Hurricane Milton hits Florida

Last week President Biden warned Floridian residents to leave their homes and evacuate or risk losing their own lives in Hurricane Milton saying to Tampa Bay citizens: “residents will die if they don’t evacuate”. (8)

At the beginning of last week national weather forecasters predicted that the wind speeds in the approaching extreme storm event would exceed the force of the United States most recent massive hurricane named Helene, which devastated parts of North Carolina and Virginia.

Many feared Milton would cause destruction to the sunshine state’s coasts and central districts on the scale of hurricane Katrina which killed over one thousand people and flattened many areas of New Orleans and caused damage which took several years to rebuild.

Thankfully Milton was not as devastating as the experts had predicted. Milton was the ninth hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic season, which continues until the end of November.

On Wednesday 9^th October weather scientists were astonished to find Milton growing in strength as it travelled over the Gulf of Mexico increasing from a category 1 storm to a category 5 storm in less than 10 hours. The warmer water was predicted to fuel the hurricane to enable it to become an extraordinary weather event, even for a region that is used to an active hurricane season.

American hurricanes and hurricane Milton

The category classification for hurricanes is called the Saffir-Simpson scale. This system allocates storms according to their wind speed and potential damage severity, with category 5 being the most powerful storm. (3)

Last month Hurricane Helene demonstrated how the warm waters of the Gulf seas can ‘heat up’ a storm force that is powerful enough to reach speeds of over 74 miles per hour which means the storm is classed as a hurricane. The consequences of Helene were severe and tragically 227 people died as a direct result of hurricane Helene devastation. Two million people were left without power after hurricane Helene. Hurricane Helene tore through Florida, Georgia, western North and South Carolina, eastern Tennessee and the southern part of Virginia. (1)

In the many towns in the southern states of America that were in Helene’s path, buildings were demolished and the massive amount of rainfall that accompanied the high winds caused major flooding and disrupted power and water services.

Sadly, less than two weeks later more than 20 people died in Hurricane Milton which was reported as “brutal” even by stoic Florida residents, who were interviewed by a variety of freelance journalists on location, after the storm passed.

Some Floridians had chosen to stay and endure the storm, despite the serious official warnings. For example, families with many animals were unsure of where they would all stay instead. Some residents worried about being caught in the storm inside their vehicles during unpredictable traffic chaos and therefore chose to stay put in their apartments and houses, despite the official guidance.

“At least 20 tornadoes have been recorded as Milton surged through the state” reported The Independent. One man with a large family and lots of dogs to shelter said “we too easily forget how bad it can be to stay up all night through a hurricane like this”.

Hurricane Milton was a major event that disrupted many thousands of lives as whole community areas were evacuated simultaneously. Thankfully however, the loss of life and damage to major infrastructure and buildings was relatively minor as fortunately all the pre-storm preparations seem to have worked well for the majority of Floridians, in most locations.

Warmer ocean temperatures stoke larger storms

Many experts now agree that the hotter ocean water temperatures that are associated with global warming are contributing to the current situation where warmer air and more moisture can cause bigger storms and more intense rainfall.

Powerful storms that form in warm tropical ocean waters are called hurricanes in the American continent and cyclones and typhoons in the Indian, Pacific and Southern Oceans in Asia and near Australia.

Additionally, the increased rainfall can cause massive storm surges of water which often causes serious flooding around coastlines. (6)

Last year the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) produced a report that stated “Peak Tropical Cyclone rain rates increase with local warming at least at the rate of mean water vapour increase over oceans (about 7% per 1°C of warming) and in some cases exceeding this rate due to the increased low-level moisture convergence caused by increases in Tropical Cyclone wind intensity.” (4)

The IPCC panel directly linked global warming to the gradual increase in severe weather events all across the planet and explained that “The average and maximum rain rates associated with tropical cyclones (TCs), extratropical cyclones and atmospheric rivers across the globe, and severe convective storms in some regions, increase in a warming world.” (4)

Sea level rises increase storm surges

The powerful effect of a hurricane’s impact on coastlines and river banks can be seen when storm surges happen. This is when water levels rise above normal levels and they are worsened by high winds pushing the water further inland. Scientists point to the gradual but recently more rapidly increasing sea level rises that are believed to be triggered by human caused global warming as “warmer ocean water expands and land ice melts.” (6)

However not everyone agrees with the scientists that global warming is causing more powerful hurricanes in Florida. The Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis said there was a “precedent” for the immense destruction of these extreme weather events and believes that the previous century had many bigger storms than what Americans are experiencing this season. (2)

Technology predicts hurricanes but we all need to ‘do our part’ together to prevent permanent unwanted weather changes  

