<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-swearingin-cc-hcommons-2026-by-nc-nd-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="Andy Burnham in the House of Commons being sworn in" decoding="async" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-swearingin-cc-hcommons-2026-by-nc-nd-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-swearingin-cc-hcommons-2026-by-nc-nd-230x230.png 230w" sizes="(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />We have a new Prime Minister and so I have updated my infographic. Featured Image Credit: CC House of Commons 2026 BY-NC-ND
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-swearingin-cc-hcommons-2026-by-nc-nd-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="Andy Burnham in the House of Commons being sworn in" decoding="async" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-swearingin-cc-hcommons-2026-by-nc-nd-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-swearingin-cc-hcommons-2026-by-nc-nd-230x230.png 230w" sizes="(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> We have a new Prime Minister and so I have updated my infographic. <img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" width="1024" height="629" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Prime-Ministers-and-their-fates-2026-1024x629.png" alt="" class="wp-image-13912" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Prime-Ministers-and-their-fates-2026-1024x629.png 1024w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Prime-Ministers-and-their-fates-2026-300x184.png 300w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Prime-Ministers-and-their-fates-2026-768x472.png 768w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Prime-Ministers-and-their-fates-2026.png 1110w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /> Featured Image Credit: CC House of Commons 2026 BY-NC-ND
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the ECB building in Frankfurt" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />Niall Ó Conghaille and Mike Galsworthy discuss the Euro and its role in the rejoin process. This is what I think. While I agree, that for the UK to rejoin the European Union it is necessary for them to agree,
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the ECB building in Frankfurt" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/ecb-frankfurt-cc-dfl1955-2011-BY-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> Niall Ó Conghaille and Mike Galsworthy discuss the Euro and its role in the rejoin process. This is what I think. While I agree, that for the UK to rejoin the European Union it is necessary for them to agree, in good faith, to join the euro. … Your arguments in favour of the EU insisting that the UK agree to join the Euro do not address the embedded macroeconomic theory within the stability and growth pact. The ECB has a mandate to pursue price stability before growth or employment. That is a choice, and one that should be taken democratically, not embedded in an almost impossible to change treaty. The financial tests of the Euro are deflationary and currently many of the large countries inc. Euro members fail to meet the criteria because they, i..e the criteria are bonkers or to use a more professional term, the democratically elected governments, with time-limited terms have decided that it is not in the interests of, nor supported by their voters. It would be useful if advocates of the Euro spoke of these disadvantages; you ask us to support the Euro, in fact suggest that negotiations will fail unless we agree to join, but austerity economics is high price to pay. It would help if those who agree said so and held out a prospect for change.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/euflag-markusspiske-wIUxLHndcLw-unsplash-w750-cropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the eu flag in front of a sand tone coloured building" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/euflag-markusspiske-wIUxLHndcLw-unsplash-w750-cropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/euflag-markusspiske-wIUxLHndcLw-unsplash-w750-cropped-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />RTE report that the EU Commission, has issued a warning to Ireland, and seven other countries, for failing to fully adopt an EU directive on transparent and predictable working conditions. The Commission statement states they have “… adopted two new
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/euflag-markusspiske-wIUxLHndcLw-unsplash-w750-cropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the eu flag in front of a sand tone coloured building" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/euflag-markusspiske-wIUxLHndcLw-unsplash-w750-cropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/euflag-markusspiske-wIUxLHndcLw-unsplash-w750-cropped-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> RTE report that the EU Commission, has issued a warning to Ireland, and seven other countries, for failing to fully adopt an EU directive on transparent and predictable working conditions. The Commission statement states they have “… adopted two new reports on the Employers Sanctions Directive and the Seasonal Workers Directive , assessing efforts to ensure fair working conditions for third-country nationals, prevent migrant exploitation and tackle illegal employment. RTE continues, “The European Commission said it has decided to open infringement procedures by sending a letter of formal notice to Ireland, Czechia, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal and Finland. I wonder if the Commission has considered writing to HMG to see of the UK is infringing on the “level playing field” clauses of the TCA. The UK’s employee protection rights remain amongst the weakest in the OECD. I expect the Commission is currently too busy to pursue the UK on this issue.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-150x150.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="andy burnham" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-150x150.jpg 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-270x270.jpg 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-230x230.jpg 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />Andy Burnham, the likely next leader of the Labour Party made a speech on Monday 29th June, from the People’s History Museum in Salford. I have linked to the Sky News video of the speech. I have captured the transcript
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-150x150.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="andy burnham" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-150x150.jpg 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-270x270.jpg 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/burnham-cc-2018-eu-by-nc-sa-230x230.jpg 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> Andy Burnham, the likely next leader of the Labour Party made a speech on Monday 29th June, from the People’s History Museum in Salford. I have linked to the Sky News video of the speech. I have captured the transcript and posted it on my wiki. See below, overleaf for my comments. Is that it? Moving part of No 10 to Manchester. What is he moving and how will that change things? We should note that this has already been tried once, when Sunak, then PM, moved part of the Treasury to Darlington. Devolution needs more than relocating civil servants from London. The proposal is an oblique criticism of Starmer’s failure to act on the Brown Commission report which proposed both a limited devolution in England and a legal entrenchment of local government rights. In my article, “New Britain, New Britcon”, (or on Medium), I argued that such plans would fail unless funded and funded in such a way that the axiom that poor areas need more services, and generate lower tax revenues is addressed. Devolution for a progressive government needs