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Welcome to your Weekend Wire from Best for Britain.
As well as the UK’s first proper cold snap [ [link removed] ] of autumn, this week has seen: an intense focus on our asylum and immigration systems, in what could prove a risky move for Labour; new research revealing voters Reform UK voters really want to see a wealth tax; and the official conclusion that the last government’s response to the Covid pandemic was “too little, too late” and led to thousands more deaths.
Read on for more on all that (as well as some cheery stuff too, honest).
Peace at any price?
Yesterday evening, US President Donald Trump increased pressure [ [link removed] ] on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept the terms of his 28 point capitulation peace plan to end the war in Ukraine, a plan widely viewed to have been heavily influenced by the Russians who started the war with their illegal invasion in 2022.
While details remain unconfirmed, reports suggest [ [link removed] ] the terms of this plan are ‘emphatically favourable to Russia’ and closely resemble the list of demands repeatedly stated by the Kremlin since it attacked. Unsurprisingly therefore, it has received the enthusiastic backing of Vladimir Putin.
The terms of the agreement include; the annexation by Russia of large swathes of Ukrainian territory (including key strategic points still held by Ukrainian forces), the overall size of Ukraine’s military being reduced to 600,000 troops, and the lifting of economic sanctions on Russia.
In return, Ukraine will get ‘reliable security guarantees’, with ‘decisive coordinated military response’ in the event of a future Russian invasion. Although details of who would be involved in this response remain unclear. Budapest, anyone [ [link removed] ]? Always looking to exact a price, Trump has ensured the plan includes compensation for the US for these vague guarantees.
On the face of it, the terms appear unacceptable to Ukraine, not least because their President constitutionally cannot cede territory and the limits on their military represent a clear violation of their sovereignty - something which around 100,000 Ukrainian soldiers have died to defend.
However, with Trump giving their “ally” until Thursday to sign on the dotted line, Zelensky is in an extremely difficult position as failure to back the proposals will give Trump an excuse to pull all US support by claiming Ukraine are the blockers to peace. What happens over the next few days may be of historic consequence.
Too little, too late…
...was the damning conclusion [ [link removed] ] of the official Covid-19 inquiry’s report into the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. The report, published on Thursday, found that lockdown could have been avoided had measures been brought in earlier, and that Boris Johnson’s week-long delay led to 23,000 more deaths in England in the first wave than would have been seen otherwise.
Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett said that all four governments of the UK’s nations “failed to appreciate the scale of the threat or the urgency of response it demanded” in early 2020. The report also described it as “inexcusable” that the mistakes of spring 2020 were repeated ahead of the second wave, with Johnson repeatedly changing his mind. A “toxic and chaotic” culture at the heart of Downing Street was also criticised in the report, which the BBC have published a useful summary [ [link removed] ] of.
As Deborah Doyle of the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group put it, it is “devastating to think of the lives that could have been saved”.
At Best for Britain, our thoughts are with all of those bereaved, or whose health, wellbeing and lives have been impacted by the pandemic.
‘Moral and political failure’
More failure for you this week as home secretary Shabana Mahmood unveiled a series of proposed changes to the UK’s asylum and immigration systems this week, including making refugee status temporary, and extending the period [ [link removed] ] before people arriving legally can settle in Britain permanently.
The Guardian [ [link removed] ] covered the proposed changes to settlement rules, announced on Thursday, which Unison’s Christina McAnea warned was “a dreadful message to the people who keep the UK’s public services running”.
When it came to the changes to the asylum system, the BBC was among those reporting on the growing backlash - and evident unease - among some Labour MPs . Our chief executive Naomi Smith, stressed [ [link removed] ]: “The fact that these proposals are being cheered by far-right extremists should give the government pause - but beyond being a clear moral failure, the data shows it is also a profound misjudgment of political strategy.
“Multiple studies by election analysts, including Best for Britain, show that ramping up ever-harsher rhetoric on immigration and asylum never wins over Reform-curious voters, but does drive Labour voters toward the Lib Dems and Greens in England, and the SNP and Plaid in Scotland and Wales. The government would be wiser to make the case for the international institutions and protections we all depend on.”
Elsewhere on our Substack, your author wrote a defence of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) [ [link removed] ], making the case for the value of an international system that “recognises and protects the value of every individual’s life, their innate dignity, and unique worth”.
Shipping forecast
Defence secretary John Healey warned on Wednesday [ [link removed] ] that the UK is exploring military options if a Russian spy ship sails nearer British shores after its crew used a laser to target RAF pilots.
Healey said the UK was ready to respond if the Yantar vessel - designed for intelligence gathering and mapping undersea cables - heads south from its current position north of Scotland, where it is being watched by frigate HMS Somerset and RAF P-8 Poseidon aircraft.
He confirmed the frigate and planes had been deployed to “track this vessel’s every move, during which the Yantar directed lasers at our pilots”, adding: “That Russian action is deeply dangerous.”
Russia - which is currently engaged in an illegal invasion of Europe characterised by the deliberate bombing of civilians - accused the UK of “whipping up militaristic hysteria”.
Moscow Gill
In related news, guess who’s just been banged up for being a Kremlin shill - only Farage’s former top man in Wales [ [link removed] ]. He was handed 10 and half years after admitting to taking bribes to make pro-Russia statements while an MEP, and is thought to have received up to £40,000 in total for helping pro-Russian politicians in Ukraine.
The BBC reports that the bribes came from Oleg Voloshyn, a man once characterised by the US as a “pawn” of Russian secret services, and who was acting on behalf of a “close friend” Vladimir Putin.
