Alastair Campbell, former Director of Communications to Tony Blair—and one of the key figures who sold the Iraq War to the British public—told Reform UK’s Zia Yusuf that he has more chance of captaining the Sri Lankan cricket team than of becoming Home Secretary. The comment came after Yusuf called Campbell a “war criminal” to his face on the BBC’s Question Time show.

However, the same corporate media outlets that devoted days of coverage and an anonymous Times leader to Raheem Kassam, Editor-in-Chief of The National Pulse, calling Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch a “Nigerian scammer” have shown almost no interest.

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Will the Times’s leader column focus on this? Will @lewis_goodall?

Will there be days of establishing teeth gnashing over this “Sri Lankan Strategy” deployed on the BBC by a literal war criminal?

Or does the establishment only do all that when a brown man gets too lairy? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/Ve1u3lgXfd

— Raheem J. Kassam (@RaheemKassam) October 30, 2026

Yusuf Confronts Campbell on Iraq.

On Question Time, Yusuf challenged Campbell over his role in the run-up to the invasion. He referenced the notorious claims in the British government’s “dodgy dossier,” which Campbell helped present, that Iraq could strike British territory with weapons of mass destruction within 45 minutes.

“You deceived the British people because you and your old boss Tony Blair wanted to go to war with Iraq, and as a direct result of your deception, almost 180 British troops are dead; 600,000 Iraqi civilians are dead… When you described yourself as a ‘national treasure’ recently, they would more aptly describe you as a war criminal, and if there were any justice in this country, frankly, you and your old boss Tony would be on trial,” Yusuf said.

Campbell later replied on X to a post from Yusuf in which he had shared a clip of the exchange: “I have heard it from far better people than you and they were wrong too. What I enjoyed was seeing you running away from an argument about Brexit because you would rather talk about anything else… You’ve [g]ot nice suits and nice shoes but you’ve got more chance captaining the Sri Lankan cricket team than you have of becoming Home Secretary.”

Yusuf was born in Lanarkshire, England, in 1986 to Sri Lankan Muslim parents who emigrated to Britain earlier in the 1980s. Both worked in the National Health Service (NHS), his father as a pediatrician and his mother as a nurse.

Alastair Campbell did not appear to enjoy being called a war criminal to his face:

The truth hurts. pic.twitter.com/IkFcpnK0kt

— Zia Yusuf (@ZiaYusufUK) October 29, 2026

The Coverage of Kassam’s Badenoch Posts.

Raheem Kassam described Kemi Badenoch as a “Nigerian scammer” on the basis of her long history of misleading people about her past and record. The Times ran an anonymous leader on the posts. LBC’s Lewis Goodall covered them. Conservative figures who pose as opponents of woke racism accusations and political correctness called for Farage and Reform to disown Kassam.

He responded by naming the authors behind The Times‘ “leader” editorials and noting both that Badenoch is a Nigerian citizen and that “Nigerian” is not a race. In a December 2024 Spectator interview, Badenoch herself said she identifies “less with [Nigeria] than with the specific ethnicity [Yoruba],” adding: “That’s what I really am. I have nothing in common with the people from the north of the country… those were our ethnic enemies, and yet you end up being lumped in with those people.”

Nigerian media criticized Badenoch for describing swathes of people in the country where she was raised as her “ethnic enemies,” but the British media has largely ignored the comments, with none of the sustained, manufactured outrage or demands for condemnation directed at Kassam.

The Standard Changes With the Target.

Campbell is a longstanding fixture of the establishment commentariat who co-hosts a podcast with liberal former Conservative politician Rory Stewart. The Times, LBC, and far-left Hope Not Hate actvist turned Mail on Sunday columnist Dan Hodges treating Kassam’s criticism of Badenoch as requiring days of coverage while ignoring Campbell’s reference to Yusuf’s Sri Lankan parentage amounts to a clear double standard.

The Times editorial today is about… me!

