Displaying items by tag: Politics

Scott Morrison's government is criticised for its inaction on climate change. When Australia - long considered a climate policy laggard – holds an election on 21 May, the outcome could be significant for the planet's future. Still reliant on coal for most electricity, it is one of the dirtiest countries per capita, making up over 1% of global emissions with only 0.3% of the world's population. It is also a massive supplier of fossil fuels globally; when that is factored in, it accounts for 3.6% of the world's emissions. Australia is most at risk from climate change, having recently suffered severe drought, historic bushfires, successive years of record-breaking floods, and six mass bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef. It is racing towards a future full of similar disasters. Climate policy played a role in toppling three prime ministers in a decade. Most voters want tougher climate action, but some coal towns in swing constituencies are key to winning elections.

Fred Parry attributes twenty years of sobriety to a rehab clinic, saying recovering from alcoholism was the best thing that ever happened to him. He is now a cellist, a music teacher, a husband and father. When his son Adam began battling addiction, Fred sent him to the same clinic to recover. He did for a short time, but Fred could not afford further rehab. Adam didn’t present like an alcoholic; he was well-spoken, intelligent, often reading three books at a time. But he was tortured and couldn't find a way out. Addiction took over when he started studying chemistry at University. He dropped out and was hospitalised six times for alcohol-related seizures. Fred was told by a doctor, ‘There's nothing you can do for an alcoholic, just lock them up and throw the key away’ Adam died after another seizure. He was 32. Mr Parry wants the Scottish government to improve access to addiction treatment services, including residential rehab.

CARE for Scotland has urged Nicola Sturgeon to oppose assisted suicide to protect people with disabilities, after she signalled she might support plans to legalise the practice. In a recent interview Ms Sturgeon said she is ‘more open’ to a law change and has no ‘concluded view’ on a member's bill from Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur. Ms Sturgeon expressed opposition to assisted suicide in 2015 when it was last considered in Scotland. CARE said, ‘The First Minister's assessment of assisted suicide's dangers was correct in 2015 and ‘remains so today. It is confirmed by Canada’s tragic experience, where vulnerable citizens are coerced into opting for assisted death after being unable to access care and support. Canada experiences the ‘slippery slope’ of such laws. If Scotland agrees to assisted suicide for terminally ill, a campaign will begin in earnest to widen eligibility for the physically and mentally disabled.’ For more on Canada’s experience, see

This week Sir Keir Starmer signalled he could expel left-wing Labour MPs from the party if they are openly critical of NATO. He said that under his leadership the party will show ‘unshakeable support’ for the alliance, and he will continue to call out any ‘false equivalence between Russian aggression in Ukraine and the acts of NATO’. Asked directly if he would expel MPs who are anti-NATO, Sir Keir said, ’Yes, these are principles that are absolutely at the root of the Labour Party. I'm determined that our party will face the electorate and not the sort of internal machinations and arguments that we have had too much of in the past.’ In February he told eleven Labour MPs to withdraw their signatures from a ‘Stop the War’ letter which criticised NATO.

Neil Parish, the MP for Tiverton and Honiton, has resigned after admitting he watched pornography twice in the House of Commons. He said it had been a ‘moment of madness: I was not proud of what I was doing’. The first time was accidental after he looked at a tractor website, but the second time was deliberate. Mr Parish appeared emotional as he announced he was standing down after seeing the furore and damage it was causing his family and his constituency. This will trigger a by-election in what is a safe Tory seat. But this story - and others - have damaged Parliament's reputation, and the Conservative Party. Both will be hoping that Mr Parish's resignation will help them start to move on.

Boris Johnson has said the British embassy in Kyiv will open its doors again, after its closure shortly before Russia's invasion. He also said it was sadly a ‘realistic possibility’ when asked if he agreed with intelligence that the Russian bombardment could continue to the end of next year, ending with Russian victory. He said, ‘Putin has a huge army with a very difficult political position because he has made a catastrophic blunder. His only option, really, is to continue to use his appalling, grinding approach driven by artillery, trying to grind the Ukrainians down. No matter what military superiority he may be able to bring to bear in the next few months, he will not be able to conquer the spirit of the Ukrainian people.’

Labour is calling for an emergency budget to bring forward more measures to tackle the cost-of-living crisis. Inflation is at a thirty-year high. Sir Keir Starmer demanded further measures, for instance a windfall tax on energy firms. Downing Street said the Queen's Speech, in which future policies are outlined, is coming up, and these issues are ‘utterly central to what the Government is trying to do’. Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled plans to address the cost of living in March's Spring Statement. They included fuel duty cuts, raising the threshold for paying National Insurance, and cutting the basic income tax rate before the next general election. Meanwhile grocery prices were 5.9% higher in April than a year ago due to rising raw material costs, whilst shoppers are turning to discount retailers Aldi and Lidl as budget pressures grow. The average household food bill will now be a potential extra £271 per year: see

Addressing MPs after Easter and for the first time since being fined for breaking Covid laws, Boris Johnson apologised for his ‘mistake’ 35 times. He said he had not realised he was breaking the rules but he accepted the police's decisions. MPs want to vote on a Labour plan for a Commons committee to investigate his past comments about Whitehall gatherings, but ministers now want the vote to wait until probes by the police and Sue Gray have finished. A delay in this decision will not remove the threat of a censure motion - which allows MPs to criticise government policy, an individual minister, or the government as a whole. Any MP can table one, and it only takes a simple majority to pass. If it passes, it would not force Johnson to do anything but would put him under far greater political pressure. See also

Boris Johnson has said he does not think ‘biological males should be competing in women’s sports and the ‘sensible’ view was that transgender athletes - such as Lia Thomas, a swimmer who won America’s top trophy in university sports - should not be allowed to compete alongside cisgendered women and that children should not be allowed to decide their own gender without parental assistance. His most comprehensive comments yet on transgender issues came days after the Government decided not to ban trans conversion therapy, as the Conservative Party promised at the last election. Conversion therapy attempts to change or suppress someone’s sexuality or gender identity. Mr Johnson also said he thought it was important to have women-only spaces in hospitals, prisons and changing rooms but admitted there were ‘complexities and sensitivities’ around transgender issues that ‘still need to be worked out’. It is already outlawed in several other countries.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban won his fourth term in Hungary’s general election. In his victory speech, Orban said, ‘We never had so many opponents, Brussels bureaucrats, the international mainstream media, and the Ukrainian president.’ He has close ties with Moscow and has banned transferring arms to Ukraine. Victory for Orban means a headache for the EU. In 12 years of tenure, he has rewritten the constitution, filled the top courts with his appointees, and changed the electoral system to his advantage. During campaigning, the opposition's catchphrase was ‘Orban or Europe’ complaining he had isolated Hungary from the European mainstream, from consensual democracy, fairness and decency. Hungary is isolated in the EU and NATO - but neither institution will ostracise him. They want to show Russia Western unity so he will remain an unpredictable thorn in their side. Orban said Hungary would pay Russia in rubles for gas – other European countries have ruled it out.