both money and a means of equitable sharing. Many will ask “why Manchester?” It is the second economic centre in Britain but is it the best place to locate a flagship to devolution. Having said that, he namechecks other parts of the UK, including even London but it just leaves me asking the question, “Does location of the Civil Service really make a difference?”, surely it needs to be about money and power. In “New Britain, New BritCon”, I also looked at civil service numbers and concluded that there was a very limited room for further dispersal. This reinforces the fact that location of civil servants is not enough since it’s the cultural & policy status quo that needs challenging. One of the problems in today’s economy is that even if it grows, those who reap the benefit are not the bottom 70%. Profits and return on capital mean the current economy as an extraction economy where the majority are struggling to afford to live while an ultra-plutocratic minority often living in the USA are getting richer. In order to resolve this, he doesn’t propose nationalisation, or the appropriation of private debt within public services; he proposes a form of regionalisation. I am not a fan of Morrisonian corporations and maybe a politically accountable commissioning model might work better but it doesn’t address the extraction economy nor the excessive financialisaton of the economy. He does speak about the Treasury, and I think underestimates the cultural inertia of forty years, or longer, of economic orthodoxy and promises to keep to Reeves’s rules. The Treasury is a problem, it’s tied to neo-liberalism and seems unable to unwind the interests of 21st century capitalism with that of the people it and the government are meant to serve. So even having strong political direction, unless the financial rules are changed the problems will remain and his proposed choice of advisers doesn’t auger well. In an article on the Guardian, they say, Burnham is understood to be getting advice from Andy Haldane, a former Bank of England chief economist, as well as Richard Hughes, a former chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility and Jim O’Neill, a crossbench peer and former Treasury minister who worked on George Osborne’s “Northern Powerhouse”. Haldane is an interest rate hawk, Hughes is unlikely to support more flexible attitude to borrowing. These choices emphasise to me the fact that the financial rules need to change and that Burnham does not understand that need. On Education, there’s not enough focus on Universities, neither their parlous financial state nor their crucial role in economic growth. Apprenticeships are important, but so is further and higher education. Private consumer debt funded university finance has failed. We need another model and need to remove the de-facto 16+. On housing the targets are ambitious and there seems little insight into the construction supply chains, possibly most importantly skilled workers most of whom come from eastern or central Europe. If the UK plans to build, it needs to welcome those who can make it happen. AI can’t build houses. It is not possible to grow the economy and continue with Mahmood & Starmer’s immigration policies. There’s no mention of foreign policy i.e. Gaza, and decoupling from the USA nor trade i.e. the EU, nor on Energy where price controls and enhanced profit taxes are needed and would be popular. It’s all a bit disappointing. Image Credit: Flickr EU Committee of Regions BY-NC-SA. This site is non-commercial.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-230x230.png 230w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />A nasty little piece by Mujtaba Rahman which contains the unstated assumption that the UK’s political direction and relations with the EU, are fixed and desirable. The other side of the coin is that the EU is about to change
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-230x230.png 230w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/berlaymont-dfl-2023-cropped-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> A nasty little piece by Mujtaba Rahman which contains the unstated assumption that the UK’s political direction and relations with the EU, are fixed and desirable. The other side of the coin is that the EU is about to change up; missing the boat would leave the UK isolated and poorer. The UK shouldn’t apply to rejoin until its ready to be a good citizen and sees the EU as more than a trade club. Rahman says, The EU of 2026 is an organisation built increasingly on common borrowing, an assertive joint industrial policy and a growing role in security and defence I ask who wouldn’t want that. The changing nature of the world’s international relations means we need reliable friends. Let’s see what changes Burnham makes to the Labour Party, or what space he gives to its eu-phile majority.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-150x150.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the stars and strips" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-150x150.jpg 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-270x270.jpg 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-230x230.jpg 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />Congratulations USA, on your 250th birthday except, the constitution of the republic was ratified 4th March 1789 making it the 237th birthday; it entrenched slavery and excluded native Americans and women, blacks couldn’t vote until 1870 and women until 1920,
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-150x150.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the stars and strips" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-150x150.jpg 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-270x270.jpg 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/starsstripes-karlcallwood-i8tfXAiwM1Q-unsplash-w750-230x230.jpg 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> Congratulations USA, on your 250th birthday except, the constitution of the republic was ratified 4th March 1789 making it the 237th birthday; it entrenched slavery and excluded native Americans and women, blacks couldn’t vote until 1870 and women until 1920, although this was before the UK permitted women to vote. They adopted what they saw as the results of the English Civil War albeit with an explicit separation of powers, and guaranteed local democratic powers invested in the constituent states and the people by the 10th Amendment. The growth of political parties, and the designed unaccountability of the Senate and Supreme Court can be seen today as critical weaknesses which one hopes are not copied by Europe’s constitutional reformers and that democrats in the US are able to fix.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="a warship in a rough sea" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-230x230.png 230w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />I went to watch the cruel sea on HMS Belfast on 13th June; the show consisted of the film followed by two selections from the Imperial War museums film archive. There was a question and answer session, chaired by James
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="a warship in a rough sea" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-230x230.png 230w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/cruel-sea-1-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> I went to watch the cruel sea on HMS Belfast on 13th June; the show consisted of the film followed by two selections from the Imperial War museums film archive. There was a question and answer session, chaired by James Taylor and Charlotte Ross of the IWM. During the Q&A, I made a contribution, and have transcribed my notes as a comment on the original article. The featured image is cropped from a graphic on this page, advertising the book as an audiofile. I have cropped it and justify my use as “fair use”.