So let’s focus on these ANONYMISED “leader” columns and who exactly writes them, because they don’t have bylines on them. Because they are COWARDS.

So I’m gonna tell you the industry’s little secrets that they don’t want you to know…… pic.twitter.com/IquFSnNnCI

— Raheem J. Kassam (@RaheemKassam) October 28, 2026

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Spain could be on the verge of a dramatic reversal of its mass immigration policies, with the November 29 general election threatening to bring down Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and deliver power to a right-wing coalition determined to dismantle his immigration legacy.

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A new investigation reveals that the right-wing populist Vox party could become a kingmaker following the election, potentially forcing the center-right People’s Party (PP) to adopt sweeping restrictions on immigration, deportations, and access to public services.

Since 2019, Spain’s foreign-born population has exploded by approximately 3.5 million, reaching more than 10 million. Sánchez has celebrated mass immigration, but critics argue that the influx has worsened an already severe housing crisis and increased pressure on public infrastructure.

Now, Spanish voters could be preparing to reject one of Europe’s most pro-immigration regimes and vote in the most right-wing government in decades.

Nearly a Decade of Continual Mass Migration.

Spain’s demographic transformation under Sánchez has been extraordinary. According to the country’s National Statistics Institute (INE), the foreign-born population surpassed 10 million at the beginning of 2026. By July, approximately 20.7 percent of Spain’s residents had been born in another country.

The Sánchez government has encouraged immigration to address alleged labor shortages, sustain economic expansion, and offset Spain’s aging population and low birth rate.

Its most controversial initiative came in 2026, when the government launched a large-scale amnesty offering residency and work authorization to illegal immigrants already living in Spain. According to official government figures, the program received 1,174,978 applications by its June 30 deadline, more than twice the government’s original expectation of approximately 500,000.

The program generally requires applicants to show that they were present in Spain before January 2026 and had resided there continuously for at least five months. Qualifying applicants could receive one-year residency and work permits.

The Cost of Sánchez’s Economic Growth.

Sánchez has defended his immigration policies by claiming Spain has had a relatively strong economic performance under his reign. Spain’s economy has outperformed several major European competitors, while foreign workers have helped expand employment in hospitality, construction, retail, and other industries.

However, the distinction between total economic growth and improving living standards is increasingly important for Spaniards. A recent economic analysis found that Spain’s GDP had increased approximately 15 percent since late 2021, with annual economic growth running at around 2.5 percent. Yet GDP per capita has grown more slowly as the population has expanded.

Spanish house prices, meanwhile, have increased approximately 26 percent over two years, while social housing represents just 3.4 percent of the market. Residential construction has struggled to accommodate population growth via mass migration, contributing to worsening affordability, particularly for younger Spaniards. Limited construction, planning restrictions, and inadequate investment have also constrained supply.

The government’s argument that immigration benefits public finances is also not the whole picture. Migrant workers may contribute taxes and social security payments, but population growth simultaneously increases demand and costs for healthcare, education, transport, and housing.

Vox Plans to Reverse the Sánchez Era.

The November election could give the right-wing populist Vox party major influence over Spain’s immigration system if they enter a coalition government. According to election analysis, the People’s Party and Vox are the only combination currently projected to command an outright parliamentary majority.

Vox has been polling around 18 percent, while the PP has maintained a lead over Sánchez’s Socialists. Led by firebrand Santiago Abascal, Vox is demanding mass deportations, stricter immigration enforcement, and policies prioritizing Spanish citizens’ access to certain public services. The party also wants to examine whether the legal status granted through Sánchez’s regularization program could be revoked, undoing the mass amnesty.

Vox has already used its influence in regional governments to advance policies favoring residents with longstanding ties to their areas, something that could carry over to the national level.

However, a conservative coalition government would face considerable obstacles in attempting to reverse the Sánchez disaster. People who have already acquired lawful residency possess legal protections, while deportations require individual procedures and cooperation from receiving countries. Constitutional equality guarantees and European law could also constrain attempts to restrict access to public services.

