Helen Goodman

Heartbreaking

Please educate yourself. Churchill was no hero. He was a fascist in many ways. Start by reading about his eugenicist white supremacy, fervent enthusiasm for chemical weapons, treatment of ppl in Ireland, Bengal, Kenya etc, violence against UK working class, anti-Semitic zionism, anti-Muslim views...

Gross.

'Agents'? George Orwell vomiting in his grave.

"England 1819" = US 2026. King George III = Donald Trump

"An old, mad, blind, despised, and dying King;
Princes, the dregs of their dull race, who flow
Through public scorn--mud from a muddy spring;
Rulers who neither see nor feel nor know,
But leechlike to their fainting country cling."

--Shelley

💯 eg Deliveroo feels very Victorian.

Correction: more than 1000 civilians *killed* *so far*, not just passively dead, and the death toll is rising fast.

Ban US strikes on Iran from UK bases Can you spare a minute to help this campaign?

c.org/N6ycrwfdKH Petition to ban the US strikes on Iran from UK bases which currently puts a target on our people in Trump’s illegal, bloody, and rapidly-escalating vanity war.

UNICEF says at least 181 children have been killed in the strikes on Iran so far. Deliberately attacking a school is a war crime.

It looks as though between them, the US and Israel have bombed FOUR schools so far - one on Saturday in Minab (southern Iran, just across the water from Dubai), two on Thursday in Parand (near Tehran), and one today (Friday) in Noloufar Square in Tehran itself.

Congratulations! Bookshops should add a sticker with this accolade to each copy. I can't wait to read it. It might be nice to post a signed copy to Michael 'prison works' Howard in time for his birthday. Just a thought.

Dear Prime Minister, In recent days we have seen a deeply concerning escalation in conflict in the Middle East following a series of illegal and dangerously irresponsible airstrikes on Iran by the United States and Israel. You have now confirmed that UK bases will be used by the US for their operations in the area. This is a significant concession to President Donald Trump and one which risks drawing the UK into a dangerous conflict. During your campaign to be elected leader of the Labour Party, you spoke compellingly about learning the lessons of the Iraq war. In particular, you set out legislation you would pass as Prime Minister, ensuring that military action is only taken if: • The lawful case for it is made • There is a viable objective • Consent is given by the House of Commons. We agree that such legislation is needed to prevent the UK from being dragged into destructive, illegal and dangerous wars abroad, and so we have today tabled the Armed Conflict (Requirements) Bill. The Bill requires that 1. Before armed forces may be deployed for armed conflict, a Minister of the Crown must publish a statement setting out the reasons for the deployment, an assessment of its compliance with international law, the objective of the deployment and an assessment of the viability of that objective, and 2. Any such deployment must be approved in advance by a resolution of the House of Commons

I invite your support to pass this bill. In an increasingly unstable world, it is more important than ever that decisions about the UK’s involvement in military action abroad are taken carefully, soberly, and with the best interests of the British people at heart. We believe this piece of legislation would ensure that. Yours sincerely, Dr Ellie Chowns MP

Today I tabled a bill which would require any UK military intervention to have a lawful basis, viable objective, and approval by MPs - legislation the PM once said he himself would pass when he was running for Labour leader.

He supported it then, and he should support it now.

Quite. And where you can’t *hug* your partner in public without risking a fine or other legal action.

Come on Gorton & Denton, use your votes wisely 💚💪

Stay focused

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the new ‘guidance’ (legal requirement) for schools about gender, and how we might respond over the consultation period. I’m concerned it could lead to a lot of distressed children not being listened to, as though they know nothing about their own wellbeing.

Belated Happy Darwin Day to those who celebrate! 🐦 🐢 🐚 🪲 🐜

Might be worth not using words like ‘colonise’ if he can’t even grasp a basic dictionary definition of them.

Though I do have a bone to pick with Stephen Sondheim. The lyrics to 'America' in 'West Side Story' do make Puerto Rico sound like a different country from 'America' (by which I think they mean the USA).

#Balzac / C19th French literature people, is there an edition of 'Le Colonel Chabert' translated into English that you'd recommend? (image: caricature of Balzac caricature by Nadar, 1850)

Strip Peter Mandelson of His 'Lord' Title Immediately Can you spare a minute to help this campaign?

Petition for Lord Peter Mandelson to be stripped of his title: c.org/DCmvJdQRsm

❤️

This reminds me of that episode of Friends with the literature evening class where Rachel, who hasn't read the book, lands up saying that Jane Eyre is a cyborg 😂

I studied that pair for A Level. Loved it!

Looks delicious. Kale and lentils? I can't quite tell.

In the film I think he turns up without any clothes on as well as saying he's the child's future husband. Horrific.

The bottom of the linked page has a section outlining what the international community can do to end this #genderapartheid and the other cruelties unfolding every day in Afghanistan.

The Taliban’s New Criminal Regulation Legalizes Slavery, Violence, and Repression of Women - Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security On January 7, 2026, the Taliban’s emir issued a two-point decree formally endorsing a new Criminal Procedural Regulations for Courts (119 articles, 3 chapters, 10 sections) and announcing that it woul...

... mete out an on-the-spot punishment; women have no legal personhood. The list goes on. 'Families are transformed into enforcement units, communities into monitoring networks, and citizens into instruments of repression.' And children are growing up witnessing and being subjected to all this...

... her husband's wishes she is imprisoned for 5 months; if a woman rejects Islam she is imprisoned for LIFE and whipped every 3 days; animals including chickens and quails are better protected from physical harm than women; a person who witnesses a 'sin' has the legal duty to...

New laws in #Afghanistan have further relegated the status and safety of women. Society is now divided into free people and 'the enslaved'; #domesticviolence is specifically met with impunity, provided a man does not break a woman's bones; if a woman repeatedly leaves the marital home against...