Wow.

"We have lost three of the new candidates we fielded in the Westminster Elections last May. That means we have retained eight, seven of whom are standing again. Which is the more news worthy? You do the math!" – I dunno, Mike, the fact that the party has lost more than a quarter of its new candidates from what was already its worst election in history does strike me as remarkable!

Choose your roadsigns carefully!

Lots and lots of links to the current online debate about piracy.

"Cameron clearly does not understand that identity politics in the UK are often divisive and politically unrewarding. Such speeches may be grounded in genuine concern about social cohesion and the potential of violent extremism. But they often merely feed bigotry for those who seek to conflate extremist Islam and Islam as a religion…His linking of extremism with immigration potentially re-demonises the Muslim community at a time when tensions were slowly subsiding… his speech was ill-judged, poorly-timed and indicates a lack of political maturity. Moreover, it ultimately contradicted his own thesis that a common Britishness is developmental, organic and should not be manipulated by the state. It will do little more than stimulate inter-community tensions without providing any sustainable solutions to the issues of violent extremism"

"The Spanish government, and Minister Aguilar in particular, are effectively choosing plunder over principle, and tarnishing the EU’s reputation worldwide. "

Thoughts on what's up with the EU, from a slightly different set of angles to the usual.

David Cameron’s Munich speech urges “a clear sense of shared national identity that is open to everyone” (however toxic its undertones, as Stuart Weir has discussed). So why has his government more than halved funding for the Refugee Council’s vital advice services to asylum seekers?