Laundering Reputations: China and its Uighurs

Laundering Reputations: China and its Uighurs

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It’s time to talk about the Uighurs again. Despite a harrowing Panorama programme and this header, last December no-one was much bothered, beyond some token expressions of concern. What a difference 7 months, a Made in China pandemic, a security law obliterating HK’s freedoms and news of Huawei’s active involvement in the security apparatus used for Uighur persecution make. 25 years after the Srebrenica massacre by Serbs of 8,000 Muslim Bosnian men and boys – the inevitable murderous conclusion of…

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Trump voters maybe far more enthusiastic about their man than Biden ones but that is only part of the story

Trump voters maybe far more enthusiastic about their man than Biden ones but that is only part of the story

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The above chart is from an interesting analysis from Nate Silver’s 538 site on the so-called enthusiasm gap between supporters for the President and his Democratic opponent. This is based on polling that those planning to vote for Trump on November 2nd are twice as likely to say they are enthusiastic about their choice than Biden backers. Inevitably with Trump polling an average nine points behind Biden the President himself and his campaign are looking at plus points from the…

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After another lacklustre Johnson PMQs performance a reminder how well Sunak has been polling

After another lacklustre Johnson PMQs performance a reminder how well Sunak has been polling

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Once again he’s level pegging with Johnson on being “the better PM” One of the most remarkable stories since Johnson became CON leader and PM a year ago has been the rise and rise of Rishi Sunak who just a year ago was parliamentary secretary for local government. Now he’s favourite to succeed Johnson as CON leader and second favourite behind Starmer of becoming the next PM. Historically almost all “best PM” ratings give it to the incumbent by a…

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Being an Anti Vaxxer is something people indulge in when they’re middle-aged

Being an Anti Vaxxer is something people indulge in when they’re middle-aged

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As you get older with your life more at stake you take a different view One of the big concerns as we get closer to getting an effective Covid19 vaccine is that there will be a significant proportion of the population who refuse to take part. The influence of disgraced ex-doctor Andrew Wakefield still runs very deep and we’ve seen how significant public health campaigns like participation in the MMR vaccine by childrens have been seriously undermined. Getting participation rates…

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The Russia Report doesn’t look like a damp squib

The Russia Report doesn’t look like a damp squib

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It could make the politics of EU withdrawal more challenging So now we have got ten months late the document and the headline in the Times report “Downing Street failed to protect EU referendum, says Russia report” sets out the political challenge for ministers only five months before the EU transition period comes to an end. This is how the Times is reporting it: The government failed to protect the EU referendum from interference by Russia and the intelligence agencies…

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The prospect of a vaccine by Christmas dominates the front pages

The prospect of a vaccine by Christmas dominates the front pages

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The Government’s each way bet on which will be available first A month ago I wrote here of the experiences of a friend of mine who had just left hospital after being struck down with Covid19 and concluded that the only way this crisis would come to an end was when a vaccine or palliative was widely available. Her story was about the sheer awfulness of gasping for breath and then the incredible joy after arriving in hospital and getting…

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