Sophisticated weather predicting technology allows citizens living in tropical cyclone zones to prepare for approaching severe weather events in advance. Angela Colbert Ph.D. is part of National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and describes how National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA partners with NASA to collect measurements of various aspects of hurricanes over time. (7)

Colbert refers to Shirley Murillo Deputy Director of NOAA’s Hurricane Research Division who states that “NASA weather satellites are a powerful tool for observations, as people cannot fly into every storm to gather data” These satellite and meteorological findings are then compared and analysed by scientific researchers who can produce models to predict how future hurricanes might emerge and be impacted by climate change. (7)

Protecting the environment is an issue that affects everyone. It is important for our governments who lead countries in the wealthier parts of the world that contribute most to climate change in delivering effective strategies for reducing unwanted climate change and improving the environment.

There is still time to act in order to prevent more global warming and further detrimental effects to communities living in areas affected by seasonal hurricanes and storm water surges. We can all do our bit to put pressure on those in authority to prioritise environmental issues, as well as looking after the environment where we live, choosing environmentally friendly lifestyles and minimising our carbon footprint as much as possible.

    (1) ‘Global heating makes hurricanes like Helene twice as likely, data shows’ Oliver Milman and Jonathan Watts, The Guardian, Wed 9 October 2024 ‘Global heating makes hurricanes like Helene twice as likely, data shows’ Oliver Milman and Jonathan Watts, The Guardian (2) ‘DeSantis denies that climate change is making hurricanes more powerful’ Mike Bedigan, The Independent, 12 October 2024 ‘DeSantis denies that climate change is making hurricanes more powerful’ Mike Bedigan, The Independent (3) ‘How is climate change affecting hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones?’ Mark Poynting, Climate Reporter, BBC News 9 October 2024 ‘How is climate change affecting hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones?’ Mark Poynting, Climate Reporter, BBC News (4) ‘Weather and Climate Extreme Events in a Changing Climate’ (AR6 – chapter 11) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCC – United Nations body for assessing science related to climate change, 20 March 2023 ‘Weather and Climate Extreme Events in a Changing Climate’ (AR6 – chapter 11) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCC (5) ‘Climate change key driver of catastrophic impacts of Hurricane Helene that devastated both coastal and inland communities’ World Weather Attribution Organisation 9 October 2024 ‘Climate change key driver of catastrophic impacts of Hurricane Helene that devastated both coastal and inland communities’ World Weather Attribution Organisation (6) ‘How climate change makes hurricanes more destructive’ Environmental Défense Fund organisation, article, 17 October 2024 ‘How climate change makes hurricanes more destructive’ Environmental Défense Fund organisation (7) ‘A force of nature: hurricanes in a changing climate’ Angela Colbert PhD. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 1 June 2022 ‘A force of nature: hurricanes in a changing climate’ Angela Colbert PhD. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (8) ‘Joe Biden said Hurricane Milton is a ‘matter of life and death’ as he warns people to evacuate’ Sky News 9 October 2024 ‘Joe Biden said Hurricane Milton is a ‘matter of life and death’ as he warns people to evacuate’ Sky News

1. International relations

The new Labour government’s leader Sir Keir Starmer is all about service to the country and the community we live in. Sir Starmer is keen to build on Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s good relationships with Europe, America and our international partners around the world.

Fortunately for Keir Starmer the new Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and his senior team was able to attend the North Atlantic Trade Organisation NATO conference and network with other international leaders and strategic allies of Great Britain and Northen Ireland shortly after winning the General Election.

On the 18^th July the European Political Community (EPC) summit was held at historic Blenheim Palace. (1)

2. Defence spending

Sir Keir Starmer has committed to spending 2.5% of the UK’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence spending including £3 billion per year on military aid to Ukraine for as long for as it is needed. Initial meetings with American President Joe Biden at the international North America Trade Organisation NATO gave the new Prime Minister for the UK an opportunity to encourage our political allies to support Ukrainians in defending their country from Russian invasion.

This week the Prime Minister flew to America to meet with President Joe Biden once more to discuss the eastern European conflict and how to support Ukraine. It has been widely reported that the two leaders discussed the controversial decision to sanction long-range missiles and other weapons, as the threat from Russian bombardment continues to devastate Ukrainian towns and cities, with many more civilian lives lost again in recent days.

3. National public disorder problems and security challenge

A major security challenge faced Keir Starmer and his leadership team in the form of widespread public disorder in England this summer. The unrest was sparked on the 30^th July 2024 by incorrectly spread disinformation about the ethnicity of a man who carried out a shocking and tragic stabbing of three young girls at a Taylor Swift themed dance class in the northern coastal town of Southport.

Street protestors tuned violent and the far-right thugs attacked mosques and other public places that shelter England’s multicultural community. Dozens of police officers were injured.