Earlier this month, Michel Barnier made a speech in which he suggested that the European Union would welcome the United Kingdom rejoining the EU even with some of the opt-outs previously negotiated. Barnier is very clear that he is only
Earlier this month, Michel Barnier made a speech in which he suggested that the European Union would welcome the United Kingdom rejoining the EU even with some of the opt-outs previously negotiated. Barnier is very clear that he is only talking about Schengen and the Euro. The huge problem with the speech and the suggestion that opt-outs remain on the table is this will be interpreted by lukewarm supporters and political weathercocks as permission to haggle on the terms of re-entry. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="750" height="299" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Barnier-flickr-EP-CC-2019-BY-w750-letterbox.png" alt="" class="wp-image-13880" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Barnier-flickr-EP-CC-2019-BY-w750-letterbox.png 750w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Barnier-flickr-EP-CC-2019-BY-w750-letterbox-300x120.png 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" /> Michel Barnier – European Parliament cc 2019 BY The unacceptability of UK opt-outs within the EU, specifically, staying out of Schengen and the Euro, is illustrated in a recent You Gov poll. Unfortunately, for rejoiners, the French and Germans will only accept a UK application if it includes Schengen and the Euro, while support in the UK falls if we do not rejoin on the terms we had. It would be interesting to note what people believe those terms to be, as apart from Schengen and the Euro, they include a partial opt-out from the justice pillar, together with the famous rebate. I am concerned that while a number of campaigners have been trying to prove their cleverness by suggesting there’s ways to rejoin without agreeing to the Copenhagen Criteria, others have been encouraged to consider EU membership as an a-la-carte process. It is not. On the question of opt-outs, we, i.e. rejoiners need to show some leadership. Schengen comes with the right to freedom of movement. This is a popular and positive benefit of full membership of the European Union. Politicians, particularly Labour politicians should be showing some leadership. The opt-outs are gone; there may be some technical reasons why Schengen and the Euro will take some time but being a net contributor is one reason why we’re wanted and full membership of the justice pillar gives each citizen access to the Court of Justice of the European Union acting as a backstop against the authoritarian instincts of the British State with judges appointed by the children of opponents of fascism and Stalinism. Being members of the Digital Single Market would have the benefit of defending our democracy against US Oligarchs and Putin. I want my European citizenship back, I want to vote for MEPs and a Parliament that appoints a Commissioner and Judge, and has a seat on the European Council. And since this is a metaphor in common use, I want it in my lifetime. I also want to participate in improving the democracy of the EU to make it accountable to the views of citizens and residents. Another reason for pace, is that the EU is about to move on in a big way. Many argue that its changed too much to rejoin anyway; it’s not yet true and just something that Brexiters say but if the industrial policy takes off, it will damage the UK’s ability to export and further damage supply chains.
Is winning in Makerfield a new dawn for Labour, or just that this time, voters chose Labour as the “Not Farage” candidate. Since they won in Runcorn & Helsby, Reform have failed in Caerphilly, Gorton and Denton, and now Makerfield,
Is winning in Makerfield a new dawn for Labour, or just that this time, voters chose Labour as the “Not Farage” candidate. Since they won in Runcorn & Helsby, Reform have failed in Caerphilly, Gorton and Denton, and now Makerfield, losing to Plaid Cymru, the Greens and now to Labour. It was a great victory for Burnham and Labour, but the question has to be asked together with has Labour learnt the lesson that to fight Reform, you need to fight it. (I think not!) <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/55326778434_91f26b41af_b.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-13873" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/55326778434_91f26b41af_b.jpg 1024w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/55326778434_91f26b41af_b-300x200.jpg 300w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/55326778434_91f26b41af_b-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /> Source: No10@flickr 10th June 2026 CC 2026 BY-ND-NC Having returned to the House of Commons, Burnham has forced Keir Starmer to resign and a time table for a Party leadership election has been declared. Much has been written about why he had to go; I have been calling for it since February when the likely defeats in Scotland and Wales became obvious. On the day, Labour also lost three more London Councils. Starmer’s resignation speech starts in the same way as his election campaign to be leader of the Labour Party, with lies. When Starmer inherited the Labour Party, it was in the strongest financial position it had been for decades and anyone who has closely read the Forde report and the EHRC report knows there is still work to do to eliminate racism from the Labour Party. The focus on macroeconomic statistics repeats the mistakes that Biden made. While I do not subscribe to the meme that “perception is reality”, perhaps it is truer in politics than in engineering. Claiming the credit for growth doesn’t work if income equality remains at the current miserable level and if the growth in the economy goes into the pockets of a few. If people don’t feel better off, then it’s pointless claiming they should. It’s also difficult to understand, how Starmer can claim credit for the abolition of the two child benefit cap when he initially suspended seven MPs for voting for that abolition. Much has been written about Starmer’s weaknesses as a politician and Prime Minister. For a lot more words you can check out Jonathan Freedland in the Guardian, who focuses on personality and the politics of Downing St., and fails to mention Gaza and the Middle East, and alternatively, Phil Burton Cartledge, who does mention them, together with the dishonesty of his mandate within the Party. Phil also repeats his accusation that Starmer and McSweeney deliberately sought to break up Corbyn’s electoral coalition. Although some would seek to claim he’s been good on the world stage; this does need to be contrasted with his speeches and actions on Gaza, which is one of the primary causes for Labour’s loss of political support. Labour started the general election campaign with a poll score of 44%, finished with a vote of 34% which has since collapsed to a score in the high teens. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="902" height="363" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image.png" alt="" class="wp-image-13872" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image.png 902w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-300x121.png 300w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-768x309.png 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 902px) 100vw, 902px" /> Source: politico.eu – British polls 24 June 2026 It is expected that Burnham will be crowned as Labour’s new leader. If so he will be beholden to the fixers and not the membership and his retreats from his beliefs in order to win Makerfield are worrying because Labour and the country need a change of direction not a change of personnel. The new leader also needs to turn Labour’s democracy back on. It is clear from the ending of Blair’s New Labour government that this Government and Labour leadership have run out intellectual steam; the Party needs debate and new ideas to sustain its relevance and energy. We can also see by observing the last two years of the PLP what happens when MPs fear their whip more than their members and voters. Clive Lewis, in an article entitled, ‘After Burnham’s Win in Makerfield, the Answer Cannot be Managerial Politics with a Different Accent’, speaks for me, when he says, “Climate breakdown, war, energy insecurity, financial shocks, technological upheaval, and democratic decay are here. They will not wait for Labour to finish its management seminar.”