A PP–Vox coalition could tighten future immigration, restrict eligibility for residency, and pursue more deportations. Reversing the demographic changes of recent years would be considerably harder due to judicial pressures and the European Union.

A New Spain for the Old Spaniards is Possible.

Spain’s election is becoming a referendum on whether mass migration has actually helped the average Spaniard, rather than just a larger GDP number.

Prime Minister Sánchez’s opponents argue that any economic achievements mean little if housing becomes unaffordable and public infrastructure cannot keep pace with population growth due to mass migration.

A conservative victory, meanwhile, could represent one of Europe’s most significant immigration policy reversals in years. But even if Spaniards vote to end the Sánchez experiment on November 29, the consequences of seven years of demographic transformation will not disappear overnight. Spaniards who want to undo the damage caused by the left may be able to start with a single election, but it would only be the beginning of a long battle, not unlike the famous Reconquista.

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Britain is on course for almost no improvement in living standards over an entire decade, according to the government’s fiscal watchdog. As taxation approaches historic highs, energy costs are hurting industry, and mass immigration is failing to deliver the supposed economic benefits long touted by experts, the country’s economic model may be following the path of Japan’s lost decades.

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Britain is facing a lost decade of prosperity, with the average household expected to be barely better off in 2030 than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new assessment. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecasts that real household disposable income per person will be just 1 percent higher in 2029–30 than before the pandemic. That represents average annual growth of less than 0.1 percent over the decade.

The OBR expects no real wage growth in 2027 or 2028, with wages growing by just 0.5 percent in 2030. Chancellor John Healey’s October 28 Budget offered little prospect of a turnaround. Economic growth is expected to slow to one percent in 2027, while the government’s fiscal headroom has shrunk to the equivalent of approximately $20 billion.

Healey announced winter energy payments equivalent to roughly $133 for approximately 20 million households, alongside higher taxes on banks, savings, and property income. The government’s tax burden is also projected to reach historically high levels.

The Economic Model That Failed Britain.

Britain’s economic stagnation did not begin with the current leftist Labour Party government. Much of the underlying problem developed during 14 years of Conservative Party government, when weak productivity growth, rising public spending, and increasing dependence on imported energy and low-skilled foreign workers became defining features of the economy.

Productivity growth has been persistently disappointing since the 2008 financial crisis. Without sustained improvements in output per worker, businesses struggle to deliver substantial real wage increases. The OBR has repeatedly identified weak productivity as the main factor determining Britain’s long-term economic performance.

Meanwhile, frozen income tax thresholds have shifted more workers into higher tax brackets as nominal wages increased. Labour has not only maintained much of this approach but is pursuing additional revenue from employers, investors, and other taxpayers.

Energy has become another major weakness. Britain’s industrial competitiveness is threatened by expensive electricity, with domestic energy policy costs adding to pressures from international gas markets.

The latest Budget’s energy assistance may provide temporary relief, but a $133 payment does very little to address the underlying reasons British households and manufacturers face persistently expensive power.

Housing shortages compound the problem. Restrictive planning, insufficient construction in high-demand areas, and elevated property costs leave workers spending more of their earnings simply to maintain a roof over their heads. Mass migration, including the infamous “Boriswave” started under former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has only compounded the problem.

The Immigration Illusion: A Bigger Economy Does Not Necessarily Mean a Richer Country.

Under successive Conservative governments, particularly following Brexit, Britain experienced a major expansion in immigration despite repeated political promises to bring the numbers down. Higher immigration can increase overall GDP by expanding the workforce and consumer base. However, an increase in the total size of the economy does not automatically translate into higher GDP per capita, better living standards, or making things more affordable.

An economy can grow because it has more workers rather than because each worker is producing more. Rapid population growth increases demand for housing, transport, schools, healthcare, and infrastructure. Unless investment and construction keep pace, existing shortages can become even worse, and in Britain’s case, they have.