Hundreds of rioters have been prosecuted so far along with several adults who knowingly and deliberately spread disinformation and lies on social media.

We will analyse the summer riots and the consequences for labour and the country in another article with more detail soon. The violence quickly diminished after it was clear that any person threatening or hurting innocent members of the public and policemen and policewomen would not be tolerated.

The courts have been working overtime over the last month in order to process and prosecute up to 250 people who have been accused of rioting and violence in several protests in communities across England at the beginning of August, particularly in the Manchester region of England.

4. Tackle pressure on prisons

The previous Conservative government understood that prison places were nearly at capacity in England and Wales and there has been some investment in providing new facilities and places for those that have broken the law and received jail sentences. However, these efforts did not go far enough to prevent Labour coming to power to find many prisons in England are currently struggling to meet the basic demands of prisoners. This includes containing violence and prevent incidents of self-harm within prisons.

Keir Starmer and his leadership team have already made tough decisions. This month Labour leaders have chosen to release up to thousands of prison inmates who have been convicted of relatively less serious offences. The chosen prisoners will be able to walk out of incarceration after they have served up to only 40% of their sentences in some cases. (Source BBC Radio 4 News PM show Friday 6 September 2024).

5. Public sector pay review

The public sector pay review has been a key priority for the new Labour government. This has been especially in focus because of the serious impact to the delivery of health services during the recent National Health worker strikes, such as the junior doctors strikes.

Not everyone is in agreement that this is the right way to go about getting value for taxpayers and their families in their National Health Services. On the BBC Radio 4 “Any Questions” show today, Alex Salmond previously First Minister of Scotland from 2007 to 2014 criticised the Labour party for cutting fuel credits for pensioners not on welfare benefits after quickly giving public sector workers such as doctors and train drivers above inflation wage increases. (8)

6. Improve National Health Service standards and long wait times for treatment

Labour has promised to deal with the situation of long wait times of up to a year or more for National Health Service treatment that is experienced by millions of citizens in England. Despite the lockdowns and shutdowns that were supposed to avoid additional impact on the healthcare system Covid disruption has left a backlog of health treatment that has been hard to catch up with. This is despite the amazing work by NHS managers, doctors, nurses and their teams.

Extra funding over the past few years allocated from central government has not solved the problems which cause long waits for treatment in some departments.

Some of the causes of not being able to get on top of the long waits for treatment are complex system failures such as cuts in social care, building and infrastructure underinvestment, medical staff strikes and sickness, training, burnout and recruitment and retention problems.

The Labour Health Secretary Wes Streeting declared the NHS to be “broken” so the only way is up for Labour to work with healthcare leaders across the UK to transform the beloved NHS into an efficient and effective organisation for everyone in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to be proud of every day. (6)

7. Supporting families and children

Labour is in the process of rolling out the Conservative’s policy of at least 15 hours free childcare hours for every child over the age of 2 years. Free breakfast clubs will also be available to all primary aged school children. This will support families and enable more parents to go back to work. Extra funding will be available to pay for training thousands of teachers in subjects where there is currently a shortage. (7)

There is a lot of support for reversing the two-child benefit cap in England (this has already been scrapped in Scotland) However, speaking on ‘Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg’ Chancellor Rachel Reeves has not committed to doing this yet this year, due to insufficient funds being available at the Treasury, to pay for the increase in benefits. (9)

This is controversial for many politicians including the Green party who support the reversal of this policy. This is because if benefits were increased to families that need them and reflected the number of children in any English household, this would immediately enable thousands of children to move out of poverty. Many of the poorest larger family households in the UK currently are choosing between spending on heating or eating, this winter already.

It was announced today that advertising on a variety of unhealthy foods and drinks are being banned before 9pm with effect from October 2025. This decision by the Labour party leadership is in an effort to prevent obesity and health problems due to the unnecessary overconsumption by children and young people of foods and drinks that are high in fat, sugar and salt.

Health Minister Andrew Gwynne said “These restrictions will help protect children from being exposed to advertising of less healthy food and drinks, which evidence shows influences their dietary preferences from a young age” (10)

8. The growth economy and employment strategy: increasing the number of adults currently in work

Labour aims to reduce unemployment and help people who are on long term sickness leave to rejoin the labour market and become economically active again. Government figures show that several hundreds of thousands more working age people left the UK workforce during and after all the difficulties experienced because of covid disruption and an increase in health problems in recent years.

Liz Kendall is the new Work and Pensions Secretary and intends to rejuvenate old fashioned Job Centres and provide new schemes to provide customised help to people to help them overcome the barriers to retuning to work.

The New Deal for Working People aims to strengthen existing workers’ rights and improve working conditions across the national workforce.

