Feeling scared? Like immigrants are invading your land, taking your jobs, committing heinous crimes, and living a life of luxury on your taxes? I get that. You've seen the headlines, the shares, the "truth-tellers" on your feed.
Strange, though, isn't it?
🧵 You don't see them in your street, in your neighbourhood, or your community. You don't see queues of immigrants at your hospital or your benefits office, nor flotillas of small boats on your town's river or beach.

It's time I was a little fairer to the Conservative government.

Here is a thread of their main achievements over the last 15 years:

1/20 2/20

There is a particular type of political activist - we've seen them most recently jeering and intimidating journalists and opponents in Rochdale.

Many of them, I recognise from Labour meetings in church halls and community centres in Brighton & Hove over the last decade.

1/ They're very angry and aggressive people, often originally motivated by a good cause - defending the rights of subjugated minorities or opposing an unjust war - but soon they become part of a movement that is just angry ...

2/

I'll start a #CovidInquiry Bingo thread for Johnson's 'Mistakes'

1/ "It was Scotland's fault"

2/

2034 Election

The leader of the Tory Party, Nigel Fáragë, finally admits breXit didn't work and his decade in charge of the party had seen them reduced to two MPs (neither of them Fáragë) Meanwhile Suella Braverman announces she's standing for the leadership, promising to take the party to the far right, claiming Fáragë was a racist in name only

#2034ElectionNews

A personal breXit story.

During the first summer of COVID my son and his Spanish partner moved from London to Madrid.

A year later they had a baby, my adorable grandson - Lucas.

My pandemic saw me doing chemo and shielding, which had an impact on my earnings

1/ as a freelance illustrator and artist (my choice, I know), I didn't get any government assistance so my limited savings took the brunt of the shortfall and have dwindled down to not a lot.

2/

It's the weekend!

Why not download a 9m podcast about the good (and not-so-good) townsfolk of Trumpton?

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/dr-… Or on Spotify

open.spotify.com/episode/2jQ21y…

Forgive me Forgive me

I've been shielding for 18 months edue to my leukaemia and my chemotherapy

I'm double vaccinated and research suggests that because of my condition I am potentially 55-65% protected from Covid-19

That means that to catch a bus or visit a shop I rely on others wearing masks

1/ Taking 'personal responsibility' therefore means that I shall have to remain in my flat until 80-90% of the population (not just adults) are vaccinated.

This isn't a massive problem for me as I have worked from home for 10 years, but I do like pubs and travel.

2/

Despite running an anti-ukip account for a couple of years when the referendum was announced I felt I had to go and research the EU to confirm I supported it.

I didn't really know that much about it, just took it for granted really.

1/ When I found myself on the same team as David Cameron and Big Business, I thought it might be a trap, so I read about the EU, studied the various agreements we'd signed, looked into our rebate and veto and then visited Brussels.

2/

Here is a bit of a Covid manifesto - which I thought of while drinking some cheap red wine.

1, Instead of buying bankrupt satellite companies, the government should nationalise or fund a UK e-Commerce site, and make it available to all UK businesses.

1/6 2. The government should renationalise the Post Office and make it the delivery arm of their newly acquired e-commerce platform, offering free access for UK companies and chargeable access to non-UK companies.

2/6

@CPhilpOfficial

Can I suggest you visit a few oncology and haemotology wards and chat to patients.

Yes, we want a chance of managing our cancer, but we also want happy, well trained nurses and doctors (especially those from the EU that you're so keen to get rid of)

1/4 We'd like well equipped and comfortable environments to be treated in, not facilities under pressure to accept A&E or surgical beds because of endless 'Winter Pressure' due to bad planning and resourcing.

2/4

If @piersmorgan had been around in 1933 he'd have used his populist breakfast show to say that despite his disagreements with Mr Hitler, he won an election and was trying to deliver the 'will of the people'

1/

https://twitter.com/piersmorgan/status/1117430161132048384

He would defend the errosion of the centre politics of the past, saying that a strong leader was needed to protect people like himself, 'normal' people like him.

2/