Dear John,



The cold snap this week has us shivering and chattering, and the winter is just getting started. It hasn’t frozen the Tories’ car doors shut, so they tragically made it into Westminster for another week of blundering at the top. Let’s see what they managed.



Lordy Lordy



On Monday, Keir Starmer travelled to Leeds to unveil a report <[link removed]> on constitutional reform alongside former PM Gordon Brown to much fanfare. 



The report recommended <[link removed]> a major expansion of devolved powers, pledging to move decision-making “as close as meaningfully possible” to where it’s implemented. The most eye-catching of its recommendations, though, was the abolition <[link removed]> of the House of Lords and its replacement with an elected upper chamber representing the nations and regions of the UK.



However, one major change was missing: national electoral reform. With  the UK’s first-past-the-post system currently handing the Tories 56% of seats and 100% of the power with only 43% of the vote, Starmer’s silence on electoral reform could come back to haunt him at the next election. After Labour conference voted to endorse proportional representation, including it in the manifesto should be a no-brainer.



Read Best for Britain’s response here <[link removed]>.



Coal for Christmas



Never say this Government isn’t proactive. Keeping the Dickensian vibes of the last few months going, on Thursday  Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove greenlit <[link removed]> the opening of the UK’s first coal mine in a generation in Cumbria.







In a move that definitely has nothing to do with their fast-diminishing chances of retaining their 2019 Red Wall gains, the Government claims <[link removed]> the project will provide over 500 jobs and serve a vital role in the production of steel, which has been threatened by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Opponents swiftly pointed out that UK firms are unlikely to buy any coal produced there because British steelmakers already have a healthy supply of more sustainable resources.



People interested in breathing and not living underwater have savaged the plans, pointing to the much greater job opportunities in onshore wind and, you know, the fact that it’s not coal. Green MP Caroline Lucas called the move <[link removed]> it a “climate crime against humanity” in a Guardian op-ed.



Party like it’s 2006



Remember finance in the 2000s, when the UK banking system was on top of the world, money flowed into the City from all corners, and nothing bad happened and the economy was great forever and ever?



Jeremy Hunt certainly remembers. So much so that Friday morning, he announced <[link removed]> a series of sweeping reforms to financial regulations that will “seize on our Brexit freedoms” and stop the exodus of money to Paris, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt.



This will involve scrapping regulations which protect customers from the kind of risky investment ventures that led to the 2008 banking crash and which hold senior moneymen accountable for their misdeeds. Predictably, critics have collectively said <[link removed]>, ‘Erm, are we forgetting what happened last time?’. 



HanCockUp 



Matt Hancock will not be standing for Parliament next election. How he arrived at this decision, like the rest of the saga, depends <[link removed]> on who you ask.



According to the man himself, Hancock is leaving the chamber to focus on new challenges <[link removed]>. He made a pointed warning <[link removed]> in his resignation letter to the Prime Minister about the Tories’ need to find new ways to appeal to the electorate, so if you’re a camel, gird your loins.



Then again, Hancock also said he wouldn’t lose the whip and that he would stay on as an MP as recently as last week <[link removed]>. If you speak to the West Suffolk Conservative Association, it’s because Hancock was “up the creek without a paddle” and “not fit” to be an MP.



For now, it’s still looking to be a case of ‘disgraced MP said, everyone else save some selectively-planted allies said.’



Updates from Iran



Protests in Iran have continued into their third month, with highly-visible shows of support for the dissidents’ cause at the ongoing World Cup. In a show of solidarity, the national football team refused to sing their national anthem at all of their matches last month.







This week, news of brutal reprisals against the protestors back in Iran have emerged. After conflicting reports about the regime’s hated ‘morality police’ came out, fresh bulletins have claimed that troops have been targeting <[link removed]> female protestors with shots to breasts and crotch. The first confirmed execution of an anti-regime prisoner was also carried out <[link removed]> this week, a 23 year-old named Mohsen Shekari. 



These crackdowns have not stopped the protestors from continuing to bravely challenge the regime. Best for Britain stands in solidarity with those fighting for change in Iran.



B4B Blog: Myths about migration debunked



Ahead of World Human Rights Day this Saturday, Best for Britain have published a blog debunking <[link removed]> seven of the most common myths about migration, written by yours truly.



The blog tackles some of the falsehoods government officials have peddled about asylum and immigration in the UK, from the asylum backlog to Channel crossings to the truth about the hotels housing people seeking asylum in the UK.



Give it a read, share it around, and help us flip the narrative–we’ll stop the spread of Government misinformation in its tracks. 



Industrial distraction?



In a winter beset with strikes on the railways, in the NHS, in the postal system, and in the civil service (to name a few), the Government has finally wised up to the need to stem the flood of industrial action in the UK.



If you thought this meant a firm commitment to negotiating with workers in good faith, you are a very optimistic, kind-hearted person. No, they’re trying to push forward legislation banning <[link removed]> industrial action. The Government has been tight-lipped about their exact plans, but it’s thought such policy could limit <[link removed]> the amount of disruption strikes cause in certain sectors or even ban some, like firefighting and ambulances, from striking entirely.



This would be the latest chapter in the saga of the Government banning dissent <[link removed]> because cleaning up their own mess is too hard. Make sure you don’t protest too disruptively, because that’s illegal now <[link removed]>, too!



Last call for Christmas merch!!



If you’re looking to proudly declare your membership in the tofu-eating wokerati at the family Christmas party, you’d better act fast. Best for Britain's Christmas merch collection <[link removed]> is on sale, and many items have already sold out. 



Any orders received by 13th December will be shipped in time to make it under the tree.



As the holiday draws ever closer, it’s more important than ever to remember what we’re thankful for. We’re thankful that, all things else equal, we’re witnessing the final act of Matt Hancock’s political career. Small victories, people! Bye for now.















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