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ep-windowcleaner-w200-150x150.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ep-windowcleaner-w200-150x150.jpg 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ep-windowcleaner-w200.jpg 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />The ECI “Stop killing video games” was accepted as having reached its one million signature threshold earlier this year. The initiative seeks to prevent the remote disabling of videogames by their publishers. They also say, this prohibition can be met
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ep-windowcleaner-w200-150x150.jpg" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ep-windowcleaner-w200-150x150.jpg 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ep-windowcleaner-w200.jpg 200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> The ECI “Stop killing video games” was accepted as having reached its one million signature threshold earlier this year. The initiative seeks to prevent the remote disabling of videogames by their publishers. They also say, this prohibition can be met by providing means for the game to continue functioning independent of publisher. This article looks at the Commission response, the campaign’s next steps and questions the Commission’s strategy in responding to ECIs. The Commission and Parliament’s engagement with the campaign is reported on their web site. EU law requires that the Commission react to successfully ECIs. This Commission have decided that the goals of the ECI cannot be legislated for but propose to develop a code of conduct in conjunction with the industry. They also seem to think that current consumer rights are helpful; personally I don’t see it. How has this response been received, in the words of Captain Rum, “Opinion be divided”. This seems disappointing for those for whom the central claim for justice is that people think they have bought the game just to find that it can be taken away. Some in the campaign argue that this response is better than might have been expected. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="768" height="576" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/PjUS4Biv.jpg" alt="a box of CD/DVD's with a target on them, made by AI" class="wp-image-13867" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/PjUS4Biv.jpg 768w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/PjUS4Biv-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /> The campaign also documents the Commission’s consultation with the industry including senior officers of Ubisoft leading to the following story at Yahoo. The campaign argues that the timing suggests a causality. Ubisoft is a French company. Despite the commission response, the campaign plans to get amendments to the “Digital Fairness Act” tabled in the European Parliament. Good luck to them. On an adjacent issue, campaigning comrades in CTOE have noticed an increasing reticence of the Commission to react to successful ECIs which is one of the few radical democracy measures available within the European Union. CTOEs attention since the start of the Commission’s mandate has been focused on the petitions to develop human rights law but the precedent is the “End the Cage Age” petition which has been buried by the Commission arguably at the behest of industrial farming industry. Taken together with the aggressive use of Article 122 emergency powers and “Omnibus” bills which minimise citizen consultation and row back on anti-climate change regulation and privacy rights. I wish the campaign well and will continue to work with Citizens Takeover to build a stronger and more accountable democracy within the European Union.
On Labour’s rules on the election of a Leader
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/lab19-votes-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="Labour Conference 2019 from the balcony" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/lab19-votes-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/lab19-votes-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />A short note on how Labour’s Leadership election rules work. Rule Ch1.Vii establishes the roles, and delegates the election process to Ch4.II. This from C1.VII, is quite amusing given the history of the last few years, underling is mine. The
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/lab19-votes-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="Labour Conference 2019 from the balcony" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/lab19-votes-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/lab19-votes-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> A short note on how Labour’s Leadership election rules work. Rule Ch1.Vii establishes the roles, and delegates the election process to Ch4.II. This from C1.VII, is quite amusing given the history of the last few years, underling is mine. The Leader shall, as a member of the NEC, uphold and enforce the constitution, rules and standing orders of the Party and ensure the maintenance and development of an effective political Labour Party in parliament and in the country. Chapter 4.II defines the nomination and election process. The first clause is the now sadly common rule that claims to establish a principle but actually allows the NEC to vary the process and either bend or break the rules. Any such variation would need to be conformant with Wedensbury reasonableness rules, but this is unlikely to be ever tested in a court. The rules specify process to be followed in the case of a vacancy, or where no vacancy exists. To be a valid nominee, a candidate requires nomination from the PLP, CLPs and affiliates. In the case of a vacancy, the rules are silent as to the order these are to be sought. In the case of a challenge, someone would have needed to have collected the 20% of the PLP supporters, and then others would need to be given the opportunity to do so too. The timing of the making of supporting nominations by CLPs and affiliates is also silent. The rules state that nominations shall be made by all three classes of nominators. The election consists of a one member one vote and is designed to include union political levy payers, who are not members of a political party. This I thought interesting, 4.II.C.vii The precise eligibility criteria shall be defined by the NEC and set out in procedural guidelines and in each annual report to conference. as yet again neither members nor candidates know the rules until after the election has been called and nominations made. See also the Rule Book 2026 and/or My Repo, which holds mirrors
Could the UK pass the Copenhagen criteria?
