David Lammy is asking BBC bosses to draw up tens of millions of pounds’ worth of cuts to the World Service as part of the spending review, as the fallout continues from Keir Starmer’s decision to slash the aid budget.
Supporters of the service say the cuts are likely to damage the UK’s international reputation and undermine the fight against global disinformation, given Donald Trump’s attempts to remove funding from the Voice of America (VOA), the US equivalent.
At this point, I reckon they’re about where the pre-Thatcher Conservatives were. The actual Conservatives are now further right than they used to be too but don’t seem to realise it, and every time they try to design policies they end up confused that what they’ve come up with looks like fascism (to everyone else if not also to them).
If I had the wherewithal, I’d start up a Socialist party, because it’s clear now that parties only ever shift right and there’s a gap at the left end of the spectrum.