There is no doubt that minimising stress for working men and women increases happiness, health and productivity. Critics have been concerned that regulations that increase an employer’s responsibilities and legal costs may actually have a negative impact on economic growth in the long term, making companies more hesitant to recruit and hire extra people.

Labour plans for raising much needed government income

Up to £2.6 billion is estimated, by the Chancellor and her financial team, is able to be additionally generated in tax revenue, by closing existing ‘non-dom’ (residents who are not tax domiciles based in the UK) tax loopholes.

This is of course a debatable ‘quick tax win’ as many multi-millionaires and billionaire’s resident in London and the UK can quite easily choose where in the world, they wish to invest their money and be a tax resident.

Therefore, this policy may well have the opposite effect to that which is intended and affect the government’s economic coffers in a negative direction once introduced, should hundreds or thousands of high-net-worth individuals decide to quickly take their spending power and tax revenue elsewhere. (7)

9. Build 1.5 million homes

Rachel Reeves wants to “get Britain building again” The Chancellor says this is important and it will help economic growth in the United Kingdom. (9)

Challenges include the existing planning system and the ongoing tension between local councils, local residents and government planning policy and planning regulations. Chancellor Rachel Reeves wants to reform the planning system and introduce a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which focuses on enabling economic growth across the country.

Another factor to consider is the current availability of a sufficiently skilled labour force to deliver the central government target of such a high number of new build properties, every day.

Labour will continue the efforts by the previous conservative government to improve the number, quality and availability of housing across the country. There is huge demand for social affordable housing for those on lower incomes. Thsi is because over the previous decades, it is agreed by all parties, that we have not built enough of the kind of social housing that many individuals and families on a budget desperately need.

Many areas in counties all over England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have new housing that does not effectively meet the needs of the local people but is the type of residential building that has suited the requirements of private developers and house builders. Privately owned housebuilders are usually primarily focused on making a profit and keep their business operations running smoothly.

Labour is looking at the complex area of planning policy to see where the opportunities for simplifying and improving the system are. This is a complicated and expensive area but with the issue of providing enough new housing, like solving the homeless problem in the UK, it is not ‘rocket science’ and delivering better housing for everyone is an achievable and vital goal for this energetic and creative new government to commit to, and succeed in completing.

10. Infrastructure, transport and energy

Investing in quality infrastructure fit for the future and reducing household bills

Labour is currently introducing more regulation to ensure privately owned utilities, including water companies, will invest in the construction of system upgrades. Labour’s new policies will force companies to invest in major infrastructure improvements, to provide value for UK citizens in the long term.

Sir Keir Starmer and his team are avoiding going down the nationalising strategy road as there is a view that buying back utilities companies is not something that economically speaking, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are in a financial position to be able to do at present.

However, this is all hugely challenging as many United Kingdom based utility service providers are in debt ‘to the tune of’ millions of pounds. Therefore, as costs are passed onto the consumer, this ultimately costs UK residents money through their household bills which have nearly all gone up significantly above inflation year on year, over the past decade.

Any mandated improvements will then additionally also be directly passed on through the cost of energy and utility bills sent to householders. Currently many millions of bill payers and their families on our island are faced with increasing bills. Simultaneously residents experience often low-quality bathing water (and other waterside and water sport activities) affecting their healthy enjoyment of life and their ability to enjoy the sea and river waters, by which they live.

To future proof our basic infrastructure for this generation and also the next generations serious investment is required to replace our, in places, antiquated and leaking systems. There are several big expensive infrastructure projects underway across the country as regional and local councils realise that increasing population density creates an urgent need for major investment to provide water, sewage, electricity, communication and gas and other renewable energy supplies to homes and businesses throughout the UK.

This situation is closely linked to another important priority for Labour to improve:

Fuel Poverty and financial hardship currently experienced by millions of individuals and families in the UK.  (6)

There is also the massive challenge of providing cleaner greener energy to our homes and businesses (which are currently heated mostly by natural gas) and a Labour manifesto objective to deliver this by 2030 which is less than 6 years away. (7)

Finding ways to build energy independence in the UK to provide a more secure energy provision will also involve major infrastructure investment, which will cost many millions of pounds to introduce.

Labour’s Great British energy company will be ‘owned by the British people’ based in Scotland and the plan promises to ambitiously make progress in developing secure (nationally managed) energy whilst creating good jobs and lowering bills for citizens.