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/EP-flags-cc-2019-BY-cropped-rszd-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="A UK flag at an EP meeting" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/EP-flags-cc-2019-BY-cropped-rszd-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/EP-flags-cc-2019-BY-cropped-rszd-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />As Labour turns a corner and begins to address if it should seek to lead the country into a closer relationship with the European Union, I found a thread on bluesky which questions if the UK is sufficiently democratic, and
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/EP-flags-cc-2019-BY-cropped-rszd-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="A UK flag at an EP meeting" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/EP-flags-cc-2019-BY-cropped-rszd-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/EP-flags-cc-2019-BY-cropped-rszd-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> As Labour turns a corner and begins to address if it should seek to lead the country into a closer relationship with the European Union, I found a thread on bluesky which questions if the UK is sufficiently democratic, and ready to adopt the complete acquis. I thought I’d reply, and this is what I say! On Democracy Is the UK sufficiently democratic to join the EU. The two key organisations that measure ‘democraciness’ both argue that the UK is a democracy. Its score in the EIU Index in 2024, is 8.34/10.00, its 11th out of 20 in Western Europe, and above France, Italy, Spain and three other countries. France and Italy it considers “Flawed democracies”. I have some difficulty with the EIU methodology, as while its open and accessible, I find it hard to replicate and comng from the Economist scores defences of liberal economics highly vs the pursuit of social rights. I looked at this in 2018, where I categorised the Economist’s weaknesses in the UK’s democracy. Amnesty International says that the UK’s treatment of refugees and asylum seekers is inadequate and that it fails to comply with its international obligations, including to ensure the rights to food, housing and adequate social security. One issue raised in the thread is that the UK does not honour its devolution agreements. This will not impact the Copenhagen criteria; the EU treaties are an agreement between member states, and subsidiarity is an agreement between the EU and the member states. Subsidiarity ensures that “decisions should be made at the closest possible level to the citizen”. It would benefit all the citizens of the EU, and the UK, if the treaties required member states to have internal subsidiarity contracts with their people and that the Committee of Regions was accountable to the citizens of the regions and not appointed by member state governments. On the Acquis All the opt-outs are gone. The Brexiteers gave them away. If the UK were to seek to rejoin the EU, it would need to agree to the EU’s freedom of movement laws. In fact all the opt-outs have gone and so while politically difficult for UK campaigners, freedom of movement is a benefit for which campaigners should argue and it is becoming more popular amongst young people. The UK will also need to recognise that its Justice Pillar opt-outs have also gone, as everyone decent should want as they were designed, by a Labour Government, to allow the UK to have more illiberal immigration and trade union laws. On the Euro, the UK should come to an agreement to adopt the Euro, i.e. supporters of rejoining need to be more explicit that both freedom of movement and the Euro are benefits and we should want them. With respect to the Euro, I am still concerned about the Stability and Growth Pact as I don’t think macro-economic planning should be frozen in a treaty. I also think the quantitive money theory baked into the treaties are wrong and cause misery and poverty,.
People are interested in what they’re interested in and it seems that I can’t put copyright down. I was at in conference on artificial intelligence over the weekend, organised by global justice now (GJN). The question I want to ask
People are interested in what they’re interested in and it seems that I can’t put copyright down. I was at in conference on artificial intelligence over the weekend, organised by global justice now (GJN). <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="750" height="422" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/nasa-hubble-space-telescope-TZIorZKAXYo-unsplash.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-13840" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/nasa-hubble-space-telescope-TZIorZKAXYo-unsplash.jpg 750w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/nasa-hubble-space-telescope-TZIorZKAXYo-unsplash-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" /> by NASA via unsplash The question I want to ask though is, that if AI, is meant to be so clever, how does it acquire all the science, social science and humanities white papers currently held behind copyright enforced paywalls or on DNS blocked repos. It seems they don’t, unless they have “Partnership agreements” with the copyright holders for which they pay. I’m concerned about this hole in human knowledge that is unavailable to the LLMs. Are we really betting all this money on only part of what we know? The general intellect it is not!