Britain’s political establishment has too often treated economic growth through overall GDP as clear evidence that the country is prospering, even when the OBR’s figures show barely any improvements in household income per person.

Japan.

Britain’s predicament bears similarities to Japan’s experience following the collapse of its financial and property bubbles in the early 1990s. Japan endured decades of sluggish economic growth, weak wage increases, and repeated government interventions intended to revive demand.

As the OECD’s economic research on Japan shows, the country has struggled with longstanding productivity challenges, demographic pressures, and weak wage growth.

Japan has experienced a shrinking population because it has so far rejected mass migration, preserving the distinct character of Japanese culture while avoiding the problems that come with mass migration, opting to rely on automation to rebalance the economy.

Japan shows that a wealthy, developed country can maintain advanced infrastructure, sophisticated businesses, and a high standard of living without embracing mass migration policies, even when wage growth is weak.

Britain risks following a comparable trajectory, with high property prices benefiting established homeowners while younger generations struggle to accumulate wealth, but without the well-maintained infrastructure and social cohesion of Japan.

Can Nigel Farage’s Reform UK Reverse Britain’s Decline?

Nigel Farage‘s Reform UK party is presenting an increasingly ambitious alternative to the economic policies pursued by both major parties. The party’s economic policy platform proposes raising the income tax-free personal allowance to the equivalent of around $20,007, which it claims would remove 2.9 million people from income tax altogether, and deliver the equivalent of roughly $650 in annual tax relief to most taxpayers.

Reform also promises to reduce household energy bills by $333 annually, eliminate government-imposed costs from electricity bills, expand domestic energy production, and abandon costly Net Zero policies.

For businesses, the party proposes reducing employer National Insurance contributions from 15 percent to 13.8 percent for British workers, increasing the VAT registration threshold to the equivalent of around $200,069, and exempting qualifying overtime earnings from income tax.

Reform would finance its proposed employer tax reduction through a new Migrant Labor Levy, designed to discourage businesses from relying on foreign labor. The party has also proposed apprenticeship incentives and a program to construct 50,000 affordable homes annually. The policies represent a clear departure from the prevailing approach of higher taxation, energy subsidies, and migration-supported workforce expansion.

Reform’s central argument, that Britain must prioritize cheaper energy, lower taxation, and greater domestic productive capacity, directly challenges the current economic consensus that is constantly chasing foreign labor and pushing down individual wages.

A Country That Has Forgotten How to Become Wealthier.

Britain’s latest Budget should serve as a warning that economic stagnation cannot be permanently disguised through additional public spending, temporary subsidies, or population growth.

The Conservatives presided over years of weak productivity, expensive housing, rising immigration, and growing fiscal instability. Labour has inherited those problems while pursuing a program that continues to rely heavily on taxation and state intervention.

External shocks, including the pandemic, the Ukraine war, and the conflict in Iran, have aggravated Britain’s difficulties, but they cannot be used as an excuse to wave away the structural rot that predate them. The OBR’s projection of virtually stagnant real household income over an entire decade raises serious questions about the economic mantras of the last 20 years and whether Britain can survive another decade of the same.

Reform believes that lower taxes, increasesd domestic energy production, and immigration restrictions can help restore prosperity, challenging an economic consensus that has delivered little to the average Briton.

Britain’s greatest danger may not be an immediate financial collapse. Instead, the country risks embracing the gradual normalization of national stagnation, in which future governments manage an increasingly expensive economy while ordinary families abandon the notion that their children will be better off than they were.

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For more than a decade, Ken Paxton has used the Texas Attorney General’s office as a battering ram against federal overreach, corporate data abuse, and medical interventions against minors that state law forbids. The results include multi-billion-dollar recoveries, blocked federal programs, and preserved state barriers that other offices left unchallenged.

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Big Tech: Billion-Dollar Recoveries.

