelling late night talks concluded in La Bourget and Paris was finally able to celebrate something as COP21 talks resulted in an agreement signed by 195 nations. Politicians linked hands, people were hugging and standing on desks. Like a work Christmas party, all that was missing was François Hollande with his tie round his head dragging everyone to the middle of the dance floor to boogie to Come on Eileen. There was much to celebrate;...

By Professor Colin Garner, Chief Executive of Antibiotic Research UK, comments: Today, patients undergoing routine treatments such as cancer treatment, organ transplantation and hip and knee replacements, are given antibiotics to prevent infection during these treatments. However, the frequency of antibiotic resistant infections is increasing, meaning that there are more and more deaths from antibiotic resistant bacteria. Sepsis is a common cause of death in the UK with over 37,000 deaths each year, more than lung cancer (35,000) and bowel cancer...

The government has been blamed for the rise of highly questionable pension  schemes which have led to a £2 billion 'liberation scandal'. A nationwide campaign group  says the government is “ultimately responsible” for the potential loss of billions of pounds of savers’ pensions by refusing to “fix a broken system” that is pushing victims to the brink of suicide.  Since April the over-55s have had the freedom to cash in their retirement pots.  Whilst 25 per cent will be free...

George Clooney has pledged the first £5 to a campaign run by Scottish not-for-profit sandwich shop Social Bite to feed thousands of homeless people on Christmas Day and throughout 2016. The Hollywood actor recorded a video message on a staff member’s iPhone pledging the first £5 and encouraging others to do the same. The video has been released alongside a host of support from Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Olympic legend Sir Chris Hoy, Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, comedian Rob Brydon, broadcaster Chris...

Donald Trump likes Katie Hopkins. This is not a world-changing surprise. Trump discovering Hopkins is like two idiots in Nickelback t-shirts meeting each other at a music festival and instantly getting along. You could say they like each other because they agree on almost everything (Trump will probably denounce fat people at his next rally) but the connection is much simpler than that: Donald and Katie are bullies. Trump and Hopkins are overgrown playground bullies who spend their time mocking...