I reviewed “Pressing Reset” , the recent Fabian pamphlet on the state of play within the mainstream of the Parliamentary Labour Party on relations with the EU. This was published on the Chartist Magazine’s website. I conclude that the Parliamentary
I reviewed “Pressing Reset” , the recent Fabian pamphlet on the state of play within the mainstream of the Parliamentary Labour Party on relations with the EU. This was published on the Chartist Magazine’s website. I conclude that the Parliamentary Labour Party is still not ready to abandon cherry-picking, and abandon Starmer’s red lines. In my review, I highlight Stella Creasy’s contribution where she makes a cogent argument for a Swiss style deal, made easier by the EU having recently updated the Swiss agreement. She recognises that to make progress, the UK is going to have to give something on freedom of movement. Liam Byrne makes an argument for an Economic Security Union, which he claims is definitely not just the single market renamed. It is in fact more comprehensive than the single market . In the review, I say, “Byrne argues that a broader agenda will make agreement easier and that the UK must stop asking for favours and offer a true partnership.”. This is a contribution from a heavy weight to be welcomed. The final two chapters look at what’s happening in the EU. Jannike Wachowiak of UKICE writes about what the EU wants. He starts by saying that, “Brits spend an inordinate amount of time discussing what they want from the EU. They spend far less, however, pondering what the EU and its member states might want from them.” In the review, I say, “Wachowiak argues that the consensus within the EU is that the TCA works well for them. He also argues that the EU still maintains an opposition to cherry-picking, and while there is some evidence that this is not as strong as it once was, it is clear that the EU will not agree to a better deal for an ex-member than that offered to other members and members of the EEA. Again, he argues the UK needs to put more on the table, and it needs to be what the EU and its member states want.” As part of my conclusion, I say, From reading the pamphlet, I have heard that some argue that we can’t rejoin, because the EU has changed. This is true, but it seems we haven’t. We are still acting like a nation of shopkeepers, and unless we raise our ambitions, the EU is planning in further changes which will make it even harder to participate as a partner 3rd country or even as members unless we decide that membership of these programmes is more beneficial than a Scrooge-like analysis of the costs and benefits of each programme. Also, … the biggest disappointment in the pamphlet. If Labour doesn’t lead [opinion] and drop its red lines, the cost of Brexit will increase, and the relationship will stagnate as the EU concentrates on other things. Jannike Wachowiak and Jude Kirton Darling’s articles make it clear that we need to put more on the table and see the EU as a coalition of values and culture rather than exclusively a trade club or a defence market. Despite all this, starting conversations about contributing to the cohesion fund and HMG’s commitment to legislate to allow dynamic alignment are hopeful. However, without pressure, this government may make verbal compromises with its red lines but express no desire to genuinely commit to the European Union and thus the EU may just move on, addressing the issues that are more important to them.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="a missile being launched from underwater by AI" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />James Schneider is in the ‘Statesman writing on Defence. This article is published with a tag line of, “Military insiders are trying to bully the government into dependency on an erratic United States”. I comment on the his arguments, and
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="a missile being launched from underwater by AI" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/seamissile-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-cropped-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> James Schneider is in the ‘Statesman writing on Defence. This article is published with a tag line of, “Military insiders are trying to bully the government into dependency on an erratic United States”. I comment on the his arguments, and look at views expressed by other military commentators as to the sense of the UK’s US centric procurement policies and look at Kaldor and Cooper’s paper arguing that social resilience is a defence policy too. Schneider argues correctly, but not with originality, that expenditure targets are not a strategy. A strategy must consider purpose, weapons and their source. He points out that George Robertson, a recent critic of the financial targets, is connected to and a long time supporter of the US Military Industrial complex. While Defence Secretary, he established the now bi-partisan position that the UK would develop an expeditionary capability designed to work in the context of “allies” i.e. a US led NATO. Robertson then went on to serve as NATO’s General Secretary. His criticisms of the Labour Government’s defence policies and appetite to fund them is repeated in an article in the Spectator written by John Foreman, who was formerly Britain’s defence attaché in Moscow and before that, Britain’s defence attaché in Kyiv. The problem is that under Trump, the US is clearly an unreliable ally to the UK & Europe. This opinion is the major assumption in Kaldor & Cooper’s paper, Organised Irresponsibility, where they argue that the Strategic Defence Review, is based on the assumption that NATO is the cornerstone of UK defence policy and that it double down on using the US as its major supplier focusing on expensive weapon systems which have been shown to be extremely vulnerable in Ukraine. Does the reliance in US weapons systems and infrastructure jeopardise the UK’s defence capability. Schneider questions the availability of both the F35s, used on the aircraft carriers and for European operations and that of the nuclear deterrent. Further evidence is obliquely provided by Perun, an open source intelligence commentator, in a video entitled, “Arming Europe Without US Weapons?“, where he suggests in his imaginary European military, by their omission, that the UK’s exquisite weapons are all too US dependent. Kaldor and Cooper make two additional arguments. The first that the SDR’s arguments and the government adoption of buying more US weapons limits European Co-operation, and they sub-title their conclusion, “Welfare is Resilience”. I was reminded at a seminar yesterday, that some defence thinkers are trying to prepare the UK for the view that modern wars are between societies and that everyone needs to contribute. The SDR recognises, and observing Ukraine’s resistance, shows that, yet again, modern wars are likely to be conducted by the whole of society. Additionally, the new cold war is conducted in the grey zone, to which the best defence is a well informed and committed society. A country at the end of fourteen years of austerity, with a corrupt media, and a public social wage commitment the lowest in Europe is not going to support enhanced defence expenditure at the expense of increased wages and diminishing social security. The second part of Robertson’s statement is that the welfare bill is too high and that It needs to be cut in order to fund defence; this was days before we discover that the HMG undershot its borrowing projections by £700m. The UK can’t have an impoverished people and a well funded military, even if the current weapons procurement proposals made sense. A defence policy/strategy needs to be about purpose, then weapons and their cost. The country also needs that its population thinks its worth defending. Social justice & equality are defence projects too.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the flags at the Berlaymont" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> Rafael Behr writes a trenchant statement about the weakness of Labour's "Fix Brexit" policy. It's titled, "The Brexit delusion is dead – so now Keir Starmer doesn’t need to pretend any more" with a tag line, "To rebuild relations with Europe in a dangerous world, the prime minister needs to win big arguments, not hide behind outdated red lines". He criticises the timidity of the manifesto, Starmer's apolitical approach to dealing with Europe, and everything really, points out that cherry-picking can never succeed and that membership is the best answer even for the economic questions. Today's debate amongst Labour's leadership, is whether its possible to pursue a sector-by-sector negotiation without compromising the red lines. It is not! Unless the UK gets on the train, the next tranche of EU reforms will make it harder for an incrementalist approach to succeed. Furthermore the EU are not going to give better terms to an ex-member than to current or acceding states. Also the five year review is due to start, there is no reason why the EU will want to put more on the table, and Behr's eloquent statement, that the only model that truly works is membership is now obviously true, made more so by the changing geo-political circumstances. I would add, that until we begin to talk about the need for mutual social solidarity with the peoples of the European Union, again progress will be slow. To me, this is a great article which you should read yourself, for those short of time, I have book marked the article in diigo, and made the following notes. These can be seen overleaf, by using the "Read More" button ...