Despite their Chairman’s best efforts [ [link removed] ] (now contradicting his earlier suggestion [ [link removed] ] that Farage barely knew Reform UK’s former leader in Wales), questions remain for Reform UK. As our Director of Campaigns, Cal Roscow rightly said [ [link removed] ] - “it’s right to ask what Reform UK knew of his actions, and how anyone so morally bankrupt was permitted to represent their party.”
International Men’s Day
We hear an awful lot about young men being drawn towards the far-right, and somewhat less about the problems they face: whether it be loneliness, social media, education or employment.
Our Josh Edwicker put pen to pixel this week to write this thoughtful reflection [ [link removed] ] for the Best for Britain Wire on modern masculinity, highlighting that the “rhetoric of the far-right traps young men within - rather than emancipating them from - their concerns”.
He makes the powerful point that “we must not alienate young men who have been victims of radicalisation” and that: “We have a duty to bring them back into their communities, among those they may disagree with.” One for us all to reflect on.
Misogynist-in-Chief
Elsewhere, Donald Trump’s misogynistic response to Catherine Lucey - a Bloomberg journalist who asked him a question about the Epstein files - were appalling. As this CNN video [ [link removed] ] shows, he gestured at her angrily and snapped: “Quiet! Quiet, piggy.”
As Elisa Lees Muñoz, the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF), told the Guardian [ [link removed] ] the comments were “nothing new” and sent a “chilling message to other women journalists who are confronting him with hard-hitting questions.” She said: “His appearance-based insults are gendered attacks meant to shut women journalists up.”
Sure enough, the following day Trump lambasted ABC News reporter Mary Bruce for questioning Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, during a press conference [ [link removed] ] at the Oval Office.
While Terri White got right to the heart of why Trump’s choice of language was so revealing, and chilling - and why this “woman-hating poison” risks infecting entire nations. Read her fearless piece for the i paper [ [link removed] ].
“And it’s not just about domination; it’s about destruction. Of our autonomy, our free choice, our sense of self. Women as objects, vessels, subjects and servants – we’re to be owned and to be used like a kitchen utensil.”
Wealth tax klaxon
Calls for a wealth tax are ramping up on the left, but the latest research from our Decoding Populism study [ [link removed] ] into Reform UK supporters showed that new taxes on energy companies, banks and Britain’s wealthiest individuals are wildly popular among people who say they are planning to, or are considering, voting for Nigel Farage’s party at the next general election.
Covered exclusively by the Guardian [ [link removed] ], and based on a YouGov poll of more than 3,000 voters leaning towards Reform UK, the study found more than three in five (61%) would back a one-off 1% wealth tax on the 22,000 richest families in the UK, those with a net wealth over £10 million.
As business and select committee chair Liam Byrne [ [link removed] ] noted: “These findings show there is real permission, across the political spectrum, for a budget that puts fairness first: making the wealthiest pay their share, cracking down on profiteering, and rewarding hard work once again.”
He urged: “If we want to rebuild trust, that’s the road we must take.”
King in the (Norwich) North?
Alright, alright, it doesn’t quite work because Clive Lewis’ seat is of course Norwich South. However the Labour MP made headlines this week [ [link removed] ] when he told the BBC’s Politics Live that he would be willing to give up his seat for Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, to facilitate his return to Parliament and a leadership challenge against the Prime Minister.
Lewis said: “It’s a question I’ve asked myself, and I’d have to obviously consult with my wife as well, and family, but do you know what? If I’m going to sit here and say country before party, party before personal ambition, then yes, I have to say yes, don’t I?”
In response, while Burnham said he “appreciates the support”, he insisted he was “fully focused on my role of mayor of Greater Manchester”. BBC Norfolk [ [link removed] ] reporters took the public’s temperature in the city’s market - and some had some decent advice for the PM…
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage this week suggested his party would look to strip welfare payments from European Union (EU) citizens who have settled status in post-Brexit Britain. Who should step up, but Kemi Badenoch?
She said: “It would be a bad idea because we spent a lot of time negotiating those rights, not just for EU citizens in this country, but British citizens in other countries of the EU.
“You start unpicking that and you start unpicking all of the work that was done, year after year after year, with a lot of pain and effort during those years when we were negotiating Brexit.”
It was “completely ridiculous” for Farage to say he would just renegotiate that settlement.
“This man does not know what he’s talking about,” she said. “I’m a former trade secretary. Even with friendly countries, trade negotiations are very, very difficult.”
She added: “It is wrong of him to deceive people, lie to them and make them think this is going to be easy.”
What’s that they say about stopped clocks?
Cheerful News of the Week
Whether it’s Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, the Oasis reunion, or top flight sport, we’re all familiar with the soaring cost of ticket prices for everything from gigs to the Premier League.
Happily, the government announced action this week to make it illegal for tickets to a whole host of live events - concerts, theatre, comedy, and sport included - to be resold for more than their original cost. That’s got to be worth a smile.
As one Guardian headline [ [link removed] ] put it: “Ticket touts’ worst nightmare has finally come true in the UK.”
Ahead of the founding Your Party conference, set to take place in Liverpool next week, Zarah Sultana - who co-launched the new party with Jeremy Corbyn this summer - announced a pre-conference rally the night before the event kicks off, according to a Sky News report [ [link removed] ].
Just one small problem: Corbyn is apparently not invited to the event, and a spokesperson confirmed to Sky News that he was not aware of it, nor was anyone in his office. (Although presumably they are now…)
Next week, Tuesday marks International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, while on Thursday is Thanksgiving in the US.
And after weeks of rumours, hints and reversals, yes, it’s finally here. Wednesday next week is the big Budget Day we’ve all been waiting for. Hope you’ve got your whiskey ready…
Have a good one.
Jessica Frank-Keyes
Senior Press Officer
Best for Britain
With thanks to Niall McGourty

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