Great British Energy’s three initial priorities

“Great British Energy will have three initial priorities working alongside private partners:

1. “Co-investing in new technologies: Great British Energy will help speed up and scale the deployment of new technologies, with public investment helping to crowd in investment in areas like floating offshore wind, tidal power and hydrogen as they develop into mature technologies.” (11)
2. “Scale and accelerate mature technologies: Great British Energy will also help scale and accelerate the roll-out of mature technologies, like wind, solar and nuclear. It will partner with existing private sector firms to speed up deployment of mature renewable technologies to meet our ambitious clean power timelines. It will also build organisational capability and expertise to deliver energy megaprojects like nuclear power stations, reducing project and construction risk.” (11)
3. “Scale up municipal and community energy: GB Energy will partner with energy companies, local authorities and cooperatives to develop 8GWs small-scale and medium-scale community energy projects. Profits will flow directly back into local communities to cut bills, not to the shareholders of foreign companies. This will help to create a more decentralised energy system, with more local generation and ownership, and will help to create a more resilient energy system.” (11)

Boosting onshore and offshore wind power infrastructure development sounds fantastic and we all want to minimise our reliance on fossil fuels and protect our environment to meet our climate objectives.

We do have considerable opportunity as an often (but not always) the British Isles are a very windy island, so maximising the natural opportunities that wind technology can could contribute to reliable energy independence.

All these major infrastructure projects are potentially and actually located in different parts of the country and often in areas of outstanding or special beauty and much-loved unspoilt countryside and coastlines.

Those households who benefit from receiving cheap and reliable energy may live many hundreds of miles away from the location of the turbines, machinery, equipment and power stations and their physical networks of different varieties.

The challenge is to overcome the natural reluctance of villages and towns to shoulder a heavy burden in terms of plant and new infrastructure allocated altogether on their doorstep and as far as the eye can see. Financial incentives and new jobs for communities agreeing to host much needed infrastructure development could be part of the answer to ensuring British energy independence, which could be imperative during these uncertain times internationally.

Transport

Although electric vehicles are now commonplace on our roads in the UK there is a lot to be done to create an efficient and affordable transport system in the UK that helps to maximise the potential for economic growth and well-being, for both UK citizens and international visitors.

Many major cities have frequent long traffic jams that slow up productivity and unnecessarily increase carbon emissions in England. The South East of England is often affected by miles of queues, with infrastructure improvements such as the A27 bypass shelved because they are too expensive to deliver at this time.

Train travel is a great opportunity and has a splendid and innovative history in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland but there are also massive challenges to overcome to deliver services that meet the expectations of commuters, students and international leisure travellers used to the efficient and reasonably priced services currently delivered at standard, in many other European countries.

Although many people who work on the railways are wonderfully helpful key workers, often UK train services are still super expensive, unreliable and overcrowded train services that millions of people struggle to rely on in order to get to work and other important appointments.

The Conservatives cancelled their flagship HS2 rail infrastructure project and train drivers (who have recently been given pay rises despite no improvement in services discernible to rail users) have been consistently on strike in recent months, so there is a lot that can be improved. (7)

Bus services are a postcode lottery and not everyone can afford to run a car of any variety and additionally not everyone lives near a bus stop or train station. Labour strives to improve transport and also “promote social mobility and regional equality” which sounds great.

“Buses in England outside London were privatised and deregulated by law in the 1980s, before limited powers were given to metro mayors as part of devolution, allowing them to set routes and timetables.” Stated the Guardian newspaper explaining why some of our most convenient public transport networks are not as appropriate, accessible and affordable as they could be. (12)

Impressively labour have wasted no time in making a radical change to the existing organisation of transport in communities by enabling local authorities across England to run and control bus services. This means local council leaders can introduce and be more flexible about providing routes and services that closely meet the people who live in their specific area.

The new transport secretary Louise Haigh called it a “bus revolution” but time will tell whether councils have the funding to truly deliver the kind of system that local people (often in rural locations) really need to reliably get them to their healthcare appointments, educational institutions, social and family meetups and crucially to their employment workplaces. (12)

Conclusion

The delighted elation for Labour politicians at the exciting and decisive win gained in the July UK General Election, after being in opposition for 14 years, has now faded with the summer evening sunshine. It is time to get down to the real and sometimes shocking business of leading this amazing, beautiful, talented, often problematic and occasionally troubled country.

The enthusiasm and determination of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and their capable senior team is admirable, and also occasionally rather depressing if considering the serious situation of attempting to balance the nation’s financial books post covid, Brexit, energy crisis and conservative leadership changes.

If the UK can experience economic growth and prosperity and also be an alternative green energy hub that the world can admire, that will be amazing. There is a lot of work to do as many government departments are currently underfunded and trying to make it work with diminishing resources that have already suffered budget cuts during the austerity years.

There is no doubt that there are opportunities to work smarter with existing budgets but also it is clear there is still a lot to do in all directions, to make any significant improvements to the quality of life and future prospects of British citizens.