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the flags at the Berlaymont" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> Rafael Behr writes a trenchant statement about the weakness of Labour’s “Fix Brexit” policy. It’s titled, “The Brexit delusion is dead – so now Keir Starmer doesn’t need to pretend any more” with a tag line, “To rebuild relations with Europe in a dangerous world, the prime minister needs to win big arguments, not hide behind outdated red lines”. He criticises the timidity of the manifesto, Starmer’s apolitical approach to dealing with Europe, and everything really, points out that cherry-picking can never succeed and that membership is the best answer even for the economic questions. Today’s debate amongst Labour’s leadership, is whether its possible to pursue a sector-by-sector negotiation without compromising the red lines. It is not! Unless the UK gets on the train, the next tranche of EU reforms will make it harder for an incrementalist approach to succeed. Furthermore the EU are not going to give better terms to an ex-member than to current or acceding states. Also the five year review is due to start, there is no reason why the EU will want to put more on the table, and Behr’s eloquent statement, that the only model that truly works is membership is now obviously true, made more so by the changing geo-political circumstances. I would add, that until we begin to talk about the need for mutual social solidarity with the peoples of the European Union, again progress will be slow. To me, this is a great article which you should read yourself, for those short of time, I have book marked the article in diigo, and made the following notes. The links are Behr’s, the italics mine. .. the relationship can’t be settled because the EU is an evolving project in a world of flux. It responds to international crises, with consequences for the ex-member on its border. The options are more Brexit, or less, never a steady state. Vladimir Putin’s territorial aggression, Donald Trump’s geopolitical vandalism and China’s emergence as a superpower nearing parity with the US combine to form an irresistible case for Britain to make common cause with Europe. To facilitate a more intimate relationship, the government proposes legislation that will give ministers open-ended powers to adopt EU standards for various sectors of the economy. … Nigel Farage calls the proposed bill “a backdoor attempt to drag Britain back under EU control”. I say, the legislation and its flexibility are to be applauded, the ambition to take it further than the manifesto commitments is questionable. The government insists there will be opt-outs and a scrutiny mechanism so that Britain’s economy won’t be a passive moon, orbiting planet Europe. How that will work in practice is hard to say because the plan for multisectoral economic alignment exists only in Whitehall imaginations. It isn’t yet a technical negotiation with the EU, except in the limited area of veterinary and agricultural goods. The further Starmer tries to go in this direction, the harder he will collide with familiar Brexit obstacles. The European Commission will insist there can be no “cherry picking” from the single market; that non-member states wanting to enjoy the benefits of a European club can expect to pay subscription fees into European budgets; that the chancellor’s coveted prize of free movement for goods comes as a package with free movement of people. … there is an elegant solution to that problem, but it exists beyond the bounds of conceivable scenarios for the current government. It involves British ministers and parliamentarians exercising significant leverage – including vetoes – over the rules and overall direction of the EU from seats in all of its governing institutions. It is the model called membership. Paucity of ambition slows negotiations on the modest goals set in the 2024 manifesto. Any deal on offer to a pro-European prime minister will include clauses insuring against backsliding by a Reform UK successor. I say, this is necessary. It isn’t too late. Or at least there is less to fear, and not much left to lose, for an unpopular prime minister by talking about Brexit for what it is – not a deal to be revised or a condition to be managed but a tragic mistake to be corrected Events have refuted every Eurosceptic myth. … Britain has trudged long enough through the bog of Johnson’s lies, against the headwinds of false Faragist promises. The strategic, economic and political facts are now dynamically aligned for a change of course.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />I attended the Citidem seminar, on Poland. It was addressed by Professor Maciej Kisilowski, who has authored a book/paper collecting his thoughts. The paper is called , Introduction: A Polarized Country in Need of a New Social Contract, Let’s Agree
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/sejmpoland-MFAPolski-cc-by-nd-2011-flickr-w750-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> I attended the Citidem seminar, on Poland. It was addressed by Professor Maciej Kisilowski, who has authored a book/paper collecting his thoughts. The paper is called , Introduction: A Polarized Country in Need of a New Social Contract, Let’s Agree on Poland. A Case Study in Strategic Constitutional Design. The paper is available at the University of Warsaw site. The seminar is available on youtube. I made a contribution, here are my notes. Professor Kisilowski spoke of the centripetal forces in Poland and argues that to combat these forces there needs to be new foci of power. He proposes Mayors, who will also meet in a national senate. He described the mayors as guardians of the constitution which reminded me of Labour’s proposals, for a basic law, enforced by a reformed upper house, in the Brown Commission, a topic on which I blogged, and on which little progress has been made. The problem with populist politics is the winner take all nature of the liberal democracies and their parties. Electoral systems that reinforce the winner take all culture do not serve democracy. In elections of Presidents and Mayors, there can only be one winner which reinforces the anti-democratic tendencies of politicians and weakens ‘loser’s consent’. One counter model is found in Switzerland, but parliaments and committees can and have to negotiate in the open and often they will find more acceptable solutions from the various stakeholders second and third choice preferences. I question whether directly elected presidents