10 years ago my wife, the mum of our kids & the MP for Batley&Spen was killed by a far right extremist.
At anniversaries I try to be optimistic about the future. But not this time. In the ten years since she was killed we have gone backwards & I fear our democracy is now at risk
The Scottish Army is real & formidable. Let's push the energy toward yer man, the belter of all belters, Craig Ferguson, leading the charge in the brutal heat to bring mental health to the forefront. Who's with me? https://t.co/SFBSiW1yka #NoScotlandNoPary#MentalWellness
I’ve been called an adopted son of Scotland, something I don’t take lightly.
I never thought I’d call upon its powers but if the Scots approve, might the army retweet? If Twitter can send me to the Cup, it can send one of ours home.
@JasonFeeney5 So glad Scotland has kept water in public domain. Its not perfect but the investment made over last few years has been amazing. New pipes in my local area might have caused disruption in the laying period, but thats them in and sorted. Its slowly getting to more remote areas.
@GlasgowCC Double cycle lane for bikes + they are still using the roads or pavement, got stuck behind a selfish idiot on a bike the full length of cowcaddens road the other day. Benches positioned to look at traffic, or on the tilt of hills someone needs a reality check in planning dept.
Roald Dahl on Measles: Olivia, my eldest daughter, caught measles when she was seven years old. As the illness took its usual course I can remember reading to her often in bed and not feeling particularly alarmed about it. Then one morning, when she was well on the road to recovery, I was sitting on her bed showing her how to fashion little animals out of coloured pipe-cleaners, and when it came to her turn to make one herself, I noticed that her fingers and her mind were not working together and she couldn’t do anything.
'Are you feeling all right?' I asked her.
'I feel all sleepy,' she said.
In an hour, she was unconscious. In twelve hours she was dead.
The measles had turned into a terrible thing called measles encephalitis and there was nothing the doctors could do to save her. That was...in 1962, but even now, if a child with measles happens to develop the same deadly reaction from measles as Olivia did, there would still be nothing the doctors could do to help her. On the other hand, there is today something that parents can do to make sure that this sort of tragedy does not happen to a child of theirs. They can insist that their child is immunised against measles.
...I dedicated two of my books to Olivia, the first was ‘James and the Giant Peach’. That was when she was still alive. The second was ‘The BFG’, dedicated to her memory after she had died from measles. You will see her name at the beginning of each of these books. And I know how happy she would be if only she could know that her death had helped to save a good deal of illness and death among other children.
@fred_guttenberg I live in Scotland, + deeply sorry for your loss + sorry many from your country fail to see how a ban protects children (and politicians who are behide protection details). It took a huge campaign here to ban guns, but at least we werent subject to the money lobby at that time.
Japanese football fans have been praised online after staying behind to clean up Wembley Stadium following their team’s 1–0 victory over England.
After the historic win, Japanese supporters remained in the stands to tidy the stadium before leaving.
After much reflection, I have decided to resign from my position as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, effective today.
I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.
It has been an honor serving under @POTUS and @DNIGabbard and leading the professionals at NCTC.
May God bless America.
@JasonFeeney5 Horrified by the Whitehouse war promotion video they released- well done Ben Stiller demanding they take it down, so should all the other actors featured in it. #WarIsNotAMovie
Just a quick reminder that the Argyle Street Ash Tree in Glasgow is in the running to become European Tree of the Year for 2026, and the public vote ends tomorrow (22nd Feb). If you haven't voted yet, you can do so at https://t.co/SYiquzvyoi
#glasgow#europeantreeoftheyear#tree