Sir Keir’s leadership will be essential to ensuring that Labour manifesto priorities are delivered while simultaneously hiring and leading the great teams that are needed to focus on serving our communities well in the long term, whilst providing the services and facilities that are needed right now.

The first role of government is to preserve the security of the people. All Members of Parliament led by the Prime Minister will need to embrace and adapt to a changing international landscape with key elections in America in November this year that may significantly change the balance of power. There are ongoing serious international conflicts that affect the UK and all nations around the globe.

Careful diplomacy will be needed to assist in creating a more peaceful planet, maintaining our security and defence and handling situations out of our government’s direct control, such as the unexpected energy crisis, that in recent years have affected almost all our lives living in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Perhaps the recent NASA International Space Station Missions can provide much needed inspiration of how we can succeed in creating a more peaceful world, if many countries can work together with the right mindset and a fresh perspective:

“The main goal of the International Space Station is to work on peaceful projects. In space, we’re all people from Earth.” declared Sunita Williams who is a talented NASA Astronaut who has definitely found her “happy place”.

We hope Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s professional, serious, calm and collaborative approach can help lead the United Kingdom’s citizens back on earth to build and develop the best health and prosperity that is possible over the coming years, for a nation heading into the 21^st century.

  (1) ‘What will Keir Starmer’s first few weeks as prime minister look like?’ Rebecca Mckee and Jack Pannell, Institute for Government, 26 June 2024 ‘What will Keir Starmer’s first few weeks as prime minister look like?’ Rebecca Mckee and Jack Pannell, Institute for Government (2) ‘Who is the Speaker of the House of Commons and what do they do?’ Jennifer Clarke, BBC News, 9 July 2024 ‘Who is the Speaker of the House of Commons and what do they do?’ Jennifer Clarke, BBC News (3) ‘First Minister John Swinney announced his first Programme for Government on 4 September 2024’ Scottish Government official press release 4 September 2024 ‘First Minister John Swinney announced his first Programme for Government on 4 September 2024’ Scottish Government official press release (4) ‘Violent scenes as far-right protesters ‘hijack’ vigil for 3 girls killed in Southport knife attack’ Helen Regen, Niamh Kennedy, Maija Ehlinger, Duarte Mendonca, Radian Gigova, CNN News, 1 August 2024 ‘Violent scenes as far-right protesters ‘hijack’ vigil for 3 girls killed in Southport knife attack’ Helen Regen, Niamh Kennedy, Maija Ehlinger, Duarte Mendonca, Radian Gigova, CNN News (5) ‘Further footage released of people wanted over riots’ 5 September 2024 (5) ‘Further footage released of people wanted over riots’ BBC News (6) ‘Labour’s first week: Eight key plans, and the challenges ahead’ Matt McGrath, Kevin Peachey, Nick Triggle, James Landale, Daniel Sandford, Simon Jack, Sima Kotecha, BBC News, 13 July 2024 ‘Labour’s first week: Eight key plans, and the challenges ahead’ Matt McGrath, Kevin Peachey, Nick Triggle, James Landale, Daniel Sandford, Simon Jack, Sima Kotecha, BBC News (7) ‘What can we expect from Labour’s First 100 Days in Power’ Ella Dutton, Brevia Consulting, 12 July 2024 ‘What can we expect from Labour’s First 100 Days in Power’ Ella Dutton, Brevia Consulting (8) ‘Any Questions?’ Alex Forsyth presents political debate from the Skypark in Glasgow, BBC Radio 4 Series, 14 September 2024 ‘Any Questions?’ Alex Forsyth presents political debate from the Skypark in Glasgow, BBC Radio 4 Series (9) ‘Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg’ Featuring Chancellor Rachel Reeves, BBC One News, 21 July 2024 ‘Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg’ Featuring Chancellor Rachel Reeves, BBC One News (10) ‘Ban on junk food TV adverts before 9pm to come in next year’ Alex Boyd and Zahra Fatima, BBC News 12 September 2024 ‘Ban on junk food TV adverts before 9pm to come in next year’ Alex Boyd and Zahra Fatima, BBC News (11) ‘Vote to switch on Great British Energy’ Website promoted by David Evans on behalf of the Labour Party, 20 Rushworth Street, London, SE1 0SS,       14  September 2024   ‘Vote to switch on Great British Energy’ Website promoted by David Evans on behalf of the Labour Party (12) ‘Labour to give English local authorities power to run bus services’ Gwyn Topham, Transport Correspondent, The Guardian, 9 September 2024 ‘Labour to give English local authorities power to run bus services’ Gwyn Topham, Transport Correspondent, The Guardian (13) International Space Station Quotes, BrainyQuote website, 14 September 2024 International Space Station Quotes, Sunita Williams, NASA Astronaut, BrainyQuote

The votes had been mostly counted after a long day at polling stations all over the United Kingdom last night at 10pm.

