Politics

By Gemma Joyce As the race for London Mayor accelerates, new data is suggesting a change in tide of online support for the front runners. Social data research on the candidates’ performance on social media could be good news for Richmond Park and North Kingston MP Zac Goldsmith. The analysis, conducted by Brandwatch, studied conversations surrounding London Mayor front runners Sadiq Khan and Zac Goldsmith on Twitter, finding that discussion related to the Conservative candidate was scoring a higher percentage of...

Redbridge's Indian communities have reacted to 'patronising' leaflets sent by mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith in the run-up to the election. A campaign leaflet sent by Goldsmith that was tailored to those from specific Indian groups stated he supported family-owned businesses and was against taxes on family jewellery. Cllr Varinder Singh Bola, who received a leaflet saying Goldsmith “campaigned for the Golden Temple to remain in the hands of the Sikh community," called the campaign "very distasteful" and "quite patronising to target ethnic communities"....

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Polls conducted via telephone calls that currently indicate a double-digit lead for the remain campaign are likely to accurately reflect the British Public’s voting intentions, a report claims. Analysis by one of the only major polling companies who correctly predicted the UK general election results says heavy reliance on internet polling overstates the support for the Brexit campaign. Matt Singh of Number Cruncher Politics, working alongside James Kanagasooriam of polling company Populus and they looked...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Tory Minister Anna Soubry made a shock admission as pressure grows to save the port Talbot steel plant. Business minister Soubry says 'temporary ownership' of Tata steel's assets could be an option. This comes as the company made the shock decision to put up for sale the loss making arms of its UK operation. The Tory minister said there is "huge sympathy" for the steel giant, but also added it is losing £1m a day....

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor It has been claimed that numerous stray cat shelters have been moved to clear up the area near the PMs luxurious getaway. The five-star hotel in Lanzarote, part of the Canary Islands, have decided to forcefully evict the moggies from their homes. Almost 130 cats there are looked after by car lover Freddy Leon, who oversees Freddy’s Cathouse on the sun-kissed Spanish paradise. However, officials decided to move the shelters so they can spruce the...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor The Conservative Party sneakily announced their plans to sell-off the Land Registry just before Parliament shut down for the Easter Holidays, at 5pm last Thursday. The Chancellor has been trying to off load the agency for several years. The Land Registry is responsible for controlling all property transactions in England and Wales. During the coalition years a plan to privatise the agency was blocked by the Liberal Democrats. However, George Osborne resurrected the idea in...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Nicky Morgan was the first Tory Education Secretary to address the NASUWT since 1997, but it all went wrong, which seems to be the way things go for Morgan at the moment. She was viciously heckled by teachers angry at the Conservative plans for academy schools. Teachers shouted out “rubbish” at her as she tried to sell them he plans for the academisation of state schools. This follows on from the Chancellor, who announced in...

By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor In a move that is beyond parody, a call centre for the Brexit campaign has hired four non-British phone bank works, according to the Guardian. The call centre, overseen by party donor Arron Banks, has taken on EU migrants, while at the same time telling the public that low-skilled foreign workers “deprive British citizens of jobs.” Leave.EU has recruited four phone bank workers from EU countries, including Slovakia. The call centre was established to raise...

West Virginia is the latest US state to introduce drug testing for welfare claimants. As one lawmaker  put it, no-one living off his tax dollars should be 'laying around on welfare and drugs'. Florida recently required all welfare claimants to submit to drug testing, though the courts later ruled the law unconstitutional. Forcing the poor and needy to prove they aren't drug abusers is so popular with right-wing voters politicians are willing to risk legal backlash by enforcing invasive and...