Looking forward to this one!

Ooh, just booked Hay Festival James O'Brien in conversation with Peter Foster for Sunday. V much looking forward to this. Just need to find someone to look after the dog 😏

A thing that would worry me if I was Labour. Yesterday I read Keir Starmer’s opening remarks pre-delivery. They were very strong. Uplifting even. Then, later, I listened to him delivering them. He killed it. And not in a good way.

Depressing but perspicacious analysis from Stephen Bush Inside Politics newsletter.

The shrewdest daily take out there. And there’s a #GeneralElection4thJuly promo on. 😛

Sign up here:

ft.com/tryinsidepolit…

Government would either have had to go 'no, seriously, we are meeting our fiscal rule by abolishing prison and running schools three days a week' or get honest re tax and spend, neither of which it has shown any appetite to do: ft.com/content/77acf4…

Slightly worried, as the GE 2024 begins, about the % of the time I still write 'Kier Starmer' rather than 'Keir Starmer' at first time of trying.

Sunak doing pretty well here; home crowd obvs, but he’s a faster/smoother talker than Starmer.

'He said he's going to tackle the gangs at source...I said that a year ago.'

Rishi Sunak says people should take what Keir Starmer says 'with a pinch of salt' when it comes to his plan to deal with illegal migrants.

Clever primer!

📰🚨 It's all over the news: #inflation has fallen to 2.3%.

💥🤔 But what’s the big picture with the UK economy...?

📺 Take a step back from all today’s noise & #SWOT up with Sarah Hall as she tackles the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities & threats 🧐👇

Was in Westminster all day. Understand there's 5 major reasons for Rishi Sunak July 4 election gamble

1/ Key aides told PM inflation is now at its “election sweet spot” - 2.3% was today's print - & warned it may rise again by autumn

2/ No fiscal space for NI cuts in Sept 1/

Probably right. But Starmer is a cab-rank political leader. He adapts to new changes in circumstance. Old Keynes principal 'Facts change. I change my mind. What do you do?' Today political facts say No to Europe. But if economic facts, then citizens facts say Yes, he'll change

Peter Foster Daniel Finkelstein Even when Brexit was salient issue in elections, even when it was *the only question on the ballot paper*, British politics proved itself incapable of seriously engaging with what it meant. I don't see how that will change.

Have to say, while I accept Daniel Finkelstein logic, I doubt his conclusion. The capacity of UK politicians (of both parties) to defy fact/logic when its staring them in the face is entrenched. I bet we muddle our way to an incrementally poorer future.

. @dannythefink “Any sustained discussion of Brexit leads to the conclusion that about halfway through a Starmer government he will have to revisit our relationship with the European Union, having promised not to.”

Why we need to talk about Brexit

thetimes.co.uk/article/why-we…

Emma Barnet on BBC Radio 4 Today asking listeners to phone in their questions for the Chancellor. The tone is all ‘smashey and nicey’, dear listener. There’s a place for that. It’s just on 5Live.

The quotes on this tweet instructive. Either relief or cold fury that Sunak buckled.

Q is why on earth Sunak was marched to the top of this particular hill. Hurts UK reputation and now alienates the Tory base. That’s a D-minus for political strategy.

NEW: Rishi Sunak has backed away from making any radical reforms to the graduate visa route, after a cabinet backlash and warnings that driving away foreign students could undermine Britain’s universities. W/ George Parker + Peter Foster
ft.com/content/a9f24f… 1/2

Mike Sellers, Mike Sellers Chair of British Ports association British Ports Association tells annual
Lunch “we had as many meetings about border checks this year as we’ve actually had border checks”. Weary chuckles all round.

There is no better way I can think of than this to describe hash browns.