and mayors are the superior democratic answer to government. It was argued that the EU could act as a guarantor or underwriter of human rights law, although it may be that there are those who oppose human rights law, and certainly human rights laws written by foreigners. This is certainly the case in the UK. I can see a role for the EU in this role and have supported the opposition and implementation of measures that the UK parliament would have wanted or not. The EU is operating its own agenda of centralisation which if desirable needs changes in governance rules. Within the Aquis of the EU, subsidiarity is a relationship between the Union and the States. We, the people, need that subsidiarity to become a right; and that decisions are taken as close to the people it effects as possible. Devolution is hard to implement because it means the meaningful transfer of power. If devolution is a gift, then it can always be taken back. We can see imperfect implementations of devolution in the UK in Scotland and Wales and in Spain in Catalunya & the Basque country, but also in Italy, Belgium and Finland. On writing this piece, I add this as a conclusion. The arguments about a new constitution and the necessary conflict resolution mechanisms raises the issue of the freezing of inter-community dialogue and the embedding of the cultural polarisation. This can be seen in a number of places in the world, including Northern Ireland, Belgium, the Lebanon and Bosnia-Herzegovina. In Northern Ireland, which I know better than the other locations, the power-sharing has led firstly to increased polarisation as the Unionists moved from Official Unionists to the DUP, and latterly, a structural inhibition on building cross-community parties. My conclusion is that constitutions needs both flexibility and boundaries and that representative parliaments/councils are superior to presidents and mayors. Featured Image: The Polish Sejm by Polish MFA cc-by-nd-2011 via flickr; w750
How important is profit for software projects?
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="a robot using a laptop" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />I have just posted on LinkedIn, “Does AI actually impact the bottom line in a good way?”. I look at an article from the Register based on a Gartner report which reports that in their survey AI projects “sucess rates
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="a robot using a laptop" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-270x270.png 270w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/ai-itsm-deepai_org-ccpd-w750-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> I have just posted on LinkedIn, “Does AI actually impact the bottom line in a good way?”. I look at an article from the Register based on a Gartner report which reports that in their survey AI projects “sucess rates were “only 28 percent of use cases fully succeed and offer return on investment (ROI).” I look at at arguments from Perez’s Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital and remember a late 20th century paradox that while many IS projects had poor and even negative ROIs, firms that didn’t invest failed.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the flags at the Berlaymont" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />I was informed by the European Movement on threads, that the EU Council has approved talks between the EU & UK on electricity market integration and cohesion. While electricity was on the cards and was signposted in last years May
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the flags at the Berlaymont" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/berlaymont-christianlue-unsplash-w750cfropped-50x50.png 50w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> I was informed by the European Movement on threads, that the EU Council has approved talks between the EU & UK on electricity market integration and cohesion. While electricity was on the cards and was signposted in last years May Summit, the cohesion talks are a major departure. Whether this is the EU ensuring that the UK pays its way into the single market, or a genuine attempt to broaden the conversation about what the UK adopts/rejoins is to me unclear. It may be some surprising good news, perhaps more evidence that Labour’s tanker is turning. I was surprised at the cohesion fund announcement and so asked Gemini if the UK would be a net contributor to the fund. They suggest that it is unlikely that the UK would be able to claim from the fund as the UK’s GDP per capita is too high and its purpose is now targeted at poorer member states and not smaller localities. Gemini’s full reply is at https://share.google/aimode/R99jBkDkHT8Qd5Y2E It seems they think the UK paying into the cohesion fund is to contribute to single market costs of joining the electricity single market. Under current rules the UK is unlikely to claim against the cohesion fund, despite having numerous European poverty areas.
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/impatience-deepau_org-ccpd-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="some people in a queue" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/impatience-deepau_org-ccpd-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/impatience-deepau_org-ccpd-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" />I wrote a medium length blog on linkedin and medium about three US court cases on internet system service provider liability to consumers and non-consenting suppliers. The big tech companies lost two, on harm caused which they’ll appeal, and won
<img width="150" height="150" src="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/impatience-deepau_org-ccpd-150x150.png" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="some people in a queue" decoding="async" loading="lazy" srcset="https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/impatience-deepau_org-ccpd-150x150.png 150w, https://davelevy.info/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/impatience-deepau_org-ccpd-230x230.png 230w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /> I wrote a medium length blog on linkedin and medium about three US court cases on internet system service provider liability to consumers and non-consenting suppliers. The big tech companies lost two, on harm caused which they’ll appeal, and won one on carrier immunity. I also look at Russia’s recent measures to cut Russian users from the world, and mention the UK’s expressed concern about internet harms.