In July 2024, Paxton’s office extracted a $1.4 billion settlement from Meta for capturing biometric identifiers from Texans without the consent required by state law. Payments are spread over five years. The following year, Google signed a $1.375 billion agreement covering location tracking, Incognito mode activity, and biometric data collection—larger than any prior single-state recovery against the company for comparable claims. A later Meta settlement exceeding $1 billion added further restrictions on features used by minors. Texas pursued the cases alone or with limited coalitions rather than waiting for multistate settlements that produced far smaller per-state returns.

Thank you very much, President Trump. We won’t let you down.

Texas will remain Texas, and our country will be safe.

I need everyone watching this to go to https://t.co/cq3Qd9HHjv TODAY and donate. Help us defeat radical socialist James Talarico. Our country is depending on you. pic.twitter.com/j7GPGBbj0C

— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) August 29, 2026

The Border: Holding the Line.

Paxton convinced the U.S. Supreme Court to deny emergency applications seeking to stop Senate Bill 4, which authorizes state and local officers to arrest people for illegal entry, in 2024.

In July 2024, Paxton defeated the Biden government before the en banc Fifth Circuit, which vacated a preliminary injunction that had ordered Texas to remove floating buoys it placed in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass to deter migrant crossings, finding the district court abused its discretion under the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act.

A federal district court in November 2024 permanently blocked the Biden government’s “parole in place” program after a multistate suit led by Paxton, ruling that the Department of Homeland Security lacked statutory authority to grant the benefit to people already inside the country. Separate orders preserved federal border-wall materials and barred their disposal before the incoming Trump administration took office.

Election Integrity: Protecting the Rolls.

In September 2026, the Supreme Court stayed a lower court order that had restricted expanded use of the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system for citizenship checks on voter rolls. Paxton’s office had intervened to defend Texas’s access to the modified database.

Earlier, a Northern District of Texas court held that the $1.7 trillion Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 violated the Constitution’s Quorum Clause because a majority of House members were not physically present when it passed; the court enjoined enforcement of a specific provision against Texas.

The Trans Agenda: Sports, Records, and Medical Interventions.

Paxton’s office obtained injunctive relief blocking the Biden government’s Title IX guidance and rules that treated gender identity as a basis for access to sex-segregated facilities and sports.

In 2025, Dallas ISD entered an agreed order confirming it would comply with Texas law requiring athletic competition according to biological sex after the attorney general’s office obtained records and pursued depositions.

In April 2024, Seattle Children’s Hospital settled an investigation by withdrawing its Texas business registration after Paxton sought records concerning Texas minors.

In May 2026, Texas Children’s Hospital agreed to a $10 million settlement resolving Medicaid billing claims involving unallowable gender-transition interventions for minors. The agreement requires the hospital to open a multidisciplinary clinic for patients who previously underwent transition procedures by late October 2026, revoke the privileges of five physicians, and amend its bylaws so that violations of the state ban trigger automatic loss of privileges.

A separate suit against the NCAA under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act—alleging that the organization marketed mixed-sex events as women’s competitions—remains active after a 2026 state court ruling rejected mandatory sex verification testing, but left the core claims intact.

Second Act in the Senate? 

Earlier this year, Paxton defeated Republican-in-name-only incumbent Senator John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff after receiving President Donald J. Trump’s endorsement. He is the Republican nominee against radical Democrat James Talarico in a race national forecasters have rated a toss-up.

Paxton’s cumulative record at the state level consists of large recoveries from tech giants, reinforced immigration protections, defeated federal programs, and the strengthening of Texas statutes protecting athletics and minors. Should he take that fighting spirit to the national capitol, is will prove a huge boon to the America First movement, particularly if the Democrats take control of Congress.

As featured by President @realDonaldTrump today, this is who James Talarico is.

He can’t outrun his record any longer. pic.twitter.com/xOxY3jda5l

— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) October 28, 2026

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