This week the polls had predicted that an unprecedented number of people would select to mark a cross in the box for their local Labour party candidates, who were representing their local constituency area. Labour is the major party in opposition to the Conservatives who have been in power for the last 14 years. The last six weeks has seen an energetic roller coaster of an election contest.

It was a truly breathtaking moment when the preliminary UK general election results were announced last night live on television.

Labour had, as the polls had predicted, secured a mega majority of parliamentary seats in the Houses of Parliament gaining an amazing 412 seats. The Liberal Democrats had also won more seats than ever before, with a comparatively impressive 61 seats for their party led by Ed Davies.

It was a truly crushing defeat for the Conservatives who are trailing far behind Labour with 121 seats in a way not seen since the 1930’s and that most of us have never seen in our lifetime.

“The Conservatives saw their vote share almost halve to 23.7 percent, down from 43.6 per cent at the last election.” Reported the Financial Times today. (4)

Rishi Sunak took responsibility for the failure of his party to continue in power, in his departure from Number 10 Downing Street speech earlier. Sunak apologised to the nation for not meeting their expectations. Then with gentlemanly professionalism, he wished the new Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his family the best of luck in the top job role, as he departed holding his wife’s hand. Rishi Sunak was undoubtedly feeling some sense of relief from the pressure of uniting the United Kingdom behind a troubled and ailing Conservative party, which has probably made for a very stressful couple of years.

Today the final results rolled in and with only 2 seats left to declare a huge win for Keir Starmer and the Labour party is confirmed with Labour winning a 33.7% share of the all the votes cast. (1)

The seats won so far today are as follows:

Labour 412, Conservatives 121, Liberal Democrats 71,

Scottish National party 9, Sinn Fein 7, Independent 6, Democratic Unionist Party 5, Reform UK 4, Green 4, Plaid Cymru 4, Social Democratic & Labour Party 2, Alliance Party 1, Ulster Unionist Party 1, Traditional Unionist Voice 1

This means the majority of voters in the UK have voted against re-electing the Conservatives, sending a very strong message for the party.

Men and women of all ages have chosen to turn up and vote for the change which Sir Keir Starmer and his team are proposing. Wes Streeting is likely to become Labour’s Health Secretary very soon, when Keir Starmer announces his new government. Speaking on Laura Kuenssberg’s Sunday morning politics show on the BBC recently, Streeting warned that “not voting was giving a fresh mandate to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his cabinet” to continue with an increasingly unpopular government besieged by scandals and policies that many citizens did not support.  (3)

The public are giving Labour an opportunity to demonstrate how they will improve Great Britain and Northern Ireland by putting into practice the policies that they have outlined in their Labour manifesto. These commitments include prioritising the health service, the green economy, new immigration strategies, education reforms and measures to further prevent anti-social behaviour.

However, according to the Independent this general election is “on track to be the lowest turnout for 20 years” with the percentage of voters who actually put their slips and postal votes in the ballot box standing at around 60%.

Time will tell if Sir Keir Starmer and his team are able to deliver on their manifesto promises. For now, it is all smiles and hopeful excitement for a fresh chapter, a new government and looking forward to the release of pent-up energy and funds that will now be able to roll into action. Getting all these new policies and projects off the ground will help make Great Britain and Northern Ireland stronger if it works.

Sir Keir Starmer makes his upbeat acceptance speech at Number 10 Downing Street this afternoon. On a windy, sunshine and showers day in London, after obtaining permission to form a new government from King Charles II at Buckingham Palace, the Labour leader will begin his time in office as the United Kingdom’s new Prime Minister. As the new cabinet is chosen, there will be celebrations in many constituencies across the country, that continue into this weekend.

(1) BBC Election Results GE24 – Live Updates, 5 July 2024 BBC Election Results GE24 – Live Updates (2) General election turnout on track to be lowest for more than 20 years, Ian Jones, Independent, 5 July 2024 General election turnout on track to be lowest for more than 20 years, Ian Jones, Independent, (3) ‘Streeting Warns of No.10 nightmare if voters stay at home’ Gergana Krasteva, Metro.co.uk newspaper, 17 June 2024 (4) ‘Labour’s landslide victory in charts’ Ella Hollowood and Jonathan Vincent, Financial Times, 5 July 2024 ‘Labour’s landslide victory in charts’ Ella Hollowood and Jonathan Vincent, Financial Times

Polling Stations in every community across the United Kingdom are open this Thursday evening, 4^th of July as the nation votes for which party will lead the country during an unusual general election.

It is six weeks since the current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the unexpected summer leadership contest, outside Number 10 Downing Street on a memorably wet May day.

Both of the major parties in Britain: the Conservatives and Labour have had their fair share of positive coverage in the press and the would-be Prime Minister’s and their teams have all made embarrassing gaffs and mistakes that included rather unprofessional betting on a July 4^th election date sweepstakes and saying dreadful things about the opposition.

To say it has been a bumpy ride for England over the last 14 years under the Conservatives is an understatement. An unexpected pandemic, energy price shocks as well as the war in Ukraine have led to very challenging times for everyone globally, especially families and individuals affected by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised to clean up the more questionable (some would say unforgivable) behaviours seen in his party and demonstrated in multiple scandals such as Partygate. We will know tomorrow whether the general public have faith that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been able to achieve these respectable aims and whether adults living in households around the country believe that those Members of Parliament that are left in the incumbent Conservative government, are united enough to deliver their ambitious agenda. The Conservatives policies include the extremely controversial Rwanda Plan for relocating migrants overseas. On the worryingly dramatic last BBC political debate with Labour’s leader Kier Starmer the existing Prime Minister declared “at least we have a plan!” (as opposed to Labour’s less drastic illegal immigrations policies).

We have all heard many aspects of all the main political parties’ manifestos over the last few weeks. These policies have been transmitted on television debates, on radio programmes as well as features on other digital channels, social media and broadcast live events.

According to the official political polls, many residents across Great Britain and Northern Ireland are looking for a change of those in power in the United Kingdom and Labour is top of the list. The Liberal Democrats already have a lot of support from recent local elections and have a place in the polls as a viable opposition for those that don’t want to vote Conservative but can’t quite bring themselves to vote for Labour for whatever reason. Fun fact: The Liberal Democrats are the only party looking to work towards a reintegration with the European Union post Brexit. Ed Davey has run an entertaining and interesting Liberal Democrat campaign strategy that has helped to lighten the mood at times. Sometimes this jolly and caring approach has appeared a little soppy for the often-sober times we a living through. This is after all the most senior role in Westminster that involves becoming a figurehead for the UK at international conferences.

The Green party have been popular in the debating process and they have a special place as the one party that is focusing on the important work of minimising the effect of global climate change.

There are several independent parties and Nigel Farage made a surprise decision to run in May. Farage is representing the Reform party which has also had its fair share of shocking news stories during this sometimes heated and relatively stressful lead up to polling day. It is a shame that in 2024 we still have accusations around rude comments regarding someone’s race and heritage in the United Kingdom. Thankfully this doesn’t represent the British public who are by and large excellent folk with kind attitudes towards their fellow citizens.

We have millions of people with a positive spirit and many talents living on the beautiful British Isles. Our vibrant and cosmopolitan nation has much to be proud of and we can achieve great things working together.

However, we currently have an economy with limited resources in the United Kingdom and there are also several difficult and serious issues to address this year the the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom will need to deal with including funding the armed services, benefits and care system and the National Health Service as well as our esteemed emergency services, police force and educational institutions.

There is no doubt that Kier Starmer and Rishi Sunak are very different people with differing views on how to solve our biggest problems and grow our economy to be able to afford more services for our citizens. Prime Minister (for the rest of today at least) Rishi Sunak, Kier Starmer and Ed Davey are all professionals that have the ability and the statesmanship to lead our country forward.

On occasions during the political campaigns running up to these elections the atmosphere has been fraught, competitive and more than one debate has bordered on aggressive, angry and full of unnecessarily loud voices.

It would be understandable that men and women of all ages living in the United Kingdom may have chosen to book the first bargain getaway abroad that pops into their inbox in order to escape all the chaos of the noisy election runup.

Political decisions in a permacrisis are difficult and on top of all the other pressures of daily living the last thing we all need is another appointment in a physical location with limited parking facilities involving paperwork and all the neighbours.

It is worth remembering when deciding whether to dash out and put your ‘X’ on the ballot paper that democracy is a special privilege that works when everyone in a society ‘makes it happen’. Our system isn’t perfect but as Churchill once said “democracy is the worst form of government except all the others.”

We have free and fair elections in the United Kingdom and the suffragette movement sacrificed greatly to enable women to vote and in the fullness of time to be treated with the equality that we enjoy today. We still have work to do in this regard. Several dozen countries around the world are not fortunate enough to freely choose who they vote for even if they purport to be ‘democratic’ We must exercise our right to vote when we can as a tribute to those who suffered in order to make that happen for future generations.

Voting and using our voice to promote and celebrate the freedoms that we currently have is the best way to protect our rights in a changing world. Our non-perfect, best it can be, democratic political process allows everyone to participate and influence the way our country works. We are grateful to those who step up, represent us all and serve our society every day. We wish them and the United Kingdom the best of luck